Middle East Perspectives: August 2014

Can Islam and Christianity, Mulsims and Christians, life together peaceably?

I'm writing this as Pope Francis I is visiting Jordan, Israel and Palestinians on the West Bank.

My questions is this, Can Muslims and Christians life together in peace, or must we see an ever-ongoing circle of distrust and violence?

CBN gave a lot of coverage to the case of the "Brave German Woman" who had to be ushered out of a Lutheran Church because she shouted against an imam who was participating in a Christian service. Read about it here

Frontpage Magazine shows how wide the gulf is between the two faiths by focusing on a conference called "Voices for Justice & Peace in the Holy Land" at Christ the King Catholic Church in Pleasant Hill, California, a massive complex with plenty of room for the workshops that made up the bulk of the conference. Hatem Bazian, who is listen in the Royal Islamic Strategic Studies Center's "Muslim 500: The World's Most Influential Muslims," claims that there is a coordinated attempt in the U.S. to "demonize Muslims and create a reflexive hate, and [to] keep them out of civil society." Islamophia, he says, is creating greater sympathy for Palestinian view points in the USA. Read more

Coptic Christians in Egypt are facing on-going difficulties as CBM reports, with shocking details in this story

Not all is "bad news" though. Bethlehem Bible College maintains a very significant ministry with an excellent record of keeping peace between Palestinian Christians and Palestinian Muslims. Click here for your YouTube video

Jerusalem: Temple Mount now is a Central Concern as a Flashpoint

This is a new flashpoint

"Of late, the number of Israeli politicians not embarrassed to call the conflict a “war of religion” has been growing.

By doing so, they cooperate with those on the Palestinian side who want to turn it into a religious conflict rather than a territorial-national dispute.

The issue of the Temple Mount, which to date has not taken center stage in the conflict’s agenda, is paving its way into becoming a main topic on both the Israeli and Palestinian agendas."

Read More

Recent views from Israel

Israel continues to swirl with news and diverse opinions.

"Jerusalem is not up for grabs" Read here

What does the failure of Kerry's peace initiative between Israel and the Palestinian Authority mean for the future? Read here

With the regime in Damascus moving towards a very partial (regional) victory, what does this mean for sectarianism in Syria, and consequently for Israel? Read more

Why is there no possible peace between Israel and the Palestinian Authority? Read more

Who needs the other more - Israel or the USA? Read more

Planned construction on the Temple Mount may be going too far Read more

Turkey: How Erdogan won and the MHP party lost.

A wonderful set of graphics to explain the low voter turnout, Erdogan's victory and the weakness of the MHP (Nationalist) party.

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In addition, Erdogan won 55% of the women's vote in the election. How did he do it? Read more

Pinar Tremblay argues that (1) Women in traditional societies vote for a more conservative party; (2) The AK Party has been deliberately cultivating its approval of women through its social policies; (3) women's grassroots social groups have been cultivating these policies since the early 1990's; and (4) some women are more likely to vote for a candidate if the male member in the household tells them so - a controversial thought!

ISIS: Why it is the most successful terrorist organization yet.

A brilliant analysis of the effectiveness of ISIS, with a chart showing how many countries have their nationals fighting for the cause of the new "caliphate".

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Another great analysis of how the Middle East moved from the "Arab Spring" to devastation is given by the BBC News in this article.

ISIS: Managing to bring secularists and Muslims together in thought against a common enemy?

It isn't often that the secular press looks at events in the same way that Muslim groups do.

When ISIS is concerned, it appears that absolute red lines have been drawn against barbaric cruelty.

Canada is raising its voice in protest against cruelty to Christians in Iraq. Read More

The Canadian Council of Muslims has raised its voice against ISIS and it's deviant nature. Read more

And Ben Caspit, writing in Al Monitor, asks, "When will the West wake up to the threat of radical Islam?" Read more

The Syrian Kurds - What do they want? What will they do?

What is happening to the Syrian Kurds in the midst of all this fighting?

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And for another day, "What does the increased prominence of 'Kurdistan' in Iraq, mean for Kurds in Turkey?" (A very sensitive topic...)

Israel and Syria: How likely is peace? What needs to happen?

What does Israel want from Syria? What does Syria want from Israel? How much can they be engaged in peace making under the circumstances?

Read here

Turkey: "Demolish our top three universities - Let's return to the 11th Century"

Boagazici University seen from the Bosporus

One of Turkey's most respected government officials, Yusuf Kaplan, wants the countries top three universities "demolished". They are Istanbul's Bogazici University, Ankara's Middle East Technical University, known as ODTU, and Bilkent University.

The model of education being called for by Yusuf Kaplan dates back to the 11th Century when the Seljuk Empire employed a system of ed
ucation known as Nezamiyehs. The reason for the "demolishing" of the present system of education, according to Kaplan, is to "educate our younger generation on the basis of our 'civilization' thesis."

The recommendation for the change in the education model apparently originated with President-elect Recep Tayyip Erdogan. In the opinion expressed during the recent election, Erdogan suggested that these three universities will "conduct world-renowned, pioneering studies" on religion of Islam using the Quram, alongside the teachings of Christianity, Judaism, Buddhism and Hinduism.

According to Kaplan, whose recommendations carry weight in the Turkish government, "If we do not carry out these modifications in our educational system, we will become extinct in 20 years."

Turkey has 170 universities and the three universities that Kaplan wants to "demolish" are three of the five Turkish institutions that are listed in the "Times Higher Education List".

Read more

Violence and Terrorism on the Rise in Egypt

Unfortunately, there is a dramatic rise in terrorism from the Sinai Desert to Cairo.

While the world focuses its attention on Israel, Gaza, Syria and Iraq, events in Egypt are an important part of what's going on in this part of the world.

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Unfortunately, many sources confirm the same story.

There is unbelievable cruelty going on in Iraq, all caused by ISIS.

Christian Children have been beheaded.

Unexpectedly, Indonesia has banned support for ISIS, calling it "Anti-Islam" saying it poses a threat to the nation's religious and cultural diversity The feeling in Jakarta is that ISIS is going to bring many difficulties to the Islamic world.

Mark Movsesian comments on the implications of ISIS overtaking Mosul in this fine article: "A Line Crossed in the Middle East"

Canada is condemning the destruction of Christian sites and killings of minority groups

Middle East Perspectives