Why Christianity Needs Its Own Yad Vashem
Some years ago, I found myself sitting with New York Cardinal Timothy Dolan in his residence at St. Patrick’s Cathedral, talking about a growing interest we shared in reports of anti-Christian persecution around the world.
At one stage, Dolan — who has a PhD in Church history and is conscious of the power of memory — asked me, “Why don’t we Christians have our own Holocaust literature?”
By that he didn’t mean Christian reflections on the Jewish Shoah, which are already abundant. He was asking why there isn’t a similar body of writing, art, drama, music, and so on inspired by Christianity’s new martyrs.
Why, for instance, isn’t there a “Schindler’s List” about the Christians who perished in Kandhamal, India, in 2008, in the largest orgy of anti-Christian violence of the early 21st century, in that case carried out by radical Hindus? Why isn’t there a “Diary of Anne Frank” for the children of Christian converts from Islam, who are often forced to go into hiding out of fear for their lives?
In general, why don’t Christians tell the stories of their victimization in a fashion compelling enough to make the world take notice? It’s certainly not for lack of raw material, since even low-end estimates hold that a Christian is killed for reasons related to the faith somewhere in the world every two hours. (Read more from “Why Christianity Needs Its Own Yad Vashem” HERE)
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