Posted on 09/09/2010 1:07:21 PM PDT by a fool in paradise
SIA NEWS
Washington DC - The Saudi government burns and desecrates hundreds of bibles its security forces confiscate after raids on Christian expatriates worshiping privately or at border crossings.
As a matter of official policy, the government either incinerates or dumps bibles, crosses and other Christian paraphernalia.
Hundreds of Christian worshipers are arrested every year by Saudi police in raids on their private gatherings. Bibles, crosses and printed materials are confiscated and later burnt or dumped into trash. Bibles and other Christian paraphernalia found with travelers into the country are confiscated and destroyed.
Although considered as holy in Islam and mentioned in the Koran dozens of times, the Bible is banned in Saudi Arabia, and is confiscated and destroyed by government officials.
Recently, there has been a crackdown on symbols of Christianity in Saudi Arabia. On April 21st Saudi authorities raided a make-shift church in Riyadh and arrested 40 Christians. Many Christian religious symbols, such as crucifixes and bibles were later destroyed by Saudi security forces.
When it was revealed last week that a copy of the Koran had allegedly been desecrated by American military personnel at Guantanomo Bay, the Saudi government voiced its strenuous disapproval of such activities. More specifically, the Saudi Embassy in Washington articulated “great concern and urged Washington to conduct a quick investigation”. The Saudi government has also recommended to the American government to install “deterring measures” so that an incident such as this would not be repeated. The Saudi government would not comment on their policy of desecrating bibles that had been seized from foreign nationals.
Interestingly though, desecration of religious texts and symbols and intolerance of varying religious viewpoints and beliefs has been the official policy inside of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Ruled by a Wahhabi theocracy for some time now, the ruling elite of Saudi Arabia have made it difficult for many Western religions, as well as dissenting sects of Islam, to visibly coexist inside of the kingdom.
Another way in which religious and cultural issues are becoming more divisive is the Saudi treatment of Americans who are living in their country. As of today there around 30,000 Americans living and working in various parts of Saudi Arabia, who are not allowed to visibly celebrate their religious and even secular holidays if they are not of the Wahhabi faith. This includes holidays such as Christmas and Easter but also such secular holidays as Thanksgiving. All surrounding Gulf States allow non-Islamic holidays to be celebrated with the exception of Saudi Arabia.
The American State Department had no comment on this issue.
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1410190/posts
Saudi Arabia Desecrates Hundreds of Bibles Annually
Saudi Institute ^ | Friday, 20 May 2005 | by Zachary Liben
Mohammed lied, Bibles died.
Only Americans are supposed to be tolerent and turn their country over to foreign invaders.
For everyone else, except Israel, they can do whatever they want and it is okay.
Saudi Arabia - Conversion by a Muslim to another religion is punishable by death. Bibles are illegal. Churches are illegal. Easter celebrations are illegal. It is punishable by death for a non-mulsim to enter the “holy” muslim cities of Medina and Mecca.
Well Well Well!.....A bit hypocritical if I do say so myself!
bttt
Screw the Muslims. I am over them and have been since they were street dancing on 911.
Yesterday I saw plenty of analogies to “teh nazis” when the Floriduh Pastor was talking of burning korans.
He wasn’t demanding that all korans be burned. He held no political office. He didn’t even sound like he was taking his protest to public property. It carried no endorsement “from the State”. He may be as big a fool as Marilyn Manson who repeatedly desecrated Christian bibles in public civic venues.
Yet the Saudis are holding to an Islamic Supremacist mindset within their theocractic government. Total prohibition on the religious freedoms of others. Total disrespect for the relgious traditions of others.
And nary a peep.
Saudi Arabia doesn’t even get tracked in some groups accounts of human rights abuses with religious intolerance because “Saudi Arabia never had freedom of religion”.
I’m just calling out the double standard at play.
But then it is “wrong” to compare Islamist goverance to nazism. Even when they burn “offensive” religious texts.
“The Kingdom”
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0431197/
$2.99 to rent.
Watch it.
Have friends over. Show it to family who’d ‘rather not.’
Soweto is real.
The Federal Govt has no business comment on or interfering with this Pastor’s rights of free speach and assembly.
After yielding to complaints about this non-incident, what will be ask of us next?
There isn’t a majority muslim country out there that gives much freedom to Christians and most are trying to religiously cleanse their countries of so called “infidels”.
Just listen the the Ground Zero Mullah. He just threatened the US Gov and citizens if his project doesn’t go ahead. Next he will expect us to build it for him.
Christians understand that the message and the messenger don’t need paper and ink to define them. Christians are defined by their belief and good deeds.
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