Christians in the Middle East are being put at risk by the “short-sighted” and “ignorant” policy on Iraq of Britain and its allies, the leader of the world’s Anglicans has said.
Doctor Rowan Williams, the Archbishop of Canterbury, warned Saturday that Christians could be chased out of the region due the hostility created by the invasion of Iraq, in an article for The Times newspaper.
The Church of England leader accused coalition countries of endangering the lives and futures of thousands of Christians in the Middle East, who were now being viewed by their countrymen as “supporters of the crusading West”.
He said that despite concerns being voiced in the build-up to the March 2003 US-led invasion of Iraq, there was plainly no strategy for handling the risk that Middle Eastern Christians would be put under.
More here. Abp. Williams’ original article here.
Arab Christians obviously find themselves in a very tough situation – caught between Islamist elements in the Middle East, and western military powers for whom they’re largely invisible, or potential enemies. Abp. Williams has some thoughts on how western Christians might practically improve the situation of our brothers and sisters in the Middle East.
A Thinking Reed 