December 23, 2010

With the holiday season upon us and Christmas just two days away, it's a good time to reflect on Muslim-Christian relations at home and abroad.

 Here in the United States, Muslim and Christian leaders engage in regular dialogue about the mutual interests they hold as Americans. Just this past weekend, Pastor Bob Roberts of the NorthWood Church in the Dallas/Ft. Worth area traveled to Los Angeles to participate in MPAC's 10th annual convention. Roberts, who has written about the need for increased understanding between Christians and Muslims in the Christian Post, said:

 "The world we are living in now has shifted, and we are all connected. The problem is that we don't know how to talk amongst one another. I bring greetings to my cousins, Muslims. I love you. My biggest challenge is not getting crucified by Muslims; it's getting crucified by my own tribe for loving Muslims." click here to watch the full session

 Roberts joins another prominent evangelical pastor, Rick Warren, in extending a hand to Muslim Americans in the pursuit of mutual understanding and co-existence. Muslim congregations and organizations have warmly embraced such open hands and hearts.

 The Christmas season encourages both of our communities to reflect on Jesus, an important figure celebrated by both Christians and Muslims. The Quran describes Christians and Jews as "people of the book," to be respected as partners in the Abrahamic tradition. It also describes Jesus as the word of God, having been miraculously born of the Virgin Mary, and performing countless miracles by the power of God, including giving sight to the blind, breathing life into a piece of clay, bringing the dead to life, and curing a leper. For many centuries, Christians have lived and prospered as a vibrant and integral part of Islamic civilization.

 Yet, Muslim-Christian relations are currently strained. In recent days and months, we have noticed rising tensions in places like Iraq, Egypt, and Pakistan.

 In Iraq, attacks on churches and targeted killings of Christians have led thousands to flee the country. Such threats to Christians have led to these minority communities to call off their celebrations of Christmas, in fear of violence. In Egypt and Pakistan, reports abound of Christians facing severe pressure, especially when they plan on building churches and celebrating their holidays. In Egypt there have also been specific incidents of violence and kidnapping against Coptic Christians that have further exacerbated tensions between Christians, Muslims and the government.

 Meanwhile, Israeli violations of Palestinian Christians add to the mounting tide of Christian persecution in the Middle East. This week, the mayor of a Jewish suburb of Nazareth refused to allow Christmas trees to be placed in town squares, calling them provocative. Nazareth has a sizable Arab Christian minority, as does mostly Muslim Nazareth itself. A Muslim Arab member of the town council said there were 10,000 Arabs, most of them Christian, as well as a large community of Christian Russian immigrants.

 SEE: Christmas Trees "Provocative:" Nazareth Suburb's Mayor (Associated Press)

 However the situation for Iraqi Christians currently seems to be the most dire. This week local communities called off Christmas festivities across the country as al-Qaeda linked groups threatened more attacks following a bloody siege at a Baghdad church two months ago.

 The Iraqi Christian population, one of the oldest in the world which is believed to date from just after the inception of Christianity, has sharply decreased. Christians make up a disproportionate number of the refugees in nearby countries, despite their relatively small size of the total Iraqi population. According to the UN High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR), 40% of all Iraqi refugees are Christian, despite only about 3% of Iraq's population.

 SEE: Iraqi Churches Cancel Christmas Festivities (Associated Press)

 Al-Qaeda's attacks against Christians, like other religious groups, are a deliberate strategy to polarize sides and provoke an overreaction. Sadly, for a number of years they have achieved deadly success. Now they are increasing violence against Christians even further. However the goal is not more polarization confined to Iraq; their goal is to provoke a larger "civilizational" fight between Christians and Muslims, using vulnerable Iraqi Christians as the bait.

 In order to head off Al-Qaeda's Clash of Civilizations wedge strategy, Christians in Iraq and other Muslim-majority countries must be better protected. It is not just US and Western policies that must demand better protections for religious minorities. The effort must be led by other Muslims seeking to fulfill their religious duties to defend the weak, uphold justice, and safeguard religious freedom for all.

 In the face of so much tension and violence, we must remind ourselves of our joint responsibilities to promote peace and understanding in honor of our shared devotion to God and our scriptures which call upon us to love our neighbors and uphold all human life as sacred and all religious worship as a human right.