Written by Zia H Shah

Colesium in Rome: where many an early Christians may have been martyred!

A Kansas City woman who converted from Christianity to Islam has been awarded $5 million in punitive damages by a jury who found the telecommunications giant AT&T created a “hostile work environment” after her conversion, according to a judge’s order issued last week.  Susann Bashir, a 41-year-old married mother, sued AT&T unit Southwestern Bell for what she said was a pattern of offensive and discriminatory conduct by her supervisors that began when she converted to Islam in 2005, six years after she started working for the company as a network technician.  Read further about this conversion in the heartland of America.  Every time a Muslim is discriminated against in some form or the other in the West, attention of the fair minded, in the society, is drawn towards Islam.

A Christian martyr is a person who is killed for following Christianity, through stoning, crucifixion, burning at the stake or other forms of torture and capital punishment. The word “martyr” comes from the Greek word μάρτυς, mártys, which means “witness.”  At first, the term applied to Apostles.^[1] Once Christians started to undergo persecution, the term came to be applied to those who suffered hardships for their faith.^[1] Finally, it was restricted to those who had been killed for their faith.^[1] The early Christian period before Constantine I was the “classic” age of martyrdom.^[1] A martyr’s death was considered a “baptism in blood,” cleansing one of sin, similar to the effect of baptism in water. The “baptism in blood” provides an even greater picture, showing both the loyalty and love the martyr has for his/her Savior.^[1] Early Christians venerated martyrs as powerful intercessors, and their utterances were treasured as inspired specially by the Holy Spirit.^[1]The lives of the martyrs became a source of inspiration for some Christians, and their lives and relics were revered. The 2nd-century Church Father Tertullian wrote that “the blood of martyrs is the seed of the Church,” implying that the martyrs’ willing sacrifice of their lives leads to the conversion of others.^[5] Relics of the saints are still revered in the Catholic and Orthodox Churches. The age of martyrdom led to the presence of relics in altars, and in the foundation stones of the buildings built for worship.

In the past humans had crude sensibilities and many an innocent Christians were thrown in front of carnivore animals in the coliseum in Rome and other arena.  Human discourse has become more sophisticated and gentle over the centuries but it continues to be true that blood of the Martyrs or persecution is the seed of the Church!  Persecution always draws attention to the persecuted and if the persecuted are helped by the Divine hand, persecution works in their favor! The blood of the Martyrs is the seed of the Church – or is it the Mosque this time?

George Santayana (born Jorge Agustín Nicolás Ruiz de Santayana y Borrás in Madrid, December 16, 1863; died September 26, 1952, in Rome) was a philosopher, essayist, poet, and novelist. A lifelong Spanish citizen, Santayana was raised and educated in the United States and identified himself as an American, although he always kept a validated Spanish passport.^[1] He wrote in English and is generally considered an American man of letters. At the age of forty-eight, Santayana left his position at Harvard and returned to Europe permanently, never to return to the United States. Santayana is known for the sayings, “Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.”^[2]  If Santayana’s observation was true, then will not it follow: the blood of the Martyrs is the seed of the Church – or is it the Mosque this time?

A flag football team took a stand against discrimination by donning hijabs in support of their Muslim teammate.  Members of the West Broward High School team wore the traditional Muslim headdress during the final game of their regular season in order to support their 17-year-old captain, Irum Khan, who has often been the victim of name-calling and racial slurs because of her faith, the Sun Sentinel reports.  Players wore the the colorful scarves while performing their pre-game warm-ups, though uniform regulations forced them to remove the headdresses before hitting the field.  The gesture opened the eyes of teammates like senior Marilyn Solorzano, who said she admired Kham for sticking to her beliefs.  The blood of the Martyrs is the seed of the Church – or is it the Mosque this time?

As evidenced by media stories and public awareness campaigns, Americans have resolved to get tough on bullying. In that spirit, it’s time to send a message to bullies with badges.  We need to tell police who prey on the vulnerable: “No more! When you pile on a suspect and beat him to death, we will treat you just like any other alleged criminal. We will arrest you and prosecute you. And if convicted, you will go to prison for a very long time. We will make an example out of you so that other police officers will think twice before abusing their power.”  The messenger could be the jury that will hear the case against two police officers in Fullerton, California, a city about 25 miles southeast of Los Angeles. A judge ruled Wednesday that the officers will stand trial in the beating death last July of Kelly Thomas, a 37-year-old homeless man afflicted with schizophrenia.  Read the rest of the story in CNN: ‘Daddy, help! They’re killing me!’  As the society becomes more sensitive and concerned about the human rights of each and every individual, this also means that every time a Muslim is wrongfully tortured in places like Abu-Gharaib and Guantanamo, attention is drawn to Islam.  People, in the East and in the West are able to read about the exemplary treatment of prisoners in early Islam.  The blood of the Martyrs is the seed of the Church – or is it the Mosque this time?

Every time an innocent Muslim is labeled as collateral damage, when killed in a drone attack and the wisdom and justifications of such attacks is questioned, attention is drawn to Islam.  Each thinking person begins to think whether human life is sacred or not?  We begin to ask about the foundations of our human rights and some begin to discover that our universal human rights may actually be grounded in Islam. The blood of the Martyrs is the seed of the Church – or is it the Mosque this time?

Every time a Muslim does something wrong, Islam is often put on trial in the West, but same treatment is not meted out to a Christian, a Jew, a Hindu or a Buddhist.  Why is that?   This reminds us of some fundamental prejudices against Islam.  In my opinion, Karen Armstrong’s Magnum opus is her biography of the Holy Prophet Muhammad, may peace be on him, Muhammad: A Biography of the Prophet.  A chapter in the book titled, Muhammad the Enemy, can bring the Christians and the Muslims together by promoting insight into some of the limitations of the past.  To share one quote from the book: “If we could view Muhammad as we do any other important historical figure we would surely consider him to be one of the greatest geniuses the world has known.”  For a more detailed excerpt from her book, click here.

The blood of the Martyrs is the seed of the Church – or is it the Mosque this time?

Richard Allen Greene, writes in an Editorial in CNN, “Every religion has its true believers and its doubters, its pious and its pragmatists, but new evidence suggests that Muslims tend to be more committed to their faith than other believers. …  One explanation lies in current affairs, says Azyumardi Azra, an expert on Islam in Indonesia, the world’s most populous Muslim majority country.”  Many Muslims increasingly define themselves in contrast with what they see as the Christian West, says Azra, the director of the graduate school at the State Islamic University in Jakarta.  “When they confront the West that they perceive as morally in decline, many Muslims feel that Islam is the best way of life. Islam for them is the only salvation,” he says.  Like Christians who wear “What Would Jesus Do?” bracelets, many Muslims feel a deep personal connection to the founder of their faith, the prophet Muhammad, he says.  Muhammad isn’t simply a historical figure to them, but rather a personal inspiration to hundreds of millions of people around the world today.  “When a Muslim is fasting or is asked to give charity or behave in a certain way, he is constantly reminded of the example set by the prophet many centuries ago,” argues Ahmed, the author of Journey Into Islam: The Crisis of Globalization.  His book is based on interviews with Muslims around the world, and one thing he found wherever he traveled was admiration for Muhammad, may peace be on him.  “In place of the mystery under which the other religions have covered their origins,” wrote Ernest Renan in Muhammad and the Origins of Islam, in 1851, “Islam was born in the full light of history; its roots are on the surface.  The life of its founder is as well known to us as that of any sixteenth-century reformer.”  When a Muslim looks at Muhammad with a loving eye they find only profound beauty and charisma.  No wonder, a Muslim has a real admiration for the person of Muhammad and aspires to follow his model.  The Christians on the other hand have a paradoxical and confusing understanding of Two natures of Jesus: another Christian mystery!  The blood of the Martyrs is the seed of the Church – or is it the Mosque this time?

Apologeticus or Apologeticum^[1] is Tertullian‘s most famous work,^[2] consisting of apologetic and polemic; it was written in Carthage in the summer or autumn of 197 AD, during the reign of Septimius Severus.^[3] In this work Tertullian defends Christianity, demanding legal toleration and that Christians be treated as all other sects of the Roman Empire. It is in this treatise that one finds the phrase: “the blood of the martyrs is the seed of the Church” (Apologeticus, Chapter 50).^[4] Apologeticus is ostensibly addressed to the provincial governors of the Roman empire— “that the truth, being forbidden to defend itself publicly, may reach the ears of the rulers by the hidden path of letters”— and thus bears resemblance to the Greek apologues. Its readership is more likely to have been composed of Christians, whose faith was reinforced through Tertullian’s defense against rationalizations and rumors.  As we have seen countless experts on Islam pop up in the West suddenly, after the unfortunate events of September 2001, there is no shortage of opposing apologetics for Islam.  I being no exception.  I choose my battles though and defend only moderate Islam and join hands with others against extremism and intolerance.  There is resurgence of Islam every where, not only in form of conversions, but, the Muslims are showing greater devotion to their religion.  In 1970s in the streets of Cairo, hardly any woman could be found with Hijab and now a great majority will observe that.  Hijab was outlawed in the public sphere, in Turkey, during the reforms by Ata Turk, a decision that has now been reversed and it is not uncommon at all to encounter Hijab clad women of all ages and ethnicity in streets of Istanbul, an observation I confirmed during my recent trip this year to Turkey.

The blood of the Martyrs is the seed of the Church – or is it the Mosque this time?

Epilogue

After the conversion of Emperor Constantine in early fourth century, majority of the population of the Roman Empire had become Christian by early sixth century.  The pagans were losing confidence in the validity of their beliefs and Christianity was on the march.  Polytheism was giving way to Monotheism, even though adulterated by Nicene creed in Christianity.  The fourth century saw continued struggle between Nicene creed and Arianism.  Arianism was a more pure understanding of Monotheism, in greater conformity with the Jewish traditions.  Constantine was actually baptized by an Arian bishop.  There were other Arian emperors also, but, for some reasons, to be examined else where, Nicene creed got ascendency in the fourth century.  Arianism was then labeled as a heresy.  What happened to paganism in the fourth through sixth century is happening to Christianity today, as it is imploding under the weight of irrational dogma like Trinity, vicarious atonement and Eucharist.  The so called generations x and y in the West are unable to continue to believe in a literal understanding of Eucharist, in the Eucharist being the body of Christ and wine his blood and rightly so.  Many of them consider it to be only a blessed wafer and wine.  According to recent polls, 16%, 25% and 40-50% of the Americans, Canadians and Europeans are unaffiliated with any Church.  So, at least half of the history of 4th though 6th century has already repeated itself, as one religion loses confidence in its foundations.  Would the other half follow suit and Trinity give rise to more pure understanding of Monotheism, God the Father being the only God and Jesus being one of the Prophets and the Holy Ghost an angelic Messenger? Would Christianity pave way for Islam?  Would Churches be replaced by Mosques in the West?  Would the sun of Islam rise from the West in the Latter Days?  The Islamic prophecies and the wisdom of many a Muslims say, “Yes!”  Yes indeed.  May you get to hear of moderate Islam, as practiced and presented by the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community.  Ameen!

The blood of the Martyrs is the seed of the Church – or is it the Mosque this time?

Reference for some of information presented here:

Professor Kenneth W. Harl.  The Fall of the Pagans and the Origins of Medieval Christianity.  The Teaching Company Course.