|
Also on this page
“Why Do the Copts of Egypt Fear Fridays?”
A New Minority in North Africa
The Maghrebi Christians under the Rule of Islamists
On March 24-26, 2007, a conference was held in Zurich,
Switzerland, on the general subject of “The Plight of
Minorities and Women in the Middle East and North
Africa.” One of the topics that came up at the
conference was the status of Maghrebi*
Christians, a topic that is seldom mentioned, or
discussed in Arab publications. The title of the paper
was: “Masihiyyou al-Maghreb fi Hukm al-Islamiyyin.”
(The Maghrebi Christians under the Rule of
Islamists.) It was posted on the online
daily, Elaph, on 10 April, 2007. The
following is a translation of the text, followed by my
analysis and comments.
“The region known nowadays as the Arab Maghreb
(North Africa) was, up to the 7th Century,
inhabited by Jewish and Christian people. Later on, they
converted to Islam. During the 19th Century,
they stood firm against all attempts of Christian
evangelism. However, a new phenomenon has surfaced
during the last few decades, namely the embracing of the
Christian faith by North Africans. This fact raises
several questions as to the importance of these
conversions, their causes, and the dangers that threaten
this minority of “New Christians.”
First, we deal with the New Christians’
phenomenon throughout the Arab Maghreb
The Rise of this Phenomenon
“In a sense, this phenomenon is not restricted to the
Arab Maghreb, as there are indications that a
number of Muslims are embracing Christianity throughout
all the continents, especially in sub-Saharan Africa and
in Asia. As to the Arab Maghreb, this
phenomenon has drawn the attention of the media. For
example, the weekly journal, Jeune Afrique,
devoted three reports on this subject with respect to
Tunisia, Morocco, and Algeria. In March 2005, the French
daily Le Monde, devoted a complete report
about this topic. And Al-‘Arabiyya TV
channel telecast two reports on the subject that were
recorded in the Kabyle region of Algeria.
“Jeune Afrique
estimates the number of people who have embraced
Christianity in Tunisia to be around 500, belonging to
three churches. A report on the website of
“Al-Islam al-Yawm” prepared by Lidriss
el-Kenbouri, dated 23 April 2005, estimated the
number of European evangelists in Morocco, around 800.
Quite often, their evangelistic efforts are successful.
The report further added that about 1,000 Moroccans have
left Islam during 2004. The magazine “Al-Majalla”
in its No. 1394 issue, claimed that the number of
New Christians in Morocco is around 7,000;
perhaps the exact number may be as high as 30,000.
“The report in the French daily Le Monde
claimed that during 1992, between 4,000 and 6,000
Algerians embraced Christianity in the Kabyle region. By
now, their numbers may be in the tens of thousands.
However, the authorities are mum about this subject; as
an Algerian government official put it, the number of
those who have embraced Christianity is a state
secret.
The Most Important Factors for Conversions to
Christianity
“First factor:
The violence of the fundamentalist Islamist
movements.
“In a statement by a former member of the Algerian
Nahda Movement ** made to Jeune Afrique:
‘I observed that during my imprisonment, there was no
difference between the police’s treatment and that of
the Nahda.’ This factor played a greater role in
Algeria in the aftermath of the terrible massacres that
began in 1992. A Christian evangelist working in Algeria
said: ‘These terrible events shocked people greatly.
It proved that Islam was capable of unleashing all that
terror, and all those massacres! Even children were not
spared during the uprising of the Islamists! Women were
raped! Many people began to ask: ‘Where is Allah?’ Some
Algerians committed suicide! Others lost their minds;
others became atheists, and still others chose the
Messiah!’
“Second Factor: The failure of the political regimes.
“According to Sebastian Fateh, of the National Center
for Scientific Research in France, the Maghrebi
states tried to apply, during the last four decades,
various political regimes, such as nationalistic,
Islamists, and dictatorial types. Thus, the embracing
of Christianity by people of the region represents
another attempt to discover the proper regime; since all
the previous ones had failed.
“Third Factor: The religious training within the family.
“The report of “Al-Majalla” mentioned
above, included the testimony of a young Moroccan woman
who embraced Christianity: ‘Our father used to
order us to pray and read the Qur’an; when we disobeyed
that command, he punished us with beatings. He told us
that if we refused to wear the hijab, we would suffer in
hell.’
“According to her testimony, this young woman’s
relation with Allah was devoid of love. A
Christian Moroccan aged 30, involved in spreading his
faith declared: ‘Many of us regard Islam as a
social fetter, a shackle, or a handicap.’
“Undoubtedly, the religious education offered in Muslim
countries depicts a sadistic and fearful view of
Allah, whose punishments are severe. He
must not be questioned about what He does; only his
followers are questioned about their acts. No
doubt that the horrific massacres perpetrated by the
Islamists in Algeria, did contribute to the success of
the evangelistic work both in Algeria, and in the
surrounding countries. But why are people choosing
specifically Christianity?
“Fourth Factor: The geographical and linguistic factors
have played an important role in the conversion of
Maghrebi people to Christianity.
“This is especially the case with France which has
welcomed many Maghrebi immigrants. We should not forget
the existence of Christian churches in some of the big
cities of North Africa, nor the impact of five Christian
satellite TV stations that telecast their programs in
Arabic. The young Moroccan evangelist estimates that
personal contacts are responsible for 60% of
conversions; while the role of the Internet is
around 30%, while those who embraced Christianity
through the work of foreign missionaries tends to be
around 10%.
“Quite often, the “New Christians” testify to the
fact that what they discovered in their new faith is
love; it was the major factor in their conversion.
These are some of their words:
‘We found out that in Christianity, God is love,’ ‘God
loves all people;’ ‘What attracted us to Christianity is
the teaching that God is love.’
“Second, what is of concern for us at the Zurich
‘Conference for the Defense of Minorities’ in our part
of the world, is the danger surrounding these New
Christians, a danger that will increase should the
Islamists assume power in North Africa.
The Present Danger:
“Even though the various constitutions of the Maghrebi
states guarantee religious freedom and the fact that the
Universal Declaration of Human Rights (Section
18) supports freedom of belief; New Christians
do face serious dangers due to the fatwas
prescribing severe punishments for the sin of
“radda” (apostasy). Actually such fatwas
are being issued by the Islamists. Here we may refer to
the Algerian Front Islamique du Salut FIS,
and the Moroccan Justice and Development Party,
as well as the Justice and Benevolence Movement,
all clamoring for the application of the Medieval
Fiqh (Islamic Jurisprudence) with respect to the
sin of apostasy. Their pronouncements may lead some
crazy person to take it upon himself to punish apostates
with the ultimate penalty, namely the shedding of their
blood. In this respect, we should not forget the law
passed by the Algerian Parliament on 20 March 2006
requiring the punishment of any person ‘who makes,
holds, or distributes any pamphlets, audio or video
cassettes, or any other method that aims at shaking
people’s faith in Islam.’
The Future Danger when Islamists assume power in North
Africa.
“The greatest danger will be faced should the Islamists
take over governments. This danger already exists in
Morocco, where opinion polls indicate that the
Justice and Development Party is expected to win
the elections planned for the latter part of this year.
In that case, it would not be beyond the realm of the
possible that terrible massacres will take place when
thousands of those who had voluntarily converted to
Christianity, would lose their lives, notwithstanding
the existence of Article 18 of the Universal
Declaration of Human Rights that guarantees freedom
of belief. A former Algerian government official warned
that the future wars in the Arab Maghreb will be
“Huroub al-Radda”*** (Wars against the
Apostates), i.e. wars between Islamists and those
Maghrebi Muslims who had left Islam.
“Taking the above into consideration, I believe that it
is of utmost importance that the ‘Organization for
the Defense of Minorities’ that would come out of
the Zurich Conference, should adopt the cause of
our brothers in humanity. It is necessary that we invite
representatives from these groups in North Africa to
join our new-born organization. We should cooperate with
Arab and international organizations dedicated to the
defense of human rights, and lend our support for this
North African religious minority. These new Christians
are facing dangers coming from those fundamentalist
North African movements whose actions have taught us
that they do not hesitate at committing the ugliest
crimes. We should never forget that FIS
(Islamic Salvation Front)
filled the streets, valleys, and mountains of Algeria
during the 1990s, with blood and corpses. In the same
way, Moroccan Islamists are following the footsteps of
the Algerian radicals, committing crimes against the
security forces, tourists, members of the Jewish
community, and students. This is why we must remain on
our guard!”
Analysis
The purpose of the paper was to draw the attention of
the conferees to the existence of a new minority
in North Africa that deserves recognition and
protection. While the Islamic Shari’a
allows for the existence of Jews and Christians within
Daru’l Islam by granting them the
dhimmi status, the same law prohibits
radda (apostasy), and punishes a murtad
(apostate) with death.
Comments
The paper about Maghrebi converts to
Christianity is of great significance. Muslims never
cease to boast about converts to Islam from other world
faiths, but they are loathe to acknowledge that some of
their own faith do leave it, either to embrace a
no-faith worldview, or to become members of another
religion. The tradition that began immediately after
Muhammad’s death in 632, and which forced Arab tribes
who had gone back on Islam to return to Islam, is still
in force fourteen centuries later.
The deep reason for forbidding radda is to
maintain the very raison d’etre of Islam. Muhammad
declared himself to be the last prophet of Allah.
Therefore, there could be no new prophet to supersede
him; nor could the previous revelations given to the
prophets that preceded him be considered as authentic;
since as Muslims contend, they have all been corrupted.
Islam remains the only true religion, and Muslims must
never consider leaving their faith, for the sin of
apostasy is just as serious as the sin of shirk
(belief in many gods.)
However strict the laws of apostasy may be, the fact is
that some Muslims are converting to Christianity. This
is not propaganda emanating from the Christian side. The
paper I quoted above made it clear that these
conversions are taking place, and gave anecdotal
accounts about the reality of these conversions, based
on Arab and non-Christian sources.
Most of the testimonies of the converts pointed to the
fact that what attracted them to the Christian faith was
something that was totally lacking in their own
tradition. Allah seemed to be unconcerned about his
creatures; all he demanded was blind obedience. They
craved for love, and they discovered that message in the
Christian faith. That’s the summary reason for their
conversion.
In reflecting on the report given at the Zurich
Conference, I could not help noticing this total lack of
a quid pro quo that exists between Islam
and the rest of the world. Muslims living within
traditionally non-Muslim lands, enjoy total freedoms of
worship and proselytizing. They build mosques
everywhere, and engage in aggressive da’wa
(calling people to Islamize.) And when non-Muslims
embrace al-Sirat al-Mustaqeem (the Right
Path=Islam), they broadcast that on all types of media.
On the other hand, dhimmis in the lands of
their ancestors, are not allowed to build new churches,
and are forbidden to propagate their faith outside their
own people! And woe unto any Muslim who considers
embracing a religion other than Islam. After all, the
Holy Book declares: “Inna’l Deena ‘inda’l Allahi
al-Islam.” “Certainly the
only acceptable religion with Allah is Islam.” [3:19]
The relation between Islam and the rest of the world is
marked by asymmetry. Muslims may and do enjoy all kinds
of freedoms and privileges in the lands of the
Kuffar; however non-Muslims are not granted the
same rights and privileges when they live in
Daru’l Islam. Western politicians don’t seem to
notice this anomaly; while most Western academicians
don’t appear concerned about this lack of quid pro
quo in the Islamic world. In our globalized
world, this state of affairs should not continue. The
existence of these New Christians of North
Africa must be acknowledged; they need our love and our
concern. We should not allow them to be eliminated, if
the Islamists succeed in taking over the governments in
Tunisia, Algeria, and Morocco.
*Maghreb: Derived from the Arabic
noun that denotes the Western regions of the Arab world,
in contrast with Mashreq, or Eastern
regions of the Arab world. In contemporary Arabic,
Maghreb signifies North Africa, while
Mashreq has been replaced by the term Al-Sharq
al-Awsat (Middle East) Maghrebi:
the Arabic adjective that refers to North Africans in
general, and specifically to Moroccans.
** Nahda:
Arabic for Awakening; in Algeria and in
Tunisia, it is the name of an Islamist group.
***Huroub al-Radda:
This is a reference to the wars against those Arab
tribes who defected from Islam, after the death of
Muhammad in 632 A.D. The first Caliph, Abu Bakr
launched several campaigns against them, and forced them
to return to Islam. Huroub is the plural
of Harb (war); Radda is the
Arabic term for going back (on Islam) i.e.
committing the sin of apostasy. The word
for apostate is murtad.
~~~~~
“Why Do the Copts of Egypt Fear Fridays?”
On 17 May, 2007, while glancing at the website of the
online daily, Elaph, I noticed a very
intriguing title of an article on the plight of the
Christian community in Egypt: “Why Do the Copts of
Egypt Fear Fridays?” The writer, himself an
Egyptian now living in France, gave a realistic
explanation that should stir our thoughts, and make us
fully aware of the suffering of this brave minority. I
share with the readers of 6th Column Against Jihad,
excerpts from the article, and follow with my analysis
and comments.
“Islamists have taken upon themselves the responsibility
to stoke the fires of religious discord and civil strife
whenever they had been extinguished. The result is that
Egypt becomes the victim, and both Muslims and
Christians end up being the losers. It is quite evident
that Islamists don’t want the attacks against the Copts
to stop.
“The last attack on the Copts took place on Friday, 11
April, 2007, in the village of Behma, of the El-‘Ayat
Township, in El-Giza Province. Rumors had spread that
Christians were about to make an addition to their
church building. Five hundred Islamists gathered, and
attacked Christians in their homes and places of
business. They shouted Allahu Akbar, as they
embarked on their new ghazwa (conquest),
resulting in the torching of 27 homes and places of
business. They proceeded to loot the contents of the
shops, taking all they could find of precious metals and
jewelry. After all, why not engage in the plunder,
having been assured by the Islamists’ fatwas that the
Christians’ possessions were legitimate war booty?!
Thankfully, they stopped at that point, and did not take
Christian women captives as a prize of their ugly
ghazwa; however, many Christians in that village
were injured.
Why Afraid of Fridays?
“When I was in Zurich, Switzerland, attending the “Conference
on the Plight of Women and Minorities in the Middle East
and North Africa,”*
an Egyptian Coptic correspondent told me, ‘We Copts,
worry about our own safety and possessions on Fridays,
can you tell me why?’ I answered her, ‘Certainly,
you must know that the Islamist virus has been spreading
in Egypt, in our media, in our educational institutions,
and in the Friday sermons at the mosques. Islamists
have altered the very nature of the Friday sermons,
changing them from messages on religious and moral
issues that are meant to ennoble human beings by
elevating their souls toward their Creator, and enabling
them to become tolerant in their relations with their
fellow human beings. On the contrary, the Friday
sermons have become lessons in hatred and envy of the
‘Other’ declaring him to be a Kafir, and calling for war
against the ‘children of apes and pigs,’ i.e. Christians
and Jews. Thus when a Muslim leaves the mosque
he has become like a time-bomb, ready to explode on any
Christian he encounters on his way. This is why the
Friday sermon has become a very dangerous matter.
“I don’t know why we have never seen a Christian, who
leaves his church on Sundays, goes ahead and sets fire
to a Muslim house, or assaults a Muslim and kills him! I
cannot understand why anyone who kills a Copt and burns
his possessions nowadays is regarded as mentally ill!
Actually, Islamists have succeeded in employing religion
for their political goals. In my discussion with a
historian of contemporary Egyptian history, he told me,
‘The Muslim Brothers (al-Ikhwan al-Muslimun) regard
Copts as an easy prey; so whenever the government
arrests one of their members, they attack a church, or
the Christian population. These acts come to the
attention of the world public opinion, causing the
Egyptian government to stop persecuting the Ikhwan. In
other words, Islamists use the Copts as a means to get
their members released from prison!’
“Whenever attacks on Christians take place, the Egyptian
police seem to be absent! And when they finally appear
at the scene, it is too late. By then the Islamists
would have attacked Christians, beaten them, and robbed
them of their goods. I remember when I was in Muharram
Beik, Alexandria, a Muslim told me, not realizing that I
was a writer, that a policeman who guarded a church
building told the attackers, ‘go ahead and attack the
church, but only from its back door; then, I won’t
interfere with your act!’
“The Islamist International*, under the leadership
of Yousef al-Qaradawi, Rashed
Al-Ghanoushi, and Fahmi Houweidi, issued fatwas allowing for the
murder of women, children, and the unborn, in Israel.
But they have been silent about the killing of civilian
Muslims in Morocco and Algeria, and equally silent about
attacks on our Coptic brothers. These attacks receive
the silent assent of the Islamist fuqaha who approve the
killing of innocent Muslims and peaceful Christians, as
long as the murderers are Islamists like themselves!
Analysis
The writer of the article draws the attention of the
wide readership of Elaph to this
unbelievable state of affairs in Egypt, where Copts fear
the advent of every Friday. This sixth day of the week
has become the occasion for attacks on their persons,
homes and property; almost immediately after the
worshippers leave the mosques!
Comments
Many readers may find it difficult to see a connection
between worship at a mosque and the destructive acts
that follow. Actually, this has become a regular
experience of many Christians in Egypt. This is why
Copts have come to dread Fridays.
I must confess that I was rather surprised to read these
words from the article: “Islamists have altered the
very nature of the Friday sermons, changing them from
messages on religious and moral issues that are meant to
ennoble human beings by elevating their souls toward
their Creator, and enabling them to become tolerant in
their relations with their fellow human beings.”
The writer manifests an extremely idealistic picture of
what a Friday khutba (sermon) should be. I
have listened to many sermons broadcast over the airways
from Cairo, Riyadh, Rabat, and Damascus. The moral and
spiritual elements within a typical Friday khutba
are quite often, minimal. Rather, what the khateeb
(preacher) proclaims is a list of the past glories of
Islam, the ills that have befallen the Islamic world
since the beginning of the 20th century, and
a call for rallying the forces of Islam to regain their
glorious past. Added to that, are the usual imprecations
that are hurled against the enemies of Islam with a
ferocious intensity!
Should we then be surprised that Muslim worshippers,
whether in Cairo, Alexandria, or Karachi, after having
listened to a fiery preacher denounce the enemies of
Islam, ‘leave the mosque as a time-bomb, ready to
explode on any Christian they may encounter on the
road?’
*The Islamist International
is a new term,
reminiscent of a by-gone organization, “The
Comintern,” i.e. (The Third International
that was formed in Moscow in 1919); which sought to
spread Communism all over the globe. Events in the
Islamic world, point to the rise of an Islamist
International, grouping together
jihadist organizations, working for a global jihad, and
the resumption of the futuhat (conquests)
of early Islam.
|
