In the midst of a great analysis of Pope Benedict XVI's recent speech and the barbaric reaction of Muslims to an old quote, there comes this observation on the lack of reciprocity in the treatment of religious believers between the West and the Islamic world.

Desire for a more muscular stance, however, has been building among Catholics around the world for some time. In part, it has been driven by persecution of Christians in the Islamic world, like the murder of an Italian missionary, the Rev. Andrea Santoro, in Trabzon, Turkey, in February. A 16-year-old Turk fired two bullets into Father Santoro, shouting “God is great.” But perhaps the greatest driving force has been the frustrations over reciprocity. To take one oft-cited example, while Saudis contributed tens of millions of dollars to build Europe’s largest mosque in Rome, Christians cannot build churches in Saudi Arabia. Priests in Saudi Arabia cannot leave oil-industry compounds or embassy grounds without fear of reprisals from the mutawa, the religious police. The bishop of the region recently described the situation as “reminiscent of the catacombs.”

When will we demand religious freedom for Christians in every land, or impose islamic-style restrictions on the religious freedom of Muslims in the West?

Posted by: Boyo at 10:07 PM | Comments (5) | Add Comment
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