
“A decade ago, 35,000 Christians lived in the city; last year there were 3,000; the day Isil took over all were either killed or fled.” But the world yawns, because to care might be “Islamophobic” and harm “Muslim/Christian dialogue.”
Meanwhile, an interesting side note: in an age in which we’re constantly told in the West that Muslims invented everything from astrolabes to zithers, and are responsible for preserving the cultural patrimony of the West by saving the pagan ancient Greek writings when the Christians of Europe disdained them, it’s refreshing to see some honesty about this: it wasn’t Muslims, but Eastern Christians who preserved the writings of Aristotle and others: “They taught us. Before and after the Muslim conquest of their lands, Syriac-speaking Christians translated Greek works into their own language. When the West rediscovered Aristotle, it was largely thanks to Syriac scholars that copies of his works had been preserved. In the late eighth century, for example, when the Nestorian Patriarch Timothy wanted to study Aristotle, he borrowed manuscripts of the Organon and Topics from the Orthodox (Antiochian) monastery of Mar Mattai near Mosul, which was already over 400 years old. Mar Mattai monastery was taken by Isil last year and its monks expelled; some manuscripts are said to have been saved.”
“Christians driven from the ruins of Nineveh,” by Christopher Howse, Telegraph, April 18, 2015 (thanks to Lookmann):
The ruins of Nineveh, once the biggest city in the world, lie beside the river Tigris. On the other side of the river stands Mosul, a city of a million, the largest place still under the rule of the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (Isil). A decade ago, 35,000 Christians lived in the city; last year there were 3,000; the day Isil took over all were either killed or fled.
I will not give a catalogue of the horrors in Iraq and Syria, but it is worth realising what is being lost with the death and exile of Christians there and the destruction of their churches and libraries.
When the prophet Jonah was sent to preach to the people of Nineveh, they repented and God did not visit on them the destruction that Jonah had announced. This “displeased Jonah exceedingly, and he was very angry”. Then slowly he learnt his lesson of forgiveness.
At his reputed tomb, a Christian church was built, later turned into a mosque. Pilgrims went there. One of Isil’s first acts was to destroy it. Given Isil’s beliefs, it is not surprising that they smash up tombs and images. God forgive them, it was not the worst thing they did.
The Christians of Iraq and Syria are no interlopers. They have been there from the beginning. They use Syriac in their worship, a language resembling the Aramaic that Jesus spoke.
They taught us. Before and after the Muslim conquest of their lands, Syriac-speaking Christians translated Greek works into their own language. When the West rediscovered Aristotle, it was largely thanks to Syriac scholars that copies of his works had been preserved. In the late eighth century, for example, when the Nestorian Patriarch Timothy wanted to study Aristotle, he borrowed manuscripts of the Organon and Topics from the Orthodox (Antiochian) monastery of Mar Mattai near Mosul, which was already over 400 years old. Mar Mattai monastery was taken by Isil last year and its monks expelled; some manuscripts are said to have been saved.
It’s the people that one feels sorry for. A generation ago, there were more than a million Christians living in Iraq, a country of 35 million. A year ago there were 400,000. About two thirds are Chaldean Catholic. Tens of thousands took refuge in the city of Erbil, which is under Kurdish protection….
Richie says
When will Muslims be driven out of Europe? They clearly despise the west- (except for their welfare checks); lets ship them back to their 3rd world bronze age hellholes
Jay Airahs says
Everything Islam touches either withers or dies, including Muslims.
Muslims can no longer hide the unmitigated putrid stink of Muhammad in their filthy Qur’ans behind the shameless duplicity of a distraction with words such as:
‘In the Name of Allah, the Compassionate, the Merciful’
We know all too well their dirty tawdry tricks.
Don McKellar says
Now hold on! Everybody knows that moslems discovered America, were the first on the moon, invented math and science, and led the way by creating the internet! That’s all been confirmed and verified by leading moslem scholars. (actually they really have claimed these things and many more).
Just imagine the wonders that will come from the Islamic state if we just leave them alone to flourish like the beautiful Islamic bouquet of the Middle East that it can become. The treasures we will all reap! Look at all the good things to come out of Saudi Arabia in the past hundred years! And the great contributions of the Islamic Republic of Iran since the glorious revolution! You greasy grimy gopher gut Islamophobes, submit and reap the glories and rewards of noble Islam!
*belch*
abad says
The Religion of Barbarism(TM) strikes again
thomas pellow says
More Islamofascist barbarity in another massacre of Christians:-
“Slaughter on the beach:
“ISIS behead and shoot Ethiopian Christians in sickening new propaganda video .”
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3045711/Slaughter-beach-ISIS-behead-shoot-Ethiopian-Christians-sickening-new-propaganda-video.html
pongidae rex says
Syria is the future of any major country in Europe, and probably most of them within a century. The tragedy is that this is entirely self inflicted by the West. This is not a Muslim invasion, it is Suicide using Islam as the instrument of self destruction.
Maria says
muslims are trying to finish what they started during the Armenian Assyrian Genocide even back then the West did nothing just as today they wont even give visas for the Christians to escape to he West makes me sick how I see boat load of muslims refuges coming from Somalia and pushing out the Christians out of the boats the west caused this mess they helped the Terrorist to overthrow Gaddafi the west really needs to change and relise they have made mistakes and help Christians
JuanColina says
The worst most arrogant scum the world has ever seen.
They will smile while lying to your face and stealing from you or even killing you.
Why? Because Islam teaches them that non-muslims are vermin.
Islam is not a religion and should not be accepted as one – then the other tolerant religions can criticise it as they should. They don’t now because they would have to accept critical comment themselves.
mortimer says
The Assyrian Christians are the oldest national church. They are the Martyr Church having suffered more under the Muslim barbarians than any group.
gravenimage says
“A decade ago, 35,000 Christians lived in the city; last year there were 3,000; the day Isil took over all were either killed or fled.”
………………………….
This shows that this barbarism predated the horrifying rise of ISIL.
Peggy says
This assumes that ALL the thousands of employees [holding positions of any influence] in the defense institutions are blinded by their love for money, and that there is not a single employee willing to report facts as they are! I find it hard to believe.
===================
This is how it works. The ones at the top are being paid off and the ones below them are scared of losing their jobs or going to prison for leaking information.
Not so hard to understand.
gravenimage says
it wasn’t Muslims, but Eastern Christians who preserved the writings of Aristotle and others: “They taught us. Before and after the Muslim conquest of their lands, Syriac-speaking Christians translated Greek works into their own language. When the West rediscovered Aristotle, it was largely thanks to Syriac scholars that copies of his works had been preserved. In the late eighth century, for example, when the Nestorian Patriarch Timothy wanted to study Aristotle, he borrowed manuscripts of the Organon and Topics from the Orthodox (Antiochian) monastery of Mar Mattai near Mosul, which was already over 400 years old. Mar Mattai monastery was taken by Isil last year and its monks expelled; some manuscripts are said to have been saved.”
………………………………..
*Very* important point. Islam has always destroyed, not preserved, knowledge. That Christians were able to preserve this knowledge even under Muslim domination and threat is especially impressive.
bukkdem Jizheads says
Why was I not taught a thing about these people in high school or college? This is from a book by Henry M. Stanley (of Livingston fame) on a trip across the Congo, called “in Darkest Africa”, c. 1890:
…As the natives would not assist them over the river to the north bank, they cut down a big tree and with axe and fire hollowed it not a sizable cano which conveyed them across to the north bank to Ipoto. Since that date they had launched out on one of the sanguinary and destructive careers to which even Tippu-Tib’s or Tagamoyo’s career offer but poor comparison. Towards the Lenda and Ihuru Rivers, they had leveled into black ashes every settlement, their rage for destruction had even been vented on the plantain groves, every canoe on the rivers had been split into pieces, every island had been searched, and into the darkest recesses, whither a slight track could be traced, they had penetrated with only one dominating passion, which was to kill as many of the men and capture as any of the women and children as craft and cruelty would enable them. However far northward or eastward these people had reached, one said nine day’s march, another fifteen days; or wherever they had gone, they had done precisely, as we had seen between the Lenda river and Ipoto, and reduced the forest land into a howling wilderness, and throughout all the immense area had left scarcely a hut standing.