On Monday, the Washington Post published an “analysis” article questioning if “Christianity [is] under attack?” in the wake of the bombing of multiple churches on Easter in Sri Lanka. The authors also shifted the focus from the close to 300 victims of what the Sri Lankan government believes is Islamic terrorism to Western “far-right” anger.
The Post analysis cites statements from French politician Marie Le Pen, Germany’s AfD party, Katie Hopkins, and former Reagan administration official Frank Gaffney as proof that the far-right was using the attacks to further a political agenda.
The authors write that the “theme of Christianity under attack has been a recurring one for many activists in the United States and Europe.” They compared the response to the Sri Lankan tragedy to the Notre Dame Cathedral fire and how some conservatives mentioned the rise in attacks on French churches in recent years.
The rise in those attacks was downplayed by calling them “vandalism” and remarking that the “vast majority of acts were minor.” The Post links to the French newspaper Libération to support its claim. Yet the linked article states that 100 of the acts against Christian churches and burial grounds were “violent.”
Also ignored were the recurring attacks by Islamic militants against Christian churches during Holy week in recent years. As PJ Media’s Patrick Poole noted on Twitter, there have been five major attacks on Christian houses of worship during Holy Week, including Sunday’s horrific coordinated attacks in Sri Lanka.
"The theme of Christianity under attack…"
2012: Easter Day bombing, Nigeria – 39 killed
2015: Maundy Thursday attack Garissa Univ, Kenya – 147 killed
2016: Easter Day bombing, Lahore, Pakistan – 75 killed, incl 29 children
2017: Palm Sunday church bombings in Egypt – 47 killed https://t.co/hvy5FmMUBw— Patrick Poole (@pspoole) April 22, 2019
Nearly 300 people were murdered because of their faith. They were killed on the holiest day of Christianity when billions of Christians celebrate the resurrection of Jesus Christ whom they believe died for their sins three days earlier.