Hat tip to Gates of Vienna.
http://gatesofvienna.net/2013/12/a-call-for-christians-to-defend-themselves/
The Christians of Syria have played the role sheep among a pack of wolves for too long.
http://www.ansamed.info/ansamed/en/news/sections/politics/2013/12/10/Syria-Orthodox-bishop-press-Christians-take-up-arms-_9755998.html
"ANSAmed) - BEIRUT- A Greek Orthodox Syrian bishop invited young Christians to take up arms to defend "the homeland" and the Christian presence in Syria.
In an interview published on the website of Panarab-Iraqi newspaper Azzaman, and republished Tuesday morning in several Middle Eastern media outlets, Bishop Luqa al-Khoury said, "Every Christian youth capable of taking up arms, should do so and defend Syria [...] Christians are prayerful and peaceful, but it seems that today, faced with these people, prayer and peace aren't enough anymore." The Syrian bishop confirmed his stance on Libyan TV's LBC, saying that declarations attributed to him by Azzaman weren't correct, but that,"in this situation, all methods of self-defense are legitimate." Al-Khoury added, "Syrian Christians won't leave Syria of their own will, because they are attached to their land.
Christians and Muslims have been living (in Syria) for over 1,600 years [...] Syrian Christians aren't afraid even though the main goal of those who target the churches is to attack Christians's historic identity." (ANSAmed)."
I am not sure if the good bishop was in fact misquoted or if he feared that his call to arms would bring retaliatory attacks by Obama's beloved Jihadists on his flock, but I was still quite impressed by his clarification that "in this situation, all methods of self-defense are legitimate.".
I hope that Syrian Christians respond to this message in a favorable manner. I would love to see the news reports in the Western media if Western Christians left their homes to help their embattled coreligionists. While Muslims who travel to decapitate captured army personnel and terrorize civilians in other countries are euphemistically referred to as :"freedom fighters", Christians who may travel to protect a terribly oppressed people would no doubt be labeled as "foreign mercenaries" - even if they receive no monetary compensation whatsoever.
I have no doubt that the Western media will take one of two options in regards to this report. The first and most likely choice will be to ignore it. The second will be to accuse the bishop of making things worse.
Any attempt by non-Muslims to defend themselves against their oppressors is willfully misrepresented by the media as "sectarian violence" or "ethnic tensions"*. As long as non-Muslims are being victimized, everything is OK.
It is not only Christians who get the blame; Buddhists too are labeled as hate-mongers or "Nazis" for daring to protect their own against Islamic aggression.
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