Britannia Radio

A Sequel to “Chechen Hatred”

Prof. Paul Eidelberg
Lest my previous article on Chechen expose me to the canard of
Islamophobia, any fair-minded and informed observer knows that,
notwithstanding the Islamic aspect of Chechnya, and despite the former
Mufti of Jerusalem Haj Amin al-Husseini’s collaboration with the
Nazis, it’s obvious that even genocidal or Quran-worshiping Muslims do
not have a monopoly of evil.

In Poland, between 100,000 to 500,000 Jews were murdered by the
Cossacks during the Chmielnicki massacres of 1648-1249. The Cossacks
wiped out entire communities in a single day. Their fury, however, was
directed not only against the Polish nobility, but also against
Catholic priests. People driven by evil are not very discriminating
about their victims.

The trouble with Muslims, most obviously of Sunni Islam, is that their
most influential theologians and philosophers—above all, Al-Ghazâlî
(c.1056–1111)—reject as blasphemous the biblical concept of man’s
creation in the image of God.

Hence, even though the New Testament, as various Christians
theologians now admit, has fostered anti-Semitism and thus contributed
to horrendous massacres of Jews, the Genesis 1:26 concept of imago
Dei, which is the ultimate source of human dignity and freedom, seems
to have won over countless Christians who gratefully acknowledge their
debt to the Jewish people.

Perhaps this is a good starting point for Voice of America programs
beamed to various Islamic states. Winning over one of them may have a
domino effect. But don’t forget, the word seldom wins without the
sword. And when dealing with people trained in the art of terrorism,
and who thus derive income and prestige from killing Jews, nothing is
less persuasive than reason. Amazing how many intellectuals and clever
statesmen fail to recognize this simple truth.