Image top: Egyptians commemorate the martyrs
News of the Islamic State's bestial murder of 21 Egyptian Christians in Libya had barely broken before attention to the act and its video was consumed by the terror drama in Copenhagen, where first a free speech event and then a Jewish celebration were disrupted, with fatal results in both cases. Unfortunately, the perpetrator could not be held accountable for his actions as he was killed by police. On my way to work, I passed Svanevej, where the perpetrator was shot after he would not surrender to the police. There were a few flowers. Some might say they must have been from sympathizers, but in the outrage and disgust at his action we should not forget that he was also a human being with family, friends and comrades who may be in shock at his action without necessarily condoning it.
Copenhagen - and thus Danmark - has, if not already, seriously lost the illusion that we are safe from terrorism. It has been said again and again that the terrorist attack in Copenhagen came as no surprise. We were probably just waiting for it to happen - hoping that maybe it wouldn't happen after all.
When it comes to Islamic State's actions against Christians and others who do not share their beliefs, fortunately, there are many who express disgust for Islamic State and what they stand for. There are Muslims who will say: "If this is Islam, then I am no longer a Muslim". Most Muslims will probably say that Islamic State does not stand for the kind of Islam they have been brought up in and for. Islamic State, Boko Haram and other Islamist terrorist movements use Islam as described in the Quran and the writings of the Islamic tradition (Hadith) without a "filter", so to speak, to justify their actions. There is a movement underway among Muslims around the world to find the "pure" Islam, Islam without the cultural overlays that have been added throughout history, which differ from country to country due to the very different cultures that Islam has penetrated over almost 1400 years. This movement has especially grown among young immigrants in the Western world. They are usually well-educated and have seen how their parents' practices differed from what they could read directly in the Quran and Hadith. As a result, some have become radicalized in a way that makes them lose all inhibitions against killing, destroying and maiming. They become obsessed with acting as they believe their prophet would act. What most people, regardless of religion, would call evil becomes for them the right thing to do.
In connection with the killing of 21 Christian Egyptians, the Islamic State in Libya has called Christians the "nation of the cross". Perhaps we should take this as a badge of honor. After all, what can Christians be proud of other than the cross? The Apostle Paul writes in Galatians chapter 6, verse 14: "But may it never happen to me that I am proud of anything but the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ." The 21 Christian Egyptians probably all had a cross tattooed on one wrist, as is traditional among Christian Egyptians. They also knew when they were executed that they have now worn it with honor. Therefore, let us as Danes honor the memory of the two Copenhagen terror victims, while we also honor the memory of the 21 Egyptian terror victims.
Here are the names of the 21 Egyptian Christians who had their throats slit by Islamic State in Libya:
- Milad Makeen Zaky
- Abanub Ayad Atiya
- Maged Solaiman Shehata
- Yusuf Shukry Yunan
- Kirollos Shokry Fawzy
- Bishoy Astafanus Camel
- Somaily Astafanus Camel
- Malak Ibrahim Sinweet
- Tawadros Yusuf Tawadros
- Girgis Milad Sinweet
- Mina Fayez Aziz
- Hany Abdelmesih Salib
- Bishoy Adel Khalaf
- Samuel Alham Wilson
- Unknown from Awr village
- Ezat Bishri Naseef
- Loqa Nagaty
- Gaber Munir Adly
- Esam Badir Samir
- Malak Farag Abram
- Sameh Salah Faruq
Their blood cries out to heaven, but not for us to avenge them. We must pray for the persecutors and let God do the avenging. Glory be to their memory!
Image: World Watch Monitor
