Convent damage unsettles Gaza Christians

oberliner

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Tue Jun-26-07 03:23 PM
Original message

Convent damage unsettles Gaza Christians

GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip - Broken crucifixes and shards from a statue of Jesus have been swept up, but Gaza's tiny Christian community says the violent warning sent by Islamic militants cannot be erased.

The ransacking of a Catholic convent and an adjacent Rosary Sisters school during Hamas' sweep to power broke more than wood and plaster. It signaled the end of a relatively peaceful, if sometimes uneasy, relationship between Gaza's 1.4 million Muslims and 3,000 Christians.

Despite promises of protection by Hamas leaders, Christians fear more attacks, and some say they want to leave. Gaza's flock already has been hit hard by emigration in recent years, and a new exodus could remove what is left of one of the Arab world's oldest Christian communities.

"We don't trust them. Our time is coming," said a Greek Orthodox Christian, who in the current climate of fear asked not to be identified.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070626/ap_on_re_mi_ea/gaza_christians_1

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MADem

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Tue Jun-26-07 03:46 PM
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1. Yep....it ain't good. Fatah had a bit more Christian spirit than Hamas seems to have.

I wouldn't be surprised if the Christians do try to get the fuck out of there, requesting asylum here and there and everywhere, on the basis of persecution. I don't see this ending well, frankly.

The attack marked a watershed for Gaza's Christians, crushing the belief that a shared Palestinian identity would override Muslim-Christian differences....Christians have held a unique place in Gaza's society as respected members of the territory's small elite, running schools, hospitals and businesses. Yasser Arafat, the late Palestinian leader, courted Christians, assigning them top posts in government and his Fatah movement....Eight Greek Orthodox congregants, meeting in a church rectory after Sunday services, agreed to discuss their concerns, but only on condition their names not be used, fearing reprisals from Islamic militants.

"We don't know what's coming, and I don't trust them (Hamas)," said one woman. "So far they aren't doing anything to us. But I don't know how sincere their intentions are or how long this will last."

Another said she had been harassed for not wearing a head scarf.

There haven't been any attacks on Christians since the ransacking, but many said they feared it was simply a matter of time.

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oberliner

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Tue Jun-26-07 03:58 PM
Response to Reply #1

2. The vast majority of Arab-Americans are Christians

I doubt most in the US realize that.

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MADem

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Tue Jun-26-07 04:51 PM
Response to Reply #2

3. Of the Danny Thomas flavor, many of them. And most Muslims are NOT Arabs, ironically

Arab Americans are an ethnic group who trace their roots to the Arabic-speaking countries of the Middle East and North Africa. Arab immigrants began arriving in the United States during the 19th century. The majority of Arab Americans are descendants of the first wave of mostly Christian immigrants, which began around 1875 and lasted until about 1920. After a period when immigration was restricted, a second wave arrived after World War II. Today, most Arab Americans are native-born Americans. Their regional homelands include 22 Arab countries in southwestern Asia and North Africa, though most Arab Americans originate from Lebanon, Syria and Palestine. There are also substantial communities from Egypt, Yemen and Iraq.

Demographics

Currently there are three million Arab Americans who live in all 50 of the United States, 90 percent of whom live in urban areas. The cities with the largest Arab American populations are Los Angeles, Detroit, New York, Chicago and Washington, D.C., respectively. The largest communities of Arab Americans live in the Detroit/Dearborn, Michigan area.

Education and Employment

Eighty-two percent of Arab Americans hold at least a high school diploma, and 36 percent have a college degree. Approximately 65 percent of Arab American adults are in the labor force; 5.9 percent are unemployed, which is about the same rate of unemployment in the rest of the country. Though Arab Americans work in all occupations, nearly 73 percent of these working adults are employed in managerial, professional, technical, sales or administrative fields. At the local level, Arab Americans are most likely to be executives in Washington, D.C. and Anaheim, California; salespeople in Cleveland and manufacturing workers in Detroit. Arab American incomes are 22 percent higher than the U.S. national average.

Religion

The majority of Arab Americans are Christian. Only about 12 percent of Muslims worldwide are Arabs. In fact, there are more Muslims in Indonesia than in all Arab countries combined. Today, Arab Muslims represent the fastest growing, albeit still minority, part of the Arab American community. Religious practices that direct personal behavior--including the five-times-daily prayers, month-long fast at Ramadan, beards for men and the wearing of the hijab (headcover) for women make Muslims more visible than most religious minorities and thus more vulnerable to bigotry.

http://www.pbs.org/itvs/caughtinthecrossfire/arab_americans.html

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LeftishBrit

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Tue Jun-26-07 05:07 PM
Response to Reply #3

4. Indeed; e.g. most Muslims in the UK are not Arabs...

Edited on Tue Jun-26-07 05:08 PM by LeftishBrit

Most are Pakistani or from other Asian countries.

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oberliner

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Tue Jun-26-07 06:44 PM
Response to Reply #4

5. Same for the US

Only about 12 percent of US Muslims are Arabs.

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barb162

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Wed Jun-27-07 02:08 AM
Response to Reply #1

6. They're very scared and rightfully so.

Edited on Wed Jun-27-07 02:14 AM by barb162

What a horrible situation. They have been there for about 2000 years.
I don't see this ending well either.

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