The Christian Century

Over the past 20 years the world­­wide persecution of Christians has entered the consciousness of American believers. Reli­gious freedom has become a potent rallying cry. That is an excellent development—provided we avoid turning the issue into a partisan weapon in the confrontation between Chris­­tianity and Islam. While those two faiths often do en­counter each other violently, most world religions, in­cluding those faiths that Westerners view quite favorably, have their own disturbing records of persecution and violence.

India, in particular, has a troubled record on religious freedom, and the offenders are Hindus, not Muslims. And the violence seems bound to increase.