Christian Persecution in
Sudan - Gordon McDonald - www.khouse.org
Have you ever noticed that the general media avoids the connection between violence and religion in the reporting of daily events?
Not long ago the country of Sudan, after years of civil strife, split into two countries. There had for some time been active "tribal" conflict within the country, as reported by the mainline media. Many had died in the years of strife.
The warring factions came together and decided to split the territory. One would retain the name "Sudan" and the other would become "South Sudan." What was under-reported was that this was not a clash of tribal cultures. This was Islam vs. Christianity.
The Islamic factions of the country migrated to Sudan while the Christians all went south. A new "Christian" nation was born. Since this doesn't really fit with the message currently being proffered by both the U.S. administration and the world media, the distinction was lost in the political-speak.
For those that had heard of it, there was great excitement that a truly Christian nation had been created. The reality, however, is that South Sudan is located, much like Israel, in the middle of neighboring Islamic countries. The hopes for the strife to end has given way to cross border skirmishes and continued animosity.
One of the other trends of silence that is being propagated upon the general public is the persecution of Christians in Islamic countries. Our concerns of the Koran condoning and outright requiring a "convert or die" atmosphere has proved to be, unfortunately, valid.
Presently, in Nigeria, a group named Boko Haram has taken captive 270 young girls and have been holding them for various ransoms. There has been much international outrage and condemnation with little actual action.
What has not been widely reported is that these girls were given the option of converting to Islam or else. These are mostly Christian girls. It has not been mentioned as to how many refused to convert and what their fates were, but the assumption is that they weren't being given this ultimatum as an empty gesture.
Back in Sudan, U.S. citizen Daniel Wani is trying to save the life of his wife, Meriam Yeyha Ibrahim. Ibrahim, who has been shackled and jailed with her 18-year-old son, is 8 months pregnant and has been condemned to death for not renouncing her Christian faith. She was convicted of apostasy by a Shariah, or Islamic, court in Khartoum.
"I'm just praying for God. He can do a miracle," Wani's brother, Gabriel, said. "Everyone is depressed. You don't believe it. It's shock."
Ibrahim, 27, is a Christian, but the court says she is really a Muslim because her father was a Muslim. Under Shariah Law, if Muslims renounce their faith they can be sentenced to death. She was also charged and sentenced for "zena," Arabic for illegitimate sex, for having sex with a non-muslim, her Christian husband. The penalty is 100 lashes.
Ibrahim answered the court by saying that her father left the family early in her life and she grew up with her Ethiopian Orthodox mother, knowing nothing but Christianity. She was sentenced to be hanged after refusing to renounce her Lord. In the past, several others had been presented with these same charges but they all converted to Islam.
The court gave her three days to change her mind. After that the judge said, "We gave you three days to recant but you insist on not returning to Islam," Judge Abbas Khalifa told Ibrahim, "I sentence you to be hanged to death." The court has said that she won't be executed until after her child is born and nursed.
As international outrage grew, the Sudanese court released a statement confirming the death sentence but saying that it is not a final outcome. No one knew exactly what was meant by this, but it did provide some hope that outside pressure was having a positive effect.
We must not remain uniformed of occurrences of this sort. The information may be difficult to find but the Internet still provides the necessary information. We must never forget that Meriam and those others enduring such abuse are our family-our sisters and brothers. Don't let your eyes and hearts be blinded by information control. Do what you can.
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