NATIONAL CATHEDRAL TO HOST ISLAMISTS

BY PAUL MIRENGOFF

The Washington Post reports that the Washington National Cathedral will host a Muslim prayer service this Friday. The cathedral, part of the Episcopal Church, has long been the site of important services, including memorial services for presidents, some of whom are buried there. But the Cathedral has never before been used for Muslim services.

The Post reports this as a feel-good story. It quotes a local Muslim spokesperson who says:

We want the world to see the Christian community is partnering with us and is supporting our religious freedom in the same way we are calling for religious freedom for all minorities in Muslim countries. Let this be a lesson to the world.

But it’s difficult to feel good about this story because it turns out that the Espiscopal Church is partnering with Islamists. Deep into the Post’s story we learn that among the organizations sponsoring the prayer event are the Islamic Society of North America (ISNA) and the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR).

Although the Post does not mention it, both ISNA and CAIR are Islamist advocates of sharia law with a history of supporting terrorism. Neil Munro refreshes our recollection:

In 2009, both groups were confirmed as co-conspirators in a conspiracy to deliver funds to the Gaza-based Hamas jihad group, which regularly launches attacks to kill Jews in Israel.

This year, Hamas launched more than 4,000 rockets at Jews in Israel, often from within civilian areas.

Hamas is an affiliate of the Egypt-based Islamist group the Muslim Brotherhood, which was ousted from power in Egypt by huge public protest in 2012. Both CAIR and ISNA have close ties to the brotherhood movement.

Accordingly, the message sent by the Episcopal Church’s invitation is, as Robert Spencer says, “that U.S. mainline churches have no interest in encouraging genuine Muslim reform, but rather are aiding and enabling Brotherhood front groups in the U.S.” This message will not be lost on Muslim audiences in the Middle East, where Christians are being persecuted and even murdered.

This is not the first time that the Episcopal Church has sent a message via its policy on usage of the Cathedral. As Munro reminds us, in 2011 evangelicals were excluded from services commemorating the tenth anniversary of 9/11.

Yes to terror-supporting Islamists; no to Christian evangelicals — this is the message from the Episcopal Church. It’s a message that reflects the posture of the left-wing political establishment which the Church for years has mimicked.

JOHN adds: This is outrageous:

We want the world to see the Christian community is partnering with us and is supporting our religious freedom in the same way we are calling for religious freedom for all minorities in Muslim countries. Let this be a lesson to the world.

Really? And what have these supposed Muslim leaders done to bring about “religious freedom for all minorities in Muslim countries?” Absolutely nothing. There is no such freedom. If anyone were to suggest that a Muslim church be turned over to Christians for a worship service in a majority-Muslim country, violence would almost certainly result. Religious freedom is anathema to Islam. Christians are the world’s most persecuted group, by a large margin, but leaders of mainstream American denominations like the Episcopalians couldn’t possibly care less.