Commentary
In July 64 AD, a great fire devastated the city of Rome. It originated in a shop (presumably a bakery) near Circus Maximus and raged for over a week. At that time, most of the city’s inhabitants lived in wooden houses and shacks, which made them vulnerable to fire.
When it was finally tamed, more than two-thirds of the city had been destroyed.
Roman historian Tacitus wrote The then emperor Nero was at Antium on the coast when the fire started. While the fire was raging, rumors began to circulate that Nero had been seen performing on a stage in a private home, singing the fall and destruction of Troy, and that it was called “While Rome burns, This is the origin of the word “fiddle”.
In fact, people began to believe that Nero deliberately set the fire so that it could be rebuilt as a glorious new city and named after himself.
According to Tacitus, Nero was sufficiently upset by the widespread belief that the fires had started because he ordered the Christians to be denounced as scapegoats, and began the first of many persecutions against them by the empire. bottom.
Christians were captured and tortured to confess, torn apart by dogs, crucified or burned alive, and used as human torches at night.
Fast forward about 2,000 years and history seems to have come full circle, and law enforcement now expresses a fundamental Christian belief in criminal activity.
nothing to do with christianity
Queensland Police Deputy Commissioner Tracy Linford said on 16 February that the deadly ambush in which two police officers and a civilian were killed in an execution-style manner in a remote area last December had been linked to Christianity. declared an act of domestic terrorism related to fundamentalist belief systems. Known as the First Millennium.
Linford said the Trane family of three, who staged a shooting last December at their Wee Ambilla property, 290 kilometers (180 miles) northwest of Brisbane, were “autonomous cells” with “religious motives.” ” he added.
Worryingly, this analysis seems to lack an understanding of the basic tenets of Christianity.
Remember the fifth commandment. don’t you kill What about the teachings of Jesus Christ telling people to love their neighbors as themselves and turn the other cheek? Even when he was crucified, Christ said, they don’t know what they are doing. ”
What happened at Wiang Villa was not far from the core Christian beliefs.
Christians believe that at the end of time, Christ will come again to render final and eternal judgment on all mankind.Christ himself speaks in Matthew chapter 25, and Michelangelo speaks at the Sistine altar. As painted so beautifully on the walls. Chapel.
But “premillennialism” is an interpretation of Christ’s second coming, reminiscent of the many death cults that have emerged over the years. Of course, they are the antithesis of the Christian message.
But sadly, the police’s hypothesis reflects the constant attack on Christians in our culture.
Just last month, Anthony de Segri, editor-in-chief of a Western Australian newspaper, called Liberal Christians “bible-slapping, happy applause and increasingly alienated from secular, modern Australia.” ‘ said.
Of course, modern Australia was built on the Christian values of tolerance, respect and equality before the law, but that discussion is for another time.
Nevertheless, blaming Christians seems to have become commonplace for law enforcement agencies around the world.
Fringe extremists do not represent Christianity as a whole
Late last year, Australia’s Christian Lobby was listed among 20 groups identified as far-right hate and extremist groups. report By the Global Project Against Hate and Extremism.
And just last month, the bomb FBI Memo He was released by whistleblower Kyle Serafin, sparking outrage among Catholics and other groups concerned about religious freedom.
The report, prepared by FBI analysts in Richmond, Virginia and published for internal use only on January 23, is titled, Racially or Ethnically Motivated Violent Extremist Extremism. Interest in sectarian traditionalist Catholic ideology almost certainly presents new opportunities for mitigation.”
It said the “radical traditionalist Catholic ideology” would attract “violent extremists”.
The note mentioned the Fraternity of St. Peter’s Priests, a religious order that celebrates the traditional form of the Catholic Mass.
as reported in life site newsBarry Knestout, the Catholic bishop of Richmond, accused the FBI in a statement.
“The leaked documents must be embarrassing and offensive not only to all Americans, but to all religious groups,” declared Knestout.
“[If] Where evidence of extremism exists, it must be eradicated, but not at the expense of religious freedom. Sticking to teachings is not considered extremism. ”
And that’s the point. The actions of a mad minority should not be used to demonize Christianity in general.
In the aftermath of the 9/11 attacks, reassure us that every politician under the sun must not tar every follower of Islam with the same extremist brush. Do you remember when you rushed to let me go?
In fact, in March 2021, ASIO Chief Mike Burgess said, advised Agencies no longer refer to “Islamic terrorism”.
“We don’t survey people for their religious views. It’s our power-related violence.
“Unsurprisingly, some Muslim groups and others see the term as damaging and misleading to Islam, criticizing them by promoting stereotypes and encouraging division. I think it’s stigmatizing.”
So why can’t the same approach be applied to Christians, especially when attacks by Muslims continue swiftly against Christians and their churches across Europe and in Nigeria?
Views expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of The Epoch Times.