You have commented 339 times on Rantburg.

Your Name
Your e-mail (optional)
Website (optional)
My Original Nic        Pic-a-Nic        Sorry. Comments have been closed on this article.
Bold Italic Underline Strike Bullet Blockquote Small Big Link Squish Foto Photo
Submit your comments on this article
Arabia
Qatar to get first church
2005-10-25
An Anglican congregation plans to build Qatar's first Christian church since Islam's arrival in the 7th century. Clive Handford, the Nicosia-based Anglican bishop in Cyprus and the Gulf, says construction will start in the Qatari capital of Doha in early 2006 on the 26-million Qatar riyal ($7 million) Church of the Epiphany, along with a conference centre and meeting rooms.

Plans for the Anglican church and three other Christian houses of worship have not been well publicised in Muslim-dominated Qatar, which is also the forward headquarters of the US military's Central Command. While some see the construction as a sign of increasing religious diversity throughout the world, Qatar's close-knit Muslim community may become angered if public approval is not sought, said Najeeb al-Nauimi, a prominent lawyer in Doha. "People will be insulted," al-Nauimi said. "They respect other religions. But to impose this on them is to say that you are no longer a Muslim state. That will hurt." Al-Nauimi warned that many Qataris were already upset with the country's westward tilt, with Doha hosting the US Air Force's giant al-Udeid airbase along with American commanders running the war in Iraq.
Posted by:Fred

#11  The black folks go to the AME Zion church.

I know that the AME stands for
African
Methodist
Episcopal

But am unsure on the Zion. (Old Mount of Zion?)Still it seems an eclectic mix of religions.
Posted by: Redneck Jim   2005-10-25 19:53  

#10  "They respect other religions. But to impose this on them is to say that you are no longer a Muslim state. That will hurt."

And yet he doesn't complain that an EU with Turkey would no longer be a "Christian Europe"... so why is it bad that Qatar would no longer be a Muslim state but instead be amongst the ranks of the "multi-cultural, diverse" nations? :P
Posted by: Edward Yee   2005-10-25 19:23  

#9  trailing wife: the schism is ending up with the US, Canada and Britain on one side, and everybody else on the other. The African churches have gone so far as to condemn the British church for being "at variance", which is a milder form of heresy. This means they will no longer commune with them, give them any money or resources, nor respect their pronouncements. They did so to the US church when they ordained the gay bishop.

The schism in the US is a quiet rift, with more and more conservative churches joining the African congregation as missionary churches. Ironically, while protecting the American churches, they in turn give huge sums of money to the African arch-dioceses, making them far more powerful on the continent, and attractive to Moslem converts.

This is so interconnected with the WoT that it should almost be a "background" item. With so very many Moslems becoming disillusioned with Islam, I think it is hunky-dory that Anglicanism is there to pick up the slack.

Eventually, I suspect that it will lead to open religious conflict between the two religions. The Imams just can't stand by and let their suckers be drawn away without a fight.
Posted by: Anonymoose   2005-10-25 14:45  

#8  Anonymoose, the original (English) branch of the Anglican Church is even worse than the American version. Over there, it hasn't been necessary for priests to believe in the existence of God, let alone the saving grace of Jesus, for at least a century.
Posted by: trailing wife   2005-10-25 12:47  

#7  Just wait until the Temple of Bob The Wonder Pig goes in...
Posted by: mojo   2005-10-25 11:04  

#6  "They respect other religions. But to impose this on them is to say that you are no longer a Muslim state. That will hurt."

Ohh!! Doublethink!

They respect other religions? Bullshit! This is Islam - Convert, Submit/be-humiliated/PAY, or Die!
Posted by: CrazyFool   2005-10-25 10:27  

#5  BillH: You're thinking Episcopalian, the US branch, who are squishy leftist pseudo-Anglicans. Real Anglicans are primarily African, and are about as conservative as conservative Catholics. More and more conservative US Anglican churches are becoming African missionary churches, so that they can have a conservative bishop instead of an Episcopalian liberal.

They are also making big inroads against Moslems where the two co-exist in Africa, enough that the Moslems are getting worried about it.

For all practical purposes, Anglicans are the Christian front-line troops against the spread of Islam. Many of the Christians persecuted by Moslems are Anglicans.
Posted by: Anonymoose   2005-10-25 09:55  

#4  guess we'd better not tell 'em about the new Synagogue being built, then?
Posted by: PlanetDan   2005-10-25 09:27  

#3  So, what's the spread on when the riots start? Over-under on Christian deaths? I give it 3,000-1 against our media reporting anything about the coming riots. Takers?
Posted by: AllahHateMe   2005-10-25 08:51  

#2  "People will be insulted"...

Oh-oh. Think I know how that'll turn out.
I'd get plenty of insurance.
Posted by: tu3031   2005-10-25 08:45  

#1  Muslims don't need to worry. The Anglican church quit being Christian quite a while ago.
Posted by: BillH   2005-10-25 08:19  

00:00