Egypt’s quiet horror

The Egyptian coup that took place a few weeks ago is one of the most dramatic news stories of the year even though many aspects of it have been underreported by the American media.

Our media, led by the television news networks, tend to get focused on a small amount of stories that help with ratings. While that small amount of stories are important, an unfortunate byproduct of this approach is many newsworthy stories do not get the attention they deserve.

What kind of stories? Well, what about the personal economic impact we have felt because of the coup? Though not a lot of oil is produced there, the location of the Suez Canal near the country insures that unrest in Egypt will impact prices. The Suez Canal provides one pathway for oil to be shipped to the world. We have seen our local gas prices rise more than 20 cents since the coup, and it will be interesting to see where prices go from here.

Also, our country sends more than $1.3 billion in aid to the country. This is money collected from our taxes. So, when we view events there, we need to remember that our financial support leaves our fingerprints (especially when it comes to the Egyptian military).

However, the most underreported story of the coup may be the impact the event is having on Christians there. According to multiple sources, violence against Christians is growing.

When Muslim Brotherhood President Mohammed Morsi was overthrown, the Christian community was vocal about the need for him to be ousted. The Associated Press has reported the group is paying the price for its activism.

For example, Christian priest Mena Aboud Sharoben was killed in a drive-by shooting while a pro-Morsi crowd destroyed homes in villages that have a relatively large Christian population. As happens in most countries, when there is governmental instability, it is the minority groups that suffer. This is the case when it comes to Christians in Egypt.

There are plenty more examples that are similar to this, but if people want to read about them, they better be prepared to do some digging on the Internet. The mainstream media won’t focus much attention on these events because they are not ratings producers. I’m not holding my breath waiting for Nancy Grace and Sean Hannity to dedicate significant time to stories like these.

When considering these events, it should provoke questions inside us. Should we be sending so much money to an area that is so unstable at this point? I would answer ‘yes’ because Egypt is probably our most important Arab ally in the Middle East, and it would be a mistake to divest ourselves from them at a time like this. However, shouldn’t we be applying pressure when it comes to human rights?

As for Americans, situations like this should grab our attention. This applies to all people and not just to Christians here. As a nation, we have designated certain rights to be protected by our Constitution. Though I believe most of us understand that it is unreasonable to expect other countries to be carbon copies of us when it comes to government, we should still be vocal when it comes to issues we deem important.

When one country wobbles when it comes to human rights, it becomes easier for that wobbling to spread. Though Egypt is half a world away, don’t think that it can’t happen here. It is already here in some respects, and though we like to pat ourselves on our backs when it comes to our alleged enlightenment, dark times could come if we are not careful.

It keeps happening again and again and again

In a couple of weeks, Christians worldwide will be observing the events surrounding the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus Christ. They are the most important events of the Christian faith.

Though a vast number will be taking part in these observances, that amount was reduced by about 500 following the slaughter of Christians in Nigeria recently. Three Christian villages close to the city of Jos were attacked by the mainly Muslim Fulani ethnic group, according to the Associated Press.

According to published reports, people were attacked with axes, machetes, daggers and other weapons during three terrifying hours. Nobody was spared. Among the dead were children, the elderly, and pregnant women.

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton urged "all parties to exercise restraint" and called on the Nigerian government to "make sure the perpetrators are brought to justice."

In her position, I know it is important for Clinton to carefully choose her words, but does not an event like this call for a little more outrage? Like her, I hope the perpetrators are brought to justice, but I had hoped a few words like 'evil' and 'shameless' might have found their way into her statement.

I guess it sounds like I am picking on Clinton, and I guess I am. Politicians who carefully script their statements even in the face of an atrocity like this get under my skin. Why can't politicians just plainly state that this type of event is nauseating and that the people who did this should be run out of town on a rail?

This is not the first time there has been violence like this in that area. Some feel that the recent attacks were revenge for violence that took place in January in which mostly Muslims died. Unfortunately, religious violence of this sort never seems to change in some parts of the world.

It is handed down from day to day and from year to year. Then, it passes to the next generation and the bad blood continues for so long that it is difficult to remember why it began in the first place.

An important aspect of this recent attack is that the killers did not use sophisticated weapons while doing their work. When we think of violence of this magnitude, we think of high-tech weaponry.

However, this attack was about as basic as it gets. I guess this shows just how depraved mankind can be. If a person can't get a gun, then they will use sharp instruments to get the job done. If the axes and machetes get taken away, then he will move on to another type of weapon.

In the coming months, it will be interesting to see if the situation in Nigeria will remain inflamed or will things return to normal. I do not know how to define 'normal' in a situation like this. If 'normal' is defined as living somewhere where a person can be hacked to death without warning, then I guess things have already returned to normal there.

This situation is just a reflection of what is going on worldwide. While we get to enjoy and take for granted the religious freedoms we have here in America, people elsewhere literally take their lives into their own hands just to publicly worship.

This is a fact that we should ponder as we approach Easter. With the freedom we enjoy, it is easy for us to go on auto-pilot. 'Complacent' is a common adjective that can be used to describe America.

We better understand how precious the freedom we have is. If not, we may be the ones getting hacked to death with no protection.

Future bleak for Christians in Iraq

Despite all the differences and controversies that engulf our nation on a daily basis, all of us would have to agree that the United States is a special place.

After all, in a little over a week, we once again will demonstrate to the world how an orderly transfer of power takes place when we elect a new president.

Some of these transfers have been bumpy in the past (like the 2000 election), but our ability to do this makes us unique in the world. There may be some more bumpiness in the coming days as allegations of voter fraud have surfaced, but our country will work through it.

Additionally, many of the fundamental liberties we enjoy are only a dream to many people outside our country.

Countries like Venezuela have clamped down on the media in recent months, and though we all grumble about the U.S. media, most of us would agree that a free press is one of our most important building blocks.

If we only got our news from outlets run by the government, many politicians would run amuck without any accountability. Many already do, but the numbers would certainly rise without watchdogs.

Additionally, religious and spiritual freedom is one of our nation's greatest traits.

While there seems to be a growing intolerance in our nation toward Christianity, most Christians can worship freely as can people of other faiths. The only opponent most spiritual people have to conquer is their own apathy about attending a worship service.

However, many people around the world are not so lucky. Recently, there were reports of widespread attacks against Christians in the Iraqi city of Mosul.

Until recently, Mosul was one of the few semi-safe havens for Christians there, but that has all changed. Provincial election laws were recently changed after community protests that resulted in the removal of an article that would have provided representation to Christians and other minorities, according to a McClatchy Newspapers report.

This means what little protection that existed for Christians is gone, and it is pretty much open season on them. Dozens of murders have happened there since.

The Iraq War has been a controversial issue for quite some time, but it continues to amaze me how little attention is devoted to the plight of Christians there. After all, if we feel religious freedom is such an important right, shouldn't we be putting more pressure on the government there to improve this?

After the billions of dollars that we have spent and the thousands of American lives lost, I don't think it is asking too much that people be allowed the courtesy of going to church without the fear of being murdered in the street.

Of course, the obvious response to this is that we can't force our culture down the throat of another country. Just because something may be important to Americans, it doesn't mean it will be important to Iraqi citizens.

Still, these types of situations are frustrating because Iraq isn't the only place where crimes like this are taking place.

This type of persecution is taking place all over the globe from the Middle East to Asia to Africa.

The real answer is that Christians shouldn't rely on the government to pressure other countries to ease religious restrictions. Christians should be proactive and become involved in the process.

Prayer and financial support of organizations that help fight this problem are all steps people can take to help ease this situation.

A person never knows how much he can help until he takes that first step.