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Yesterday, I attended a service at my wife's church. The sermon, loosely linked to a section of John, was about Christian Persecution.

The Pastor started with critisicms of universalistic and liberal interpretations of scripture. Next, he laid out critisicms of non-believers.

After those critical rants, he began to lament modern day persecution of Christianity. He cited examples ranging from a Christian family in Pakistan, who were killed for their beliefs (You don't need anymore details. ), to school prayer to the strange looks you get when you try to preach/pray/proclaim in public.

Of course, the obvious hipocracy of lambasting THEM and then lamenting US is delicious. Next, the idea of a middle class preacher, in the heart of the bible-belt, having any perspective on persecution is, I think, a vulgar ingratitude. I had to bite my tongue on the ride home, for sure.

But, what about this idea of persecution? What constitutes persecution and who, if anyone, is really being persecuted?

__________________
"Ubi re vera..."

Cervantes-Giant

In a religious sense in my opinion persecution is calling someone out on their beliefs with an ill or malicious nature accompanying it. If a priest is driven past and the car passenger yells out that God is a hoax or something I would consider it persecution. Or he himself isn't approached in such away if his priest friend out in California is regularly taunted like that he would have a right in my opinion to feel persecuted as say a Muslim in Iraq would feel it if his brother wasn't allowed on an American airline. Not only would the brother feel persecuted against but so would the Muslim because he is of the same faith. Likewise Atheists can be persecuted against because of their like in believing in a god.
Mind you since I strongly believe in the freedom to believe or fell any way you want to only an open and clearly persecutory event can be counted as such. Say the Muslims brother had a knife on him, he planned to peal apples when he reached America because he had bought an orchard and thought having a knife on hand the moment he got there was crucial for what ever reason, and the airline didn't let him on than it would be persecuting him it would be a security measure.