Christians at times claim to be ‘the most persecuted religion in the world’, citing examples in countries like North Korea, China, Sudan and Saudi Arabia but Muslims can also adduce plenty of instances pointing to their own sufferings. Burma, Kosovo, the killings, terrorism or discriminations against Shia minorities in Pakistan, Northern Iraq, Indonesia and Egypt show all too dramatically how Muslims are victims as well. A tourist walking in East London along colourful Brick Lane will admire the sight of Jamme Masjid, on the corner with Fournier Street. Before being a mosque, however, the fine rectangular building had been a Jewish synagogue. Before that, it was a church serving a French Christian community called the Huguenots. Both the Jews and the Huguenots had come to Britain centuries ago as exiles to escape intolerance and persecution in continental Europe. The Huguenots had fled France after the massacres perpetrated against them by the Catholics during the notorious Night of St Bartholomew in 1572. The Jews had come to England in large numbers later on after pogroms in Tsarist Russia. Britain boasts a proud tradition of giving asylum to victims of intolerance, but the unfortunate tendency is to ignore this country’s own historical dark side. Fruits of Intolerance: Persecution on Grounds of Religion
Posted on: Tue, 16 Sep 2014 07:42:32 +0000
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