Over at FrontPage is this expanded version of my post from a few days ago, about how the Melkite Greek Catholic Patriarch Gregory III Laham is taking the Stockholm Syndrome to a new level.
Gregory III Laham, the Melkite Greek Catholic Patriarch of Antioch, Alexandria, Jerusalem and All the East, has proudly declared: “We, the Arab Christians, always defend Islam and our Muslim brothers – no one defends Islam like the Arab Christians do.”
The Patriarch’s declaration of solidarity couldn’t have come at a better time, for Lord knows Islam needs defending: our Muslim brothers, acting in the name of Islam and in accord with its express teachings about subjugating the People of the Book and destroying “idols,” seized the Melkite Greek Catholic Church of Our Lady of the Annunciation, removed all the icons and crosses and every trace of Christianity, and made it into their headquarters. Certainly Islam needs a terrific defense after that, and a full-throated, energetic one — all the more so after our Muslim brothers terrorized Melkite Greek Catholics all over Syria, destroyed their churches, and drove them from their homes.
It’s a good thing that our Muslim brothers have a personage as illustrious as Gregory III Laham, Patriarch of Antioch, Alexandria, Jerusalem and All the East, to defend them after all that, because otherwise someone might get the crazy idea that Islam teaches something that might have led our Muslim brothers to behave in this odd way toward their biggest defenders, Melkite Greek Catholics.
Islam needs Gregory III Laham to defend it from the likes of Grand Ayatollah Ahmad al-Husseini al-Baghdadi, the chief Shi’ite cleric in Iraq, who has said: “If they are people of the book [Jews and Christians] we demand of them the jizya” — that is, the tax the Qur’an mandates that Muslims must collect from the subjugated people (9:29). “And if they refuse,” the Ayatollah continued, “then we fight them. That is, if he is Christian. He has three choices: either convert to Islam, or, if he refuses and wishes to remain Christian, then pay the jizya. But if they still refuse—then we fight them, and we abduct their women, and destroy their churches—this is Islam!”
If anyone reads that and hundreds of similar declarations from Muslim clerics both Sunni and Shi’ite, and starts to think that there might be a problem with Islam, Gregory III and his Melkite clergy will be right there to say it ain’t so, that Islam is wonderful, that they love the hand that lashes them. This is what it means to be dhimmi, one of the “protected people,” the status Islamic law bestows upon those “People of the Book” who willingly submit to Islamic hegemony and are accordingly granted the favor of being allowed to continue to live as Christians, as long as they know their place.
Melkite Greek Catholics and other Christians in the Middle East lived as dhimmis for centuries. They internalized the idea that, no matter how bad the treatment from their Muslim masters got, they must not utter anything but praise for Islam and Muslims, for otherwise things would go even harder for them – for Islamic law stipulates that if the dhimmi dares utter a complaint about his wretched condition, or a word of criticism for the words of the Qur’an and Muhammad that mandated that wretchedness, the “protection” would be revoked and his life would be forfeit.
Accordingly today, if any Melkite Greek Catholics get out of line and start telling the truth about Islam’s doctrines of warfare and subjugation of Infidels, including their good friends the Melkite Greek Catholics, our Muslim brothers can rest assured that they have the Patriarch Gregory III Laham and his faithful bishops in their corner, ready to silence all such effrontery, which everyone knows is a continuing danger to the Church.
It’s marvelous, it’s magical, it’s ecumenical. The only problem is that Gregory III Laham’s people are being slaughtered by our Muslim brothers, and instead of defending his people, and calling attention to why they are being slaughtered, the Patriarch of Antioch, Alexandria, Jerusalem and All the East is sticking up for the belief system that incited their slaughterers.
The Patriarch doesn’t seem to notice that the dhimmi “contract of protection” has already been revoked, that the Islamic State and other jihad groups in Syria and Iraq already see Christians as rebelling against their rule and hence lawfully to be killed. For Gregory III Laham to be actively dissembling now about what is happening to Middle Eastern Christians and why, in the classic dhimmi mode, is like a slave deemed disobedient being lashed and frenziedly proclaiming his submission and obedience as the whip falls: it’s an understandable impulse, but far too late.
At this point, the old dhimmi practice of affirming the wonderfulness of Islam so that master doesn’t treat slave so harshly isn’t saving anyone, and is a grotesque betrayal of those who are suffering. Does the Patriarch think his shameless groveling will keep our Muslim brothers from slitting his throat (in accord with Qur’an 47:4) if they have the inclination and get the opportunity? It will not. Nor will it save any of his people. All it does is impede efforts to spread understanding about why what is happening to Middle Eastern Christians is happening, and thus also impedes attempts to formulate effective means to counter the persecution and genocide.
The Patriarch could say nothing. That he chooses to say what he said is barbaric, it’s a betrayal, it’s a travesty. Melkite Greek Catholics and all the victims and the present and future and potential victims of Islamic jihad deserve better than these clerics who do nothing but betray them into the hands of those who hate them. Siding with killers against their victims isn’t Christian charity by any rational standard, however much Gregory III and his minions try to dress up their betrayal in clerical robes.

gerard says
“no one defends Islam like the Arab Christians do.”
Nobody does it better!
Alarmed Pig Farmer says
No one wants to live in mortal fear of being stabbed, shot, blown up, drowned, beheaded, etc., or even worse have a grandchild abducted and gang raped before her body is found in a roadside ditch. The Patriarch can rest easy now, he barked like a dog for the Moslems and his life expectancy just took a jump. Bravo, Bishop!
Peggy says
They know that no help will ever come from Christian in Europe or the US so what are they supposed to do?
All convert or die?
It’s a shame on us not them. They are doing whatever it takes to survive a little longer. I know that I would not be as brave as I am now if I had to live there.
I am impressed with their commitment to Christ to last as long as they have under these circumstances.
Shame on the west for not protecting them. We go in to bomb Iraq to protect the Kurds but not our own.
Alarmed Pig Farmer says
I disagree, Peggy. Apparently you missed the news about a week ago that there was a Christian in the first batch of 12,500 “Syrian” “refugees” into America. That’s not a typo, it will be *a* Christian. No Yazidi made the cut.
No “Republican” candidate has found time to mention this among all the meaty substantive policy material they must cover.
Peggy says
I am a bit confused. What exactly do you disagree with? You are talking about one Christian refugee and all the rest being Muslim so it really doesn’t address my post.
John Stefan Obeda says
May God bless us with spiritual power to be willing to die for the truth. There is something more important than life itself; it is truth. And the truth is that God the Father fulfilled His promise to send the Messiah into the world to save us all from sin and eternal damnation. And the truth also is that allah and Islam is of the devil. “God, help me and all of your followers to proclaim the truth with courage and, if necessary, also to die for it with courage.
boakai ngombu says
the church visible is also to speak forth the truth about the pleasing sacrifice of the Anointed One which accomplished the redemption you’ve mentioned, and; it is not to practice this strange “liturgy of silence” being now increasingly observed almost everywhere..
the allah god of islam (unknowable; the best of all deceivers), through its slave, Muhammad (lately contrived; filled with lusts and the guilt for entertaining them) – and those who follow the example of this pitiful man – negates the true LAW given Moses by Yahweh and leads many to death. death, from which individuals are provided deliverance through faith in Jesus.
truly may Yahweh for the sake of His Anointed, grant His forgiveness and bestow much courage to speak, though that may bring death.
خَليفة says
I can hear them singing “dhimmi dhimmi Ko-Ko-Bop, dhimmi dhimmi Bop”
They defend Islam out of fear, not out of love.
Simone Fields says
Get tough with them like the Israelis. That’s the only language they understand.
salim says
The Christians’ leaders in Arab countries have been known to say complementary remarks about Muslims and Islam (which is not exactly matched by the other side). I can understand the difficult position of a Bishop if asked on an Arabic TV channel about what he thinks of Muslims and Islam. I doubt if any person would say anything else in such circumstances.
However, the position of Arab Christians has puzzled me for years. As Islam became more violent in the last two decades, the Arab Christians developed more interest in defending it. I used to assume they do it because of fear as they live among Muslims but they (I mean some of them, of course) still do it when they live in Europe and America. I know a few friends here, who know my position regarding Islam, but still praise the religion and defend the practices of its followers.
Examples: Arcbishop Hilarion Capucci who was famous for his support to PLO, Azmi Bshara (Israeli Arab) is known for being pro Islamic. Edward Said (American Palestinian).
The Christians who are least likely to be pro islamic are the Copts of Egypt ( as opposed to the Christians of Palestine, Israel and Jordan)
Pong says
They have common enemy – the jews!
Sam says
Defending Islam and Evil (same thing) is the cool thing to do in West now. In America every liberal with almost no exception keeps silent when you want to talk about Islam. Silence against Evil is protecting it. Right?
As a nation we still do not have any plan to fight Islam let alone telling the truth about it. We are no better than Arab Christians, Pope, Obama, Germans etc
Westman says
Apparently some nude form statues were covered up for the Ayatollah in Italy as to not “offend’ his sensibiities; as if he was some out of control Muslim teenager or Priest. I hope they put lip dressing on before they bussed his gluteus maximus. I wonder if they struck oil – that’s what it’s really about.
Simone Fields says
An article in The Times (u.k) about this yesterday – Rouhani said “the Koran invites Muslims to protect churches and synagogues” Unbelievable!
WorkingClassPost says
Whoa, isn’t calling his words ‘barbaric’ going a bit too far.
Sure, he may not be helping Westerners understanding of islam, but he said what he believed, or at least what he believed would help his flock. Though unlike we, who might shout at the wolf to scare it away, he has chosen to whisper nicely in the hope of calming it down.
In the long term that may be foolish, but in the short term, without any likelihood of outside intervention coming to their aid, what point or purpose could there be in antagonizing his bloodthirsty neighbours?
And, in any case, who listens to, or has even heard of Gregory III Laham, in the West?
So any attempt to inform us about the dangers he and his people are facing, would fall on deaf and disbelieving ears.
Sam says
This guy has identity issues there is no such thing as Christian Arabs.
Donovan Nuera says
And yet they blame the Israelis for the exodus of Christians from Bethlehem where they once were 80% of the town’s population…..now down to 20%. I remember maybe a decade ago when a PLO group, cornered by the IDF, barricaded themselves in the Church of the Nativity and desecrated it; nobody cared…
Mac-101 says
It appears more so each day that the Pope is the “False Prophet”!
WorkingClassPost says
I thought we were supposed to be against the culture of blaming the victims?
DFD says
WorkingClassPost:
‘bit off topic, but I’m sure you’ll appreciate;
I gather from your posting time/date that you are in the UK. Please sign the petition to ban sharia law from the UK. Link below
https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/107864
And spread this to as many contacts as you possibly, sorry for the inconvenience, but ever vote matters – and we have barely a month left.
Kind regards
DFD
PS: Apologies to all for the interruption
Didymus says
Robert, you’re uncharacteristically wrong. The so called “Melkite Patriarch” is not by his own doctrine, a Christian. Please stop referring to these, who may be religious men, but who are not righteous men
Regards
Didymus
DFD says
Didymus:
‘bit off topic, but I’m sure you’ll appreciate;
I gather from your posting time/date that you are in the UK. Please sign the petition to ban sharia law from the UK. Link below
https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/107864
And spread this to as many contacts as you possibly, sorry for the inconvenience, but ever vote matters – and we have barely a month left.
Kind regards
DFD
PS: Apologies to all for the interruption
DFD says
Robert Spencer
Dear Robert, you wruote “The Patriarch could say nothing”
No better way than stating that, than commenting upon this individual. This cretin.
Kind regards & keep up the good work
DFD
j_not_a says
There is a term for the fatal disease afflicting the limousine liberals, champagne socialists, pie in the sky elites, bumbling politicians and the naive religious leaders as it pertains to their kowtowing and grovelling before islam and it’s called pathological altruism. They would rather their own people and even their own loved ones and themselves perish than turn away the foreign hordes of islamic enemies who would take them over and do them in. It makes no sense, it’s pure insanity.
DFD says
j_not_a:
‘bit off topic, but I’m sure you’ll appreciate;
I gather from your posting time/date that you are in the UK. Please sign the petition to ban sharia law from the UK. Link below
https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/107864
And spread this to as many contacts as you possibly, sorry for the inconvenience, but ever vote matters – and we have barely a month left.
Kind regards
DFD
PS: Apologies to all for the interruption
Eddiethed says
These Bishops are leading there flocks rite to Hell,I might listen to them on spiritual issues but never on issues like kissing Islams Ass never,Islam is evil better to go down fighting then to be subucated to Islam,there are some very evil Bishop’s out there who don’t give a damn about there flock an only care about themselves an getting rich an fat an living in chalets,they are gonna rot in Hell for all of eternity for that,so will this Islam loving Bishop.
Maggie B. says
Not Assyrians! The Assyrian Church of the East despises Islam and will have nothing to do with their clerics or otherwise. Western church leaders like the Pope and this Patriarch seem to have no problem getting into bed with Islam. Guess if their churches were being blown up and their culture was being wiped out as what Islam is doing to us in Iraq and Syria, or their people were facing genocide, they would not be ingratiating themselves to the heretical religion of Muhammad. This leopard has not changed its spots since WWII when the Catholic or the Greek Orthodox did nothing to fight against the evil of the Third Reich. They always get into bed with the devil.
xxxChurch100 says
The ” battered wife syndrome ” .
Mark Durie’s book ” The 3rd Choice ” closely examines the historically implications and effects , the dhimmitude status imposed by Islam on Christians has had .
I highly recommend Dr Duries’ writings .
dumbledoresarmy says
Yes.
I need to reread it, and “Liberty to the Captives”.
Because he shows how Dhimmitude works, and also shows that people can be freed from it.
Halaku says
Albert Camus: “Nothing is more despicable than respect based on fear.”