The hatred for Christ and all things even resembling Christianity runs deep in the Muslim world. Do not be fooled by outward gestures of “kindness,” because ultimately the more Islamic a place is, the deeper the hate goes.
Saudi Arabia is one of the worst offenders this way, violently persecuting Christians who show even the slightest outward expression of their commitment to Christ. Such was the case that a local province ordered a sculpture that had been in the public for 25 years ripped down because it “looked like” it could have resembled something of a cross:
One of Saudi Arabia’s most conservative provinces has demolished a towering concrete sculpture in response to complaints by residents that it resembled a Christian cross, prompting a local commentator on Tuesday to criticize the move as possible blowback for recent reforms.
State-linked local news sites, including NewsQassim.com, reported that the municipal office for the landlocked, central province of Qassim took down the sculpture last Friday.Videos and photos posted on social media and local news sites showed the sculpture in ruins after demolition by bulldozers in Qassim’s provincial capital of Buraydah, 220 miles (350 kilometers) northwest of the country’s capital, Riyadh.
The surprise move comes as the kingdom pivots toward greater embrace of the arts by holding for the first time in decades musical concerts in its major cities, including an orchestra performance from Japan last week.
The entertainments drive — led by Deputy Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman — has also included monster truck shows, a hip-hop illuminated dance show, comedy nights and even a Saudi Comic-Con event that starred two Game of Thrones actors.
Saudi Arabia also curtailed the powers of the religious police last year, angering some among the kingdom’s ultraconservative Wahhabi religious establishment.
Commentator Akal Al-Akal criticized the demolition in an op-ed in Tuesday’s pan-Arab Al-Hayat newspaper, saying the sculpture had been there for 25 years and its destruction was an attempt to embarrass state institutions.
He said those behind such acts are “playing on the emotions and feelings of the local public,” adding that he believes the destruction of the sculpture may have been aimed at “inciting public opinion about life in Saudi Arabia as it embarks on a real opening for the arts.”
“We must respect the symbols of other religions, just as we seek similar treatment in other countries,” he said, adding that Islam is superior to narrow interpretations by extremists groups like the Taliban in Afghanistan and the Islamic State group in Iraq, which have destroyed religious sites, shrines and temples.
Municipal officials in Qassim could not be immediately reached for comment.
Many Arab Christians communities and minority Muslim sects across the region are struggling in the face of war, religious violence and discrimination.
Mosques are the only legally permissible places of worship in Saudi Arabia, though Christian residents have conducted worship services discreetly without interference.
An ancient community of Christians once inhabited the southwestern region of Najran in the Arabian Peninsula, which in present-day Saudi Arabia runs along the Yemen border. The Prophet Muhammad’s treaty with the Christians of Najran, and allowing them a space to pray safely in his mosque in Medina, are often cited by scholars of Islam and moderate clerics as an example of religious pluralism and tolerance. (source, source)
The fact that no major news outlet has provided good photos of the sculpture says that the sculpture probably looked almost nothing like a cross. But the issue here is not the sculpture, but the hatred motivating why it was torn down.
We are witnessing in our modern times the revival of Islam as it was in the past. This is something that has not been seen for at least 300 years, since the Ottoman Empire went into decline following the treaty of Karlowitz in 1699. What we are watching is actually nothing new, since Islam goes through period of violent revival followed by militaristic attempts at expansion. Given that Ottoman Turkey is returning to its former state- and really, I should emphasize its NORMAL state, since the current conception of a “secular Turkey” is scarcely a century old and if Turkish President Erdogan has his way, the modern Turkish state will not live to see its 100th yea- and part of that means it will seek control over the Islamic Holy sites of Mecca and Medina. As we have documented on Shoebat.com, the Saudi family is afraid of Turkey because they know this and fear their power will be in jeopardy, being deposed from power for being “un-Islamic.” Therefore, it is in the interest of Saudi Arabia to start more open persecution of Christians and all things Christian, as they would rather be a vassal of the Ottomans than absolutely deposed.
We recently warned that Christians in Muslim nations, especially Turkey but also Saudi Arabia, need to leave as soon as possible and by whatever means necessary because war in coming to that region. If the genocide of 1917 was bad, what is coming will be far worse for not only are the tools and means to carry out death and destruction greatly improved, but this time the Muslims will draw on their lessons from the last century and attempt to “finish the job” that the Ottomans started. This will not happen overnight, but will be precipitated by a series of “warning shots” to those who are paying attention. It is no different that with the genocide of 1917- the Ottomans were massacring Christians for at least the past 30 years in greater numbers until it culminated in the great genocide.
In the words of the classic country song by Kenny Rogers, The Gambler,
You got to know when to hold ’em,
know when to fold em,
know when to walk away,
and know when to run.
The time to walk away has already passed. It’s time to run.