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UNHOLY ROW IN JORDAN OVER MISSIONARIES
Agence France Presse
March 11 2008
AMMAN (AFP) - Jordanian Christians are up in arms over the activities
of foreign missionaries in the Muslim conservative kingdom which is
rich in biblical sites, including the spot where Jesus was baptised.
The row erupted after the government announced last month that it
had deported an unspecified number of expatriates for carrying out
Christian missionary activities under the guise of charity work.
The move was welcomed by several Christian figures, with many
voicing concern that foreign missionaries were seeking to upset the
traditionally stable ties between Muslims and Christians in Jordan.
"Missionary groups have hidden agendas and are close to Christian
Zionists," asserted former MP Odeh Kawwas, a Greek Orthodox.
Fellow Christian Fahd Kheitan, an outspoken columnist at Al-Arab
Al-Yawm newspaper, said the majority of Christians are "very suspicious
and worried".
"The (missionaries) target the strong beliefs of traditional churches
in Jordan and try to create religious links with the Zionist movement,
which is extremely dangerous," said Kheitan.
Some Christian supporters of Israel, notably a segment in the United
States, believe the return of Jews to the Holy Land and the 1948
creation of the Jewish state are in line with biblical prophecy.
In February, acting Foreign Minister Nasser Judeh told parliament that
"some foreign groups have come to Jordan under the cover of doing
charity, but they broke the law and did missionary activities".
He did not give figures.
Converting from Islam to Christianity is strictly prohibited in Jordan
and foreign missionary groups are banned from seeking converts,
although they can run schools, charitable organisations, hospitals
and orphanages.
"For years we have been urging the government to close such Christian
shops that have nothing to do with Christianity and tolerance," said
Kawwas, referring to missionaries who convert Muslims in violation
of the law.
"It is an old problem. They create sensitivities and provoke
discord among Jordanian Christians, not to mention their threat to
Muslim-Christian coexistence," the former lawmaker said.
"These groups don't belong to any church, but they try to hunt
followers of other churches and trick some of our Muslim brothers to
convert them," he added.
Christians represent around four percent of Jordan's population
of nearly six million, including Greek Orthodox, Roman Catholic,
Armenian and Latin rites.
They are well integrated in the kingdom, where one Christian holds a
ministerial post while eight percent control seats in the 110-member
lower house of parliament.
The tiny desert kingdom is home to the windswept peak of Mount Nebo
overlooking the Dead Sea and the hills of Jerusalem, where according
to biblical tradition God showed Moses the Promised Land.
It is also where Jordanians say Jesus Christ was baptised by his
cousin St John and where the latter preached and was beheaded by
Herod the Great, the king of biblical Judea.
After the 1994 Jordanian-Israeli peace treaty, archaeologists
discovered ancient churches and baptismal pools on the east bank of
the Jordan River, leading them to conclude they had found the place
where Jesus was baptised.
The kingdom is also home to several tombs of the Prophet Mohammed's
companions and Mount Nebo is a destination for Christian, Muslim and
Jewish pilgrims alike who revere Moses.
Columnist Kheitan asserts that Washington has put pressure on its
allies in Amman to allow missionaries into the country, where he
says these groups have used their relations with some officials to
"build a base".
"But the kingdom has realised now that the situation threatens the
internal front," Kheitan said.
The authorities have not provided figures about the number of
missionaries operating in Jordan, but according to a 2006 report by the
US Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labour there are 42 groups.
The government's decision to deport foreign missionaries came as
Jordan's Council of Churches warned last month about what it called
40 sects in the kingdom that "threaten national security and create
religious discord at the heart of the Christian community and between
Muslims and Christians."
In January, the first spark of controversy was lit by a Christian
news agency, Compass Direct News, in a report accusing Jordan of
cracking down on expatriate Christians by deporting them or denying
them residency permit.
Parliament said the report was aimed at "damaging Muslim-Christian
relations in Jordan". It also insisted that Jordan's Christians "are
an integral part of society, living in peace and harmony with their
Muslim brothers".
The church also voiced its concern.
Latin Patriarch Michel Sabbah of Jerusalem and Jordan said recently
that some foreign missionaries "have undeclared political positions
and we do not want the image of Christianity to be distorted."
In 2005 the Washington Post quoted Nabeeh Abbassi, president of the
Jordan Baptist Convention, as saying:, "We're seeing more and more
Muslim conversions, not less than 500 a year" in Jordan over the
past decade.
He told the newspaper that about 10,000 Evangelicals worship at 50
churches in Jordan.
Agence France Presse
March 11 2008
AMMAN (AFP) - Jordanian Christians are up in arms over the activities
of foreign missionaries in the Muslim conservative kingdom which is
rich in biblical sites, including the spot where Jesus was baptised.
The row erupted after the government announced last month that it
had deported an unspecified number of expatriates for carrying out
Christian missionary activities under the guise of charity work.
The move was welcomed by several Christian figures, with many
voicing concern that foreign missionaries were seeking to upset the
traditionally stable ties between Muslims and Christians in Jordan.
"Missionary groups have hidden agendas and are close to Christian
Zionists," asserted former MP Odeh Kawwas, a Greek Orthodox.
Fellow Christian Fahd Kheitan, an outspoken columnist at Al-Arab
Al-Yawm newspaper, said the majority of Christians are "very suspicious
and worried".
"The (missionaries) target the strong beliefs of traditional churches
in Jordan and try to create religious links with the Zionist movement,
which is extremely dangerous," said Kheitan.
Some Christian supporters of Israel, notably a segment in the United
States, believe the return of Jews to the Holy Land and the 1948
creation of the Jewish state are in line with biblical prophecy.
In February, acting Foreign Minister Nasser Judeh told parliament that
"some foreign groups have come to Jordan under the cover of doing
charity, but they broke the law and did missionary activities".
He did not give figures.
Converting from Islam to Christianity is strictly prohibited in Jordan
and foreign missionary groups are banned from seeking converts,
although they can run schools, charitable organisations, hospitals
and orphanages.
"For years we have been urging the government to close such Christian
shops that have nothing to do with Christianity and tolerance," said
Kawwas, referring to missionaries who convert Muslims in violation
of the law.
"It is an old problem. They create sensitivities and provoke
discord among Jordanian Christians, not to mention their threat to
Muslim-Christian coexistence," the former lawmaker said.
"These groups don't belong to any church, but they try to hunt
followers of other churches and trick some of our Muslim brothers to
convert them," he added.
Christians represent around four percent of Jordan's population
of nearly six million, including Greek Orthodox, Roman Catholic,
Armenian and Latin rites.
They are well integrated in the kingdom, where one Christian holds a
ministerial post while eight percent control seats in the 110-member
lower house of parliament.
The tiny desert kingdom is home to the windswept peak of Mount Nebo
overlooking the Dead Sea and the hills of Jerusalem, where according
to biblical tradition God showed Moses the Promised Land.
It is also where Jordanians say Jesus Christ was baptised by his
cousin St John and where the latter preached and was beheaded by
Herod the Great, the king of biblical Judea.
After the 1994 Jordanian-Israeli peace treaty, archaeologists
discovered ancient churches and baptismal pools on the east bank of
the Jordan River, leading them to conclude they had found the place
where Jesus was baptised.
The kingdom is also home to several tombs of the Prophet Mohammed's
companions and Mount Nebo is a destination for Christian, Muslim and
Jewish pilgrims alike who revere Moses.
Columnist Kheitan asserts that Washington has put pressure on its
allies in Amman to allow missionaries into the country, where he
says these groups have used their relations with some officials to
"build a base".
"But the kingdom has realised now that the situation threatens the
internal front," Kheitan said.
The authorities have not provided figures about the number of
missionaries operating in Jordan, but according to a 2006 report by the
US Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labour there are 42 groups.
The government's decision to deport foreign missionaries came as
Jordan's Council of Churches warned last month about what it called
40 sects in the kingdom that "threaten national security and create
religious discord at the heart of the Christian community and between
Muslims and Christians."
In January, the first spark of controversy was lit by a Christian
news agency, Compass Direct News, in a report accusing Jordan of
cracking down on expatriate Christians by deporting them or denying
them residency permit.
Parliament said the report was aimed at "damaging Muslim-Christian
relations in Jordan". It also insisted that Jordan's Christians "are
an integral part of society, living in peace and harmony with their
Muslim brothers".
The church also voiced its concern.
Latin Patriarch Michel Sabbah of Jerusalem and Jordan said recently
that some foreign missionaries "have undeclared political positions
and we do not want the image of Christianity to be distorted."
In 2005 the Washington Post quoted Nabeeh Abbassi, president of the
Jordan Baptist Convention, as saying:, "We're seeing more and more
Muslim conversions, not less than 500 a year" in Jordan over the
past decade.
He told the newspaper that about 10,000 Evangelicals worship at 50
churches in Jordan.