Saudi Christians tortured
Posted: Sat Jun 11, 2005 7:47 pm
Saudi Arabia: Christians Imprisoned, Beaten for Worship of Jesus
By Paul Strand
June 10, 2005
For years, the government of Saudi Arabia has spent billions of dollars building their mosques and spreading their Islam throughout the Western World, including the United States . But in the country where Islam began, Saudis have no tolerance for other religions or even other forms of Islam. And they're markedly increasing their persecution of Christians.
It's being called the worst crackdown on Christian believers in Saudi Arabia , in a decade. Over the past three months, close to 100 Christians—all of them guest workers in Saudi Arabia —have been arrested by Saudi religious police. The guest workers' crime? Worshipping Jesus Christ.
In April, 40 Pakistani Christians were arrested at an underground church outside of Riyadh . In May, as many as 7 Christians from East Africa were arrested at a private worship service. And just last week, 46 more Christians —all natives of India —were rounded up and thrown in prison. Some received severe beatings.
Jeff King is President of International Christian Concern.
King said, “It's a terrible situation. People, expat workers, coming there who are Christians. They want to worship—not evangelize there, not spread the Gospel there—but just communicate with each other and worship together. But they can't do it. Yet, they will do it, but under great risk."
In the latest round of arrests, Saudi religious police ransacked the Christians' homes. They destroyed any Bibles they found.
Critics say the Saudi's blatant disregard for the Christian Holy Book is the height of hypocrisy, given the recent Saudi condemnation of the U.S. over alleged mishandling of the Koran at Guantanamo .
Senator Rick Santorum (R-Pa.) told us, "It's clearly hypocrisy to have a country teaching their people, in their madrassas—schools—to be intolerant of other religions, to desecrate religious symbols and religious holy books of others, to persecute individuals who hold different religious beliefs. Then the same clerics, putting out this kind of hate of other religions, (are) outraged if one of their religious articles is somehow offended."
Media critics say the strangest thing is how the American media seem to play up every abuse of Muslim prisoners, but rarely cover Saudi abuse of Christians.
Tim Graham is Director of Media Analysis for the Media Research Council.
Graham said, “They really feel that it's the American media's job to hold Americans accountable, but only Americans. So in this case, when we're discussing the Koran vs. the Bible, the Saudis can destroy the Bible and 'nobody really cares'. Because the Saudis don't have a standard of separating church and state, or have religious tolerance. Therefore, the media thinks, we don't have to hold the Saudis to that standard—we only hold America to that standard.”
Yet Senator Santorum countered that, saying Saudi Arabia is “not being helpful in the region, no matter how much oil we get from them. This is simply unacceptable behavior."
The Saudi government forbids all public displays of religious faith except their official state religion—Wahabbi Islam, also called Wahabbism.
Wahabbism is the same type of Islam practiced by Osama bin Laden and Al-Qaeda.
The Saudi government allows no Christian churches or symbols in Saudi Arabia . In addition, Muslims who don't practice Wahabbism are also subject to persecution.
But these days, more often than not, it's Christians who take the brunt of the Saudi abuse.
Concerned lawmakers say the U.S. government isn't doing enough to stop it, and indeed must do more to stop it.
Santorum added, “The Saudis have a terrible record, such a terrible record we have put them on the list of countries who are the worst offenders of religious persecution. [These recent persecutions] simply add to the problem. I would make the argument that this has got to be a high priority for this administration."
Saudi officials, this week, denied reports of Christian persecution in Saudi Arabia . In his meeting in Crawford , Texas with President Bush in April, Saudi Crown Prince Abdullah said that, "tolerance must extend to those of all faiths and practices."
But so far, those observing the situation from outside Saudi Arabia say, “the Saudi words and the Saudi deeds just aren't matching.”
By Paul Strand
June 10, 2005
For years, the government of Saudi Arabia has spent billions of dollars building their mosques and spreading their Islam throughout the Western World, including the United States . But in the country where Islam began, Saudis have no tolerance for other religions or even other forms of Islam. And they're markedly increasing their persecution of Christians.
It's being called the worst crackdown on Christian believers in Saudi Arabia , in a decade. Over the past three months, close to 100 Christians—all of them guest workers in Saudi Arabia —have been arrested by Saudi religious police. The guest workers' crime? Worshipping Jesus Christ.
In April, 40 Pakistani Christians were arrested at an underground church outside of Riyadh . In May, as many as 7 Christians from East Africa were arrested at a private worship service. And just last week, 46 more Christians —all natives of India —were rounded up and thrown in prison. Some received severe beatings.
Jeff King is President of International Christian Concern.
King said, “It's a terrible situation. People, expat workers, coming there who are Christians. They want to worship—not evangelize there, not spread the Gospel there—but just communicate with each other and worship together. But they can't do it. Yet, they will do it, but under great risk."
In the latest round of arrests, Saudi religious police ransacked the Christians' homes. They destroyed any Bibles they found.
Critics say the Saudi's blatant disregard for the Christian Holy Book is the height of hypocrisy, given the recent Saudi condemnation of the U.S. over alleged mishandling of the Koran at Guantanamo .
Senator Rick Santorum (R-Pa.) told us, "It's clearly hypocrisy to have a country teaching their people, in their madrassas—schools—to be intolerant of other religions, to desecrate religious symbols and religious holy books of others, to persecute individuals who hold different religious beliefs. Then the same clerics, putting out this kind of hate of other religions, (are) outraged if one of their religious articles is somehow offended."
Media critics say the strangest thing is how the American media seem to play up every abuse of Muslim prisoners, but rarely cover Saudi abuse of Christians.
Tim Graham is Director of Media Analysis for the Media Research Council.
Graham said, “They really feel that it's the American media's job to hold Americans accountable, but only Americans. So in this case, when we're discussing the Koran vs. the Bible, the Saudis can destroy the Bible and 'nobody really cares'. Because the Saudis don't have a standard of separating church and state, or have religious tolerance. Therefore, the media thinks, we don't have to hold the Saudis to that standard—we only hold America to that standard.”
Yet Senator Santorum countered that, saying Saudi Arabia is “not being helpful in the region, no matter how much oil we get from them. This is simply unacceptable behavior."
The Saudi government forbids all public displays of religious faith except their official state religion—Wahabbi Islam, also called Wahabbism.
Wahabbism is the same type of Islam practiced by Osama bin Laden and Al-Qaeda.
The Saudi government allows no Christian churches or symbols in Saudi Arabia . In addition, Muslims who don't practice Wahabbism are also subject to persecution.
But these days, more often than not, it's Christians who take the brunt of the Saudi abuse.
Concerned lawmakers say the U.S. government isn't doing enough to stop it, and indeed must do more to stop it.
Santorum added, “The Saudis have a terrible record, such a terrible record we have put them on the list of countries who are the worst offenders of religious persecution. [These recent persecutions] simply add to the problem. I would make the argument that this has got to be a high priority for this administration."
Saudi officials, this week, denied reports of Christian persecution in Saudi Arabia . In his meeting in Crawford , Texas with President Bush in April, Saudi Crown Prince Abdullah said that, "tolerance must extend to those of all faiths and practices."
But so far, those observing the situation from outside Saudi Arabia say, “the Saudi words and the Saudi deeds just aren't matching.”
