Sunday, May 8, 2011

Religious violence in Egypt

It is striking how the violence seems to have been sparked by interfaith relationships.

I suppose Abie's Irish Rose might not work too well in Cairo?

(Of course Bridget Loves Bernie was cancelled after one season because of hatemail to CBS -- so the hateful instinct is worldwide).

May 8, 2011
Sarah El Deeb      
Associated Press     
 
CAIRO — Hundreds of Christians and Muslims hurled stones at each other in downtown Cairo on Sunday, hours after Muslim mobs set fire to a church and a Christian-owned apartment building in a frenzy of violence that killed 12 people and injured more than 200.
...
Hours earlier, mobs of ultraconservative Muslims attacked the Virgin Mary Church in the slum of Imbaba on the opposite side of the Nile. The attack was fuelled by rumours that a Christian woman married to a Muslim man had been abducted by the church. Residents said a separate mob of youths armed with knives and machetes attacked an apartment building several blocks away with firebombs.
...
Interfaith relationships are taboo in Egypt, where the Muslim majority and sizable Christian minority are both largely conservative. Such relationships are often the source of deadly clashes between the faiths.

8 comments:

Anonymous said...

People should stick to there own. That's why God made the different races. But all Eygptians are the same.

James C Morton said...

We have one father and mother -- Adam and Eve. Or at least that's the true meaning of the story (and Adam and Eve together made one but that's another issue). The races of humanity are mere incidents. My skin colour matters (or should matter) as little as my hair colour. I am saddened by violence in Cairo as it reflects a retreat to judging people by their lineage and not by their character and worth. And do not believe we cannot see a reappearance of bigotry here. We must guard against the seduction of separateness.

Anonymous said...

Funny...every religion preaches peace and love. That is until anyone is different than them.

Alison said...

A pox on all religions. Killing people over an imaginary being is just lunacy.

James C Morton said...

I wouldn't go that far about religion. But certainly killing someone else -- heck shunning or treating badly someone else because that's the way to serve G-d -- is wrong. And frankly seeing the violence in "modern" times does not make religions "of peace" seem very peaceful.

Bert said...

Religion isn't causing a lot of the problems in the world right now. Imperialism is causing these problems, in particular through the use of religion as a false front to stir up the masses.

James C Morton said...

Bert, Interesting argument -- care to expand a bit?

Bert said...

This is one example of what I meant:
http://www.globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=va&aid=24012