Anti-Christian discrimination,
anti-Christian prejudice,
Christianophobia or
Christophobia is a negative categorical
bias against
Christians or the religion of
Christianity. Such
prejudice and
discrimination is a type of
religious intolerance and a form of
religious discrimination. Anti-Christian prejudice can be held by individuals or groups, and may be the result of religious or antireligious
fanaticism or
bigotry. Anti-Christian discrimination is practiced by members of other religions, as well as antireligious adherents of
secularism[1]. As a mental and emotional attitude, anti-Christian discrimination leads to
stereotyping,
hate, and
oppression. Anti-Christian prejudice results in the dissemination of
hate speech, the commission of
hate crimes, and the formation of
hate groups, as well as other forms of discriminatory behaviour. Widespread Anti-Christian discrimination may attach
social stigma to Christians or Christian beliefs, and may result in an experience of
social inequality by Christians. In nations where
freedom of religion is limited, the issue becomes
persecution of Christians.
Christianophobia
Christianophobia sometimes called
Christophobia (which means literally "fear of Christ") is a fear or hatred of Christians or Christianity. The term "Christianophobia" originated with American legal scholar J.H.H. Weiler. It was described in detail by American conservative writer, activist, and Catholic theologian
George Weigel in his books,
Is Europe Dying? Notes on a Crisis of Civilizational Morale and
The Cube and the Cathedral: Europe, America, and Politics Without God.
Christophobia
Christophobia (from
Greek: Χριστός ("Christ") and -φόβος, (
phobia, fear)) is a term used to describe the fear of, aversion to, or discrimination against Christ or Christians. It can also mean hatred, hostility, disapproval of, or prejudice towards Christians, or Christian behavior or cultures like the USA. Christophobic is the adjective form of this term used to describe the qualities of these characteristics while Christophobe is the noun form given as a title to individuals with "homophobic" characteristics.
Some believe any usage of Christophobia is controversial and several dictionaries characterize this type of fear as irrational. Christophobia in men or women is correlated with insecurity about spirituality.
Expressions of anti-Christian sentiment
Hate speech
A number of words and phrases have developed to express antipathy toward Christians. The epithet "
Jesus freak" is sometimes used to refer to Christians in a disparaging way. In the
1960s and
1970s, this term was reclaimed by members of the
Jesus movement as a way to identify themselves. The word "sheep" as a reference to Christians originated within the Christian church, but when used by outsiders it usually carries derogatory connotations. The words "bible beater" and "bible thumper" are also widely used in the "bible belt" portion of the United States
Hate groups
The Hate Directory lists three online anti-Christian hate sites.
[2] The Southern Poverty Law Center also lists several anti-Christian hate groups in the United States.
[3]
Hate crimes
The
vandalism or
defacement of Christian symbols or property is one form of the expression of anti-Christian sentiment. If the defaced or vandalized object is considered holy by Christians, such as
the Bible or
the Cross, the case becomes that of
desecration. Such destruction may be illegal if it violates
property rights or
hate crime laws. Church burnings, the
arson of Christian meeting places, is one such hate crime.
[1] Churches are a target for hate crimes because of various motivations, including anti-Christian sentiment.
[2] An aggravating factor in the burning of a church in
Minnedosa, Manitoba was that two of the arsonists were fans of
heavy metal music with anti-Christian themes, according to the Crown.
[3]
Some elements of the black metal scene declare open hatred of Christianity. Headliners of the black metal scene have claimed responsibility for inspiring (if not necessarily perpetrating) over 50
arsons directed at Christian churches in
Norway from 1992 to 1996
[4]. Many of the buildings were hundreds of years old, and widely regarded as important historical landmarks. The most notable church was Norway's
Fantoft stave church, which the police believed was destroyed by the one-man band
Burzum,
Varg Vikernes, aka "
Count Grishnackh"
[5]. However, Varg would not be convicted of any arson offences, until his arrest for the murder of Øystein Aarseth in 1993 (see below). Interestingly, the cover of Burzum's EP release,
Aske, portrays a photograph of the Fantoft stave church after the arson. It is unconfirmed whether or not Vikernes himself may have taken this picture.
In modern times, the church burnings have caused a major divide within the black metal community concerning the legitimacy of the actions. When interviewed for the film ,
Gaahl of the band
Gorgoroth praised the church burnings as "things I support", adding "there should have been more of them, and there will be more of them"
[6]. However, other artists don't support these actions.
Necrobutcher, one of the founding and current members of
Mayhem, was quoted in a mini-documentary that accompanied the same film, saying "I think it's ridiculous, especially the people that lit up our old ... churches. They don't realize that these were actually
Heathen churches, before
Christianity."
Persecution
When anti-Christian discrimination becomes systemic, the result is the
persecution of Christians. The persecution of Christians is the religious persecution that Christians have endured as a consequence of professing their faith, both historically and in the current era. In the two thousand years of the Christian faith, about 70 million believers have been killed for their faith, of whom 45.5 million or 65% were in the twentieth century, according to "The New Persecuted" ("I Nuovi Perseguitati"). Currently, Christian persecution is most severe in
Sudan and
North Korea.
[7] [4]
Discrimination against Christians by country
Turkey
Christianity has a long history in
Anatolia, modern-day
Turkey; it is often said to have gained status as a world religion when
Istanbul (historically known as
Constantinople in the English-speaking world) became the world's first Christian city, see also
Christendom. Although this would not last, Christians were treated poorly under the
Ottoman Empire, until its collapse following the first
World War. Nationalist passions ran hot, and some paramilitary groups, such as the
Young Turks, began to discriminate against, and murder, Christians of Greek, Armenian and Assyrian people. (
For further information, see Armenian Genocide, Assyrian Genocide and Pontic Greek Genocide)
In the 19th century
Kosovo was conquered by the Ottoman Empire; unlike in most of the empire, Christians (mainly
Serbs) have been routinely persecuted, mainly by
Albanians, who for the most part converted to Islam. This long-standing rivalry escalated into the
Kosovo war.
Kemal Timur, a convert from
Islam to Christianity, was detained in
May 1999 for distributing Christian Bibles on the street. While in police custody, Timur allegedly called
Muhammed a "sorcerer," violating Turkey's blasphemy laws. The charge carries a sentence of up to a year in jail, however, in this case the court dropped the charges.
[8]
China
China is a
communist state. The ruling
Communist Party maintains tight control over religion in China.
Christianity was banned for a century in China by
Emperor Kangxi of the
Qing Dynasty, after the
Pope forbade Chinese Catholics from
venerating their relatives or
Confucius.
[9]
United Kingdom
A check-in counter worker for
British Airways was put on unpaid leave after refusing to hide her cross necklace.
[10] British Airways later lifted its ban on visible crosses.
[11] The airline maintained the order for the employee to hide her cross was due to the company's policy of keeping jewellery out of sight beneath uniforms. Other visible symbols of faith were permitted.
United States
In the U.S. hostility to mainline Protestantism comes from stereotypes of
WASPs. This a mildly derogatory term describing people of "White Anglo-Saxon Protestant" background, but can be applied to all Protestants of Northern European descent. It can describe upper middle class Protestant people and their values in teasing or disparaging terms. WASPs tended to be portrayed as rigid and emotionally reserved.
Missouri Executive Order 44 also known as The "extermination order" in
Latter Day Saint history was an executive order issued on
October 27,
1838 by
Missouri governor
Lilburn Boggs. The order was in response to what Boggs termed "open and avowed defiance of the laws, and of having made war upon the people of this State ... the
Mormons must be treated as enemies, and must be exterminated or driven from the State if necessary for the public peace—their outrages are beyond all description." The order was not formally rescinded until 1976.
[12]
Christians of various denominations, including
Ann Coulter and
Jerry Falwell, claim that American society and the United States government discriminate against Christians. Examples given by these commentators include:
- The ban on any religious expression by faculty in front of students.
- The increased usage of BCE/CE, not just limited to strictly non-Christian studies but also to more general historical terms, even including Christianity or societies which eventually lead to Christianity (such as Greece and Rome).
- The Christmas controversy. Media commentator Bill O'Reilly refers to "The War on Christmas", a phrase originated by journalist Peter Brimelow in 1999. Advocates of greetings such as "Happy Holidays" replacing "Merry Christmas" state that their goal is to be more inclusive of non-Christian faiths, but O'Reilly contends that such efforts are a veiled attack on Christianity. [13]
- In 2000, when the Brooklyn Museum of Art displayed an image of the Virgin Mary crafted of dried elephant dung, among other media, and festooned with photographs of winged female breasts, Mayor Rudolph Giuliani decided to cut the city's voluntary funding to the museum. The state court ordered him to resume the previous financial support with an added $5.8 million. <ref name="Redekop" />
- In March of 2006, one of the University of Oregon's campus newspapers, The Insurgent, in its coverage of the Muhammed cartoon controversy, published 12 cartoons of Jesus, along with two editorials criticising Catholicism. Two of the cartoons depicted Jesus with an erection and one presented him engaged in homosexual activity. In response, the Catholic League wrote Oregon lawmakers in complaint of the newspaper. The president of the Catholic League characterized the issue as hate speech. The response to the edition offered by the president of the university was criticized as tepid. [14] [15]
- Christians being fired for refusing to work on Sunday.[16]
Canada
- For the 1998 multi-faith memorial for the Swissair disaster, the Canadian government allowed Jewish and Muslim religious leaders to quote from their Scriptures during their speeches, but mandated that a Christian pastor could not read from the Bible or mention Jesus. <ref name="Redekop" />
- In 1991, the Vancouver Art Gallery purchased a sculpture entitled "Piss Pope" (see Piss Christ), a depiction of a bust of Pope John Paul II submerged in urine. <ref name="Redekop" />
- Canadian Heritage Minister Sheila Copps issued a calendar of all days, weeks, and months "important" to Canadian heritage. The calendar omitted Christmas and Easter. After complaints from Christians, the government recalled the calendar. <ref name="Redekop" />
Further reading
- David Limbaugh. Persecution: How Liberals are Waging War Against Christianity
- Marvin Olasky. Prodigal Press: The Anti-Christian Bias of American News Media
See also
References
1.
^ Gibson, John (2005). The War on Christmas: How the Liberal Plot to Ban the Sacred Christian Holiday Is Worse Than You Thought. Sentinel HC. ISBN 1595230165.
2.
^ The Hate Directory
3.
^ The Southern Poverty Law Center
4.
^ Grude, Torstein (Director). (1998, Jan 1).
Satan rir Media [motion picture]. Norway: Grude, Torstein.
5.
^ Grude, Torstein (Director). (1998, Jan 1).
Satan rir Media [motion picture]. Norway: Grude, Torstein.
6.
^ Dunn, Sam (Director). (2005, Aug 5).
Metal: A Headbanger's Journey [motion picture]. Canada: Dunn, Sam.
7.
^ 20TH CENTURY SAW 65% OF CHRISTIAN MARTYRS, 10 May 2002 --
Zenit News Agency
8.
^ [5]
9.
^ [6]
10.
^ "
Woman loses fight to wear cross",
BBC,
November 20,
2006.
11.
^ "
British Airways caves in on cross ban", Laura Clout,
BBC,
January 21,
2007.
12.
^ Whitman, Dale A..
Gospel Link. Retrieved on 2007-02-04.
13.
^ O'Reilly -- "War" on Christmas part of "secular progressive agenda" that includes "legalization of narcotics, euthanasia, abortion at will, gay marriage",
Media Matters,
November 21,
2005.
14.
^ "
Obscene depictions of Jesus in Ore. university paper cause stir", Erin Roach,
Baptist Press,
May 24,
2006.
15.
^ "
'Jesus with erection' ignites outrage",
WorldNetDaily,
April 26,
2006.
16.
^ [7]
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