Maybe he did have “mental health issues,” but he was also “shouting about religion but to be honest he wasn’t making much sense” and “might have been Algerian or Moroccan.”
He may have “mental health issues” and also be motivated by the fact that the cross is an affront to Islam. The Qur’an claims that Jesus was not crucified, although in somewhat equivocal language for what is supposed to be the perfect word of an omniscient god:
“And their saying, ‘Indeed, we have killed the Messiah, Jesus, the son of Mary, the messenger of Allah.’ And they did not kill him, nor did they crucify him; but another was made to resemble him to them. And indeed, those who differ over it are in doubt about it. They have no knowledge of it except the following of assumption. And they did not kill him, for certain.” (4:157)
And a hadith depicts Muhammad saying: “The Hour will not be established until the son of Mary (i.e. Jesus) descends amongst you as a just ruler, he will break the cross, kill the pigs, and abolish the Jizya tax. Money will be in abundance so that nobody will accept it (as charitable gifts).” (Bukhari 46.37.2476)
This means he will destroy Christianity (break the cross), force the Christians to obey the Islamic food laws (kill the pigs) and end the second-class dhimmi status (abolish the jizya) that Islamic law specifies for Christians, such that they will either have to convert to Islam or be killed.
Could he be both “mentally ill” and motivated by Islamic theological principles? Why not? We have seen authorities again and again ascribe to “mental illness” what are clearly acts of jihad, but this isn’t really an either/or proposition: a psychically marginal individual may see in an act of jihad, even one so comparatively harmless as tearing down a cross, a chance to get into the good graces of Allah and compensate for the things in his life for which he may feel guilty or tormented.
“Vandal who was caught on camera trying to TEAR a cross off the roof of church in east London is arrested after video provoked fury,” by Milly Vincent, Mailonline, October 19, 2020:
A man who attempted to rip a large cross from the roof of an east London church has been arrested by police.
Footage posted on social media appears to show a man repeatedly trying to pull a wooden cross from its base above the entrance to Chadwell Heath Baptist Church in Romford.
With the hood of a coat placed over the cross the man can be seen using all his force to release the cross from the roof of the church.
Today workmen were preparing to put the cross back on the roof.
A local cafe owner who witnessed the desecration said: ‘I saw the guy first when I was opening up at 8am.
‘He was sitting on the pavement bobbing his head back and forth.
‘You could tell he had mental health issues. I don’t think he was local because I’d never seen him before. I think he might have be [sic] Algerian or Moroccan.
‘He disappeared for a while after I first saw him, but then the next thing I know he’s climbed onto the church and he’s shouting random abuse.
‘He was very angry and he started damaging the cross.
‘He was shouting about religion but to be honest he wasn’t making much sense.
‘An audience started to build waiting to see what he was going to do next.
‘People were stood well back because they could see he was about to throw the cross.
‘When it finally came crashing down it didn’t hit anyone thankfully.
‘What happened next was so bizarre.
‘The police hadn’t arrived yet so the guy just jumped down and started dragging the cross through the streets — a bit like Jesus did….
Walter Sieruk says
This incident in the United Kingdom further shows that “War of Ideas” is really ,in essence a terrible religious conflict between Christian West and the Islamic East.
To put this in anther way ,may be said that one very good way to describe this twenty –first century “War of Ideas” is that of a great a conflict and a clash between Christianity and Islam. As explained by the Christian author, William Wagner,, in his book which is entitled HOW ISLAM PLANS TO CHANGE THE WORLD had explained on page 155 about a meeting that he had with a Muslim cleric , which reads “Several years ago one Imam told me that ,prior to 1990, the greatest enemy to Islam was Communism but now it is the Christian missions.” Further, on page 208 the Wagner had written about some zealous Muslims that “They have failed to stop Christian missions. They see Christian missions as their number one enemy.” On the very next page the reader is informed that “Christianity remains the number one buffer against Islam, a fact readily recognized by those who seek a world wild ummah.” [1]
[1] Ummah – The community of all those who affirm Islam.
Jayell says
So this character was trying to ‘stop a Christian mission’, was he? In the UK? Why? The church building in question had probably been built specifically as an established part of the local community over a century ago, like virtually every other London church (and many go back to the 18th century and medieval times). And the UK has been a ‘Christian’ country for getting on for 2,000 years, with a National Church with the Head of State at the top since the time of Henry VIII.
Rufolino says
Just a straw, blowing in the wind.
But by the end of this century, most Christian churches will be damaged, or burnt down.
The commonplace will be:-
Church windows smashed, statues decapitated, graves despoiled, altar crosses stolen,, the Host trampled underfoot, ancient vestments ripped. And sometimes, priests will be murdered.
All this is already happening sporadically.
But coming, in the near future, is a raging storm of brazen hatred for Christianity.
Jayell says
Interesting. I’ve already had personal experience of this when inside a church in a ‘nice’ part of London and a brick came hurtling through the stained-glass window. Never ever happened before, but the police said that it was courtesy of some muslims who’d just moved into a council estate round the corner and were ‘causing trouble’ elsewhere. And then there’ve been a few stories of vicars in London’s East End who’ve been beaten up because some of the new locals didn’t think that the churches that had been there for up to 200 years should be there anymore.
By the way, this story from Chadwell Heath has now gone viral in the UK.
FYI says
@Jayell
It is good it has gone viral:Britons need to WAKE UP to this sick cult with its pedophile prophet muhammed{pbuh,pederasty be usual for him} its demonic god al lah{whose enemy is a MAN called the king of kings Sahih muslim vol 5 hadith #5611:can you guess who that might be and what ‘allah’ represents?EVIL}and a plagiarized HOLEY book so full of errors that by allah’s OWN criterion of perfection {koran 4:82}it cannot come from God{due to all the errors in it} but from ‘other than allah’ and so is BOGUS.
Britons and Americans need to understand the following.
The koran CURSES Christians for believing in Jesus Christ{koran 9:30}
The koran is ferociously antiSemitic and CURSES Jews{koran 2:65 etc}
islam teaches that all non-muslims are ‘THE WORST OF CREATED BEINGS” {koran 98:6}
islam has a Doctrine of HATE{al walaa wal baraa}towards all non-muslims.
allah{‘the BEST of DECEIVERS’ K3:54} MISSED a few things..
1]The Purpose of the Law given to Moses{=to OBEY the commandments of Exodus chpt 20 Decalogue and not violate them as allah teaches.
allah gives freedom to break the Law}
2]The Meaning of the Law{=the Golden Rule Matthew 7 v 12}
{allah misrepresents Jews and Christians and completely misunderstands the purpose and meaning of the Law given in his ‘perfect’ koran.
Laughably,he thinks MARY is in the Christian Trinity koran 5:116 which allah would know was wrong if he was omniscient which clearly he is not.allah is a Theologically and scientifically challenged god.No point explaining this to islamic ‘scholars’.}
3]Those essential two chief commandments{#1 Deut 6:4-9,#2 Lev 19:18}
islam has no concept of ‘love thy neighbor’ since in islam infidels are inferior to muslims
{see koran 3:110,muslims are the BEST,koran 98:6,infidels are the WORST}
4]The name of God{it isn’t ‘allah’,it is YHWH}
5]The concept of EQUALITY{Genesis 1:27}see how koran 98:6 violates this.
6]The purpose of Jesus Christ as Redeemer.
7]The role given to the Jews
{“it is from the Jews that salvation comes” John 4 v 22}
{Note btw that if you are a Leftist or an Atheist or an ex-muslim that koran 98:6 applies to you too…}
Martin says
PROTECTED TWEET
Rev James Thomas — Chadwell Heath Church
[…]However, when I caught him it became apparent very quickly that he was not at all mentally very well.
[…] he could so easily have fallen off the roof which wouldn’t have been good.
[…] he will be professionally assessed and hopefully receive the help he requires
[…] material things can be fixed with ease . Had he lost his life that would have been tragic .
PIC
https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/c828b0f36cd22d8d2cfdaa6144b51d63c22de0a567b03a7d9fda4824c7623ba4.jpg
Ecosse1314 says
That being the case i then have ask; where are all the mentally ill jews christians hindus buddhists going around attacking Islamic sites?
gravenimage says
Damn good question, Ecosse.
Lion heart says
Ecosse : all Muslims should be kicked out of the West as the bloody and evil Saddam did to Iranians in the 1980s when some Iranian terrorists carried out terrorism in Baghdad where Saddam issued a decree that all Iranians should leave Iraq within 48 hours !!
Ecosse1314 says
Thanks GI. Completely agree Lionheart
Jayell says
Just in case JW readers across the pond would like a bit of background……
Up to about 50-60 years ago Chadwell Heath was a very respectable area of east London near ‘highly desirable’ Ilford and the old market town of Romford, nice, neat mid-range terraced or semi-detached houses, little or no mess on the streets, moderately-well attended churches of various denominations within easy walking distance of each other and the local police weren’t exactly overworked. You could almost say ‘boring’, and it’s easy to understand why the local cinemas and Palais de Danse did such good business on a Saturday night.
Well, with a murder or two from time to time, celebrities like Anjem Choudhury & chums taking up residence not too far away, the anti-terror police causing a bit of a bang with a bomb in a local apartment recently, and now a lunatic shouting and screaming and trying to throw a cross from off the top of a church, things certainly seem to have livened up a bit.
Isn’t it fun living in ‘diverse’ London!!!
James Lincoln says
Jayell says,
“You could almost say ‘boring’”
Funny how now we miss “boring”…
tim gallagher says
This is something I have often thought about the way the Australian government (and other western governments ) have allowed Muslim migration into our country. I have often thought, hey, is it that they found our past way of living, much more peaceful and less violent, with so much less crime to say nothing of no Muslim terrorist attacks, just too boring?, and so they decided they’d liven things up by letting these barbaric, violent Muslims in. I’m only partly being sarcastic. Things have definitely been made worse. In Sydney yesterday morning, just as an example, a Muslim gangster was shot dead by some other mob of Muslim gangsters and there is now the fear of a war breaking out. This happens fairly regularly. Things are far worse than they used to be. Jayell, your comments often give a good insight into how things are going in the UK. I have the feeling that you see things there very clearly and very accurately. Your comments seem to me to be spot on.
JMB says
Thank you Tim Gallagher, yes, the NSW Police are very concerned about a full scale gangland war breaking out on the streets in that part of Sydney, and just like some parts of London mosques have replaced the churches.
tim gallagher says
Yes, JMB, I was struck by Jayell mentioning the “boring” society the UK used to have and also James making the same point. Like James, I’d much prefer to have that more peaceful, more “boring” society back before all this garbage was let into Australia. It has been such a dumb move bringing these ultra violent barbarians to Australia and other countries. If these gangsters do go and wipe one another out, then that’s fine, but they sometimes kill innocent bystanders, and this country would be a far better place if these types of people had never been allowed to move here. These gang wars do seem to go on quite a lot around Sydney these days as reprisal shootings go on and on. As I said up above, I have often had this same odd idea that our authorities must have thought that Australia was just too boring, so they let these violent barbarians in to make the place more lively. What idiots they were to do that.
gravenimage says
I actually find the horrors of Islam boring as well as appalling. I can think of few things more boring than living under Shari’ah, where the only “excitement” is destruction and violence.
tim gallagher says
gravenimage, I couldn’t agree more. islam is an inhumane, 100% boring way of living life. It crushes the human spirit in endless ways. I was referring to the bringing into Australia and many other countries of violent, lawless barbarians who turn what were once far more pleasant and peaceful areas into lawless battlegrounds. Some people might think that all this violent criminal activity is less boring than the peaceful life we used to have. As I mentioned, when I try to understand why our authorities have so stupidly brought in these violent people, then I do sometimes wonder if these idiots thought, oh, life is just too peaceful here, we should bring lawless vermin in and liven things up. I’m mainly joking, but not entirely. This country, and many other countries, have been turned into far worse places, that’s for sure. I’m pretty sure that the problem is the ignorance of islam’s nature by the politicians and also the multicultural fantasy where they believe that all people will get along wonderfully.
gravenimage says
Thanks for that background, Jayell.
Jayell says
Well, thanks for that as well, Gravenimage. So kind! If you’re ever in London you can jump in my car and I’ll give you a guided tour of Ilford and Chadwell Heath. Don’t forget to bring your passport and protective headgear, and I’ll have to take mine as well.
LB says
There was a time no too long ago (before I was an anti-jihadist) when it was my dream to visit London, mainly for the huge music scene there (I’m a big fan of EDM and also some British metal bands). Now however, after seeing what London (and the majority of Western big cities) has become… I wouldn’t set foot there even if you payed me. I think I’ll stay here in Eastern Europe where I don’t have to look over my shoulder during the day and able to freely walk alone at night.
Mykejohn says
When they were in danger during the formative years of their cult, they turned to Christians and their King in Ethiopia for refuge. Now to show how grateful they are to the Christians, they are prepared to go to any length to destroy all there is about the tabenacle and the same faith that gave them refuge. Even to date the Christians continue to give them refuge in economic areas. Had it not been the faith,annihilation would have crowned them long ago. Indeed Allah of Islam is really everything but forgetful.
gravenimage says
+1
terry sullivan says
deport
gravenimage says
+1
Agostino Armo Pellegrini says
I bet 10 to 1 nothing much happens to this muslim for his act of religious bigotry and criminal damage to property. Muslims are always afforded every excuse in the book, they’re “mentally ill,” they don’t know the culture, it was a “sexual emergency,” it’s the “islamophobes” fault, it was those mean cartoons that caused them to murder, rape, and pillage… and these terrorists never represent true islam, do they, ha! They murder and terrorize for the religion that says murder and terrorize but they don’t represent islam. What an astounding bit of logic that is.
Had it been the other way around, some non-muslim damaging a mosque then you can imagine the outcry. There’d be deafening accusations of religious discrimination with dire warnings about the rise of right wing extremism. We’d be inundated with images of frightened looking muslim “victims” on tv fearing for their safety, while politicians resoundingly condemn the act as opposed to our sacred held belief in religious freedom! In the meantime the world is unraveling for islam, murder and terror on a massive scale, whole islamic nations hating the West and threatening nuclear annihilation of Israel, burgeoning enclaves destroying our culture and nation, and a host of cultural imports that degrade our freedoms and plague humanity; like murderous homophobia, antisemitism, FGM, honor killings, forced marriages, sharia, and so on…. and what’s the best response we get from our leftist appeasers? that we should ignore the ugly reality about islam and respond with gentle bigotry by viewing muslims as stupid children who can’t help themselves. It’s usually the same anytime they kill or rape or terrorize or discriminate or cut little girls’ clitoris, they are granted the child-like excuse that it is not their fault, and further, that all cultures are of equal worth even though they aren’t. One example out of many is the Garland attack against the cartoon contest, you remember that, right? So much criticism was leveled against the event’s organizers that it was tantamount to blaming them for the attack, as if the jihad terrorists were an ancillary footnote to their bigger crime of exercising their right to free expression. See what I mean?
Many politicians and world leaders want us to believe that all cultures are equal and worthy of respect, and that islam can be part of their multicultural dream. But a culture like islam is not our equal, it’s retarded and dangerous. It models its existence on an outmoded superstition that is profoundly ignorant and immoral. If it has any value at all it’s because it teaches us how dangerous a culture can be when it lives for a retarded ideology like islam.
Ripping a cross off a church is not the worst thing muslims have done nor can it destroy us. But it’s indicative of the larger problem that threatens us to death. And the problem is, quite obviously and without any doubt whatsoever–ISLAM, an ideology that for 1400 years has inspired mass murder and terror for religious discrimination. In islam’s world the date is always somewhere in the 7th century A.D., written in the blood of millions.
gravenimage says
Good post, Agostino.
Christopher Watson says
If they are moslem and come from the middle east then it’s a fair chance they are mentally deficient. Their parents are probably first cousins, they have been taught the most backward set of religious values ever and they have never learnt anything of any value as to a trade or a job. So, I ask why do we let them into our countries? Please, please, please would someone, anyone explain why these morons are breathing our air.
James Lincoln says
Christopher Watson says,
“Please, please, please would someone, anyone explain why these morons are breathing our air.”
A few things immediately come to mind; political correctness, globalism, Marxism, pathological altruism, virtue signaling, “all cultures are equally valuable”, self-hatred, overdeveloped societies that have gotten soft, etc.
I’m sure that Jihad Watch readers can add *many* more reasons – none of them good…
Vladimir says
The Cross is the terrible symbol of Satan’s defeat, and so even under the mask of ”Allah”, he has to use his demoniacs to tear it down everywhere they find them, when they have the ability to do so.
gravenimage says
UK: Man tears cross off church, witness says ‘I think he might have been Algerian or Moroccan’
………….
In other words, he might be Muslim…
James says
This is exactly what ISIS did in their uprising — topple crosses from churches.
Jayell says
So no doubt there’s going to be a few crosses raining down from the tops of UK churches before too long since the establishment have apparently let some more ISIS brides back into the country; and then there’s all those poor refugees and asylum seekers having a day out across the channel from France, who I suspect have probably never seen the inside of a church unless they were aiming to make a few ‘structural improvements’.
wpm says
Crosses throw from the roof tops of churches in England. Priest beheaded in coastal towns in France in middle of saying mass. Teachers giving lessons on free speech showing Mohammad cartoons beheaded walking home from school. Bombing of concerts, driving trucks into Christmas markets killing and maiming scores of people in Germany, rape grooming gangs in blue collar towns in England,, flying planes into WTC in Manhattan.
What do all these things have in common?
The answer according to the elected leaders of all those countries in Western Europe and North America is nothing to do with Islam!
Until the leaders address the problem, acknowledge the problem , admit what is causing the problem , the problem of Islam will only grow.