Are we witnessing a new age of Christian persecution?
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This topic was discussed on World Have Your Say on Tuesday 4 January 2011.ÌýClick here to listen.
Update: After an attack on a church congregation in the early hours of New Years day Christians in Egypt are desperate to make a point. They’ve clashed with Police every night since the bombing and in Cairo last night there was a riot in the North of the city.
One protestor said the situation in the country is critical at the moment:
It's driving all of Egypt into a volcano. People need to take initiative, people need to wake up, and people need to look out for our rights. We are not a minority. This is our country just as much as it is the MuslimsÌý We have a presence in the country, and we have to be considered, but we are completely placed on the sidelines.
Christians make up ten percent of the population in Egypt. This attack has sparked a debate in the country and people are discussingÌýthe role of Christians in the nation and the wider Arab world. What do you think? Do Christians have a future in the Middle East?
Original Post: We’ve spoken about violence against Christians before on the programme but sadly the issue has come up again.
Worshippers at the al-Qiddissin church in Alexandria, Egypt had hardly seen the New Year in before a car bomb as people left the midnight service. Since then hundreds of angry Coptic Christians have taken to the calling for better protection.
Over the festive period we’ve seen a number of other attacks against Christians, particularly in Iraq. On New Years Eve a series of attacks across Baghdad killed two and injured 14. In October an attack on a cathedral in the capital killed more than 50 people.
Journalist believes this is more than just a series of attacks:
We may be witnessing a new age of Christian persecution.
Some Iraqi Christians believe the attacks amount to Genocide with over half a million fleeing their homes in the country. Pope Benedict XVI is also very worried about the situation, in his New Year message he announced he would organise a summit with other religious heads to discuss how peace can be achieved.
Muslims and Christians alike have been targeted by inter-religious violence many times through history – is this time any different? Can different religions ever leave in peace?
