Methtastic

I’m just reading a book by Melanie Phillips called “Londonistan” in which she puts forward a thesis that Britain has become the European hub for the promotion, recruitment and financing of Islamic terrorism. This has happened she argues because of the way Britain has been soft on Islamic extremists such as Abu Hamsa; has allowed extremists in under the cloak of multiculturalism and because the increasing secularisation of our society has pushed Christianity to one side, Islamist extremists have moved in to fill the vacuum.

This precis is my own. You need to read the book to see for yourselves.

Inter faith relations is something I have become more and more interested in. And recently with college I went on a World Faiths weekend in Birmingham. In fact the weekend focused solely on Islam. We had some very well informed Christian speakers who have studied Islam and lived in Islamic countries. One speaker was a minister of a church in Birmingham that is on the same road as a mosque. The minister has built close friendships with members of the mosque committee and the president of the mosque welcomed us warmly.

The vicar told us how a number of the wards surrounding the centre of Birmingham (including his) are now at least 60% Muslim. The local school is now split 70% Muslim and 30% “Christian” (he mentioned how Sikhs and Hindus have moved out of the area.) And in the last 10 years 80,000 white people have moved out of Birmingham.

I am acutely aware that in mentioning this I am treading really close to BNP territory. But these are figures from the most recent census. And all I am trying to show is how the make up of our second city is changing. How should we as Christians react?

The whole way in which we should interact with people of other faiths is something I’m trying to work through. We as Christians must welcome people of other faiths and no faith as neighbours. But how do we view other faiths? Are all the faiths equal in a sense for seeing God in different guises? (I don’t think so personally) Should we evangelise in predominantly Muslim areas or is that insensitive?

I do believe we should join with people of other faiths to  stand up to secularism. And one Muslim we spoke to said how people of faith should work together to combat “moral decline” in our society. I don’t have a problem with that - though I suspect he and I would have differing views on some issues e.g. the role of women in society.

I am concerned that as Christians we don’t appear to be having much of a discussion about this. Or maybe that’s only in the sleepy backwater I currently live in. Perhaps in bigger towns and cities it is on the agenda of churches.

Discuss!