In face of persecution from the chattering classes, Christians need to be as strident as Muslims

Afraid to be a Christian? Who can blame you? The authorities, the media and the chattering classes are forever trying to run you down. We don’t have to brave the Colosseum, with its rapacious lions; we don’t have to wear an identifying badge; or meet in secret – yet.

But there is no doubt that many are afraid to be Christian. They will watch anxiously today as Shirley Chaplin will fight the NHS in an employment tribunal. Royal Devon and Exeter NHS Trust has tried to ban Mrs Chaplin’s wearing a cross, claiming it was dangerous. (Who staffs this Trust? Vampires?) Mrs C refused to take off the cross and is now battling for her right to wear a symbol of her faith. Some of the highest ranking Christians in the land have come out in her favour – and widened the debate to the persecution of all Christians in this country.

High time, too. Prejudice against the majority faith is everywhere: from the BA check-in counter to the school, from the hospital ward to the Town Hall. In fact, it’s even in church. When I was invited to speak at St Martin in the Fields for a Christmas Carol Service two years ago, my speech was banned as deeply offensive. I had written about persecution, injustice and fear.

Had I been describing the suffering of blacks during segregation in America, or the unfair treatment of Indians under the Raj,or the plight of British Muslims after the Britain’s 7 July bombings I would have been welcome. But I was describing anti-Christian bias.

Our culture has grown increasingly hostile to God and his followers. Support for a minority faith – Judaism, say, or Islam – is justified when that faith is regarded as essential to ethnic identity. But when that faith

We should be confident in our beliefs, and willing to proclaim and defend our faith ... but, I’m not sure muslim “stridence” is what we should be aiming for.

Many of the most extreme fundamentalist muslims have declared war on other faiths, and on countries which they believe are hostile to the full legal implementation of their faith ... and have been willing to claim lives in that fight. We should absolutely defend ourselves and our faith, and we should seek out and destroy those that seek our demise — but we shouldn’t be declaring wars or taking innocent lives in the name of Christ.

SnakeDoc

The Holy Cross worn by the armies of Charles Martel at the Battle of Tours, Oct. 10, 732, on their chest armor, into battle against the muslims, eventually driving them out of Europe, later worn by Crusaders in the Holy Land.

“IN HOC SIGNO VINCES”
“In this sign you will conquer”

Constantine the Great
274 - 306 A.D.

A sign appeared to the Roman Emperor Constantine as a light in the noon-day sky. At the same time, he heard the words, In Hoc Signo Vinces (In this sign you shall conquer). He took this as a sign from God and decided the shape drawn by the light should be an emblem for his military. This emblem became known as Labarum (etymology unclear - possibly a Gaulish/Celtic word. See Lauburu Cross).

The shape he saw was of a flaming cross - “a long spear, overlaid with gold”. It had a cross bar and “on the top of the whole was fixed a wreath of gold and precious stones, and within this the symbol of the Saviour’s name, two letters indicating the name of Christ by means of the initial letters, the letter ‘X’ intersection ‘P’ at the centre.” (recorded in the 3rd century by Eusebius Pamphili, Bishop of Cesarea in Palestine)

http://www.seiyaku.com/customs/crosses/chi-rho.html

The Second Battle of Tours is coming, and history will repeat itself by the power of the Cross.

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