Chinese blocked visit by U.S. religious freedom envoy, advocates say

[ellisonz]

By William Wan and Michelle Boorstein, Tuesday, February 14, 12:05 PM

Chinese officials denied a visa to a top State Department envoy and refused to meet with her to discuss issues of religious freedom days before this week’s high-profile visit to Washington by China’s vice president, according to rights advocates and others.

Suzan Johnson Cook, the U.S. ambassador at large for international religious freedom, was scheduled to travel to China on Feb. 8, according to several rights advocates who were invited to brief her ahead of the visit. But as the date drew near, Chinese leaders refused to grant her meetings with government officials.

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The disclosure comes one day into the diplomatically sensitive visit by Xi Jinping — China’s presumptive next president — during a week that the Obama administration hopes will help ease tense U.S.-China relations.

Rights advocates working with Cook’s office say that she and her staff were told by superiors in the Obama administration to avoid talking publicly about her canceled trip in the days before Xi’s visit.

More: http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/chinese-blocked-visit-by-us-religious-freedom-envoy-advocates-say/2012/02/14/gIQAmvQxDR_story.html?hpid=z1

[bagtree]

1. 0. Chinese blocked visit by U.S. religious freedom envoy, advocates say

Amazing. They spar with the Catholic Church, but cave in to this dictatorship... And all because we need the (no longer) cheap manufacturing, and have the drooling hope of a 1.3 billion market...

[jberryhill]

2. In what way did the administration "spar with the Catholic church"

I'd like to hear an explanation of what you mean by that.

Given the religious nuttery which infects our politics, telling the Chinese they need to be more open to it is really kind of amusing.

When the administration tells the Saudis that they need more religious freedom, or tells the Israelis to allow Christian evangelism, wake me up because that will be fun to watch.

[lunasun]

3. exactly -the Chinese have to be thinking wtf -check youselves first

[Liora24]

4. Actually you can be a Christian in Israel.

There are many denominations, such as Eastern Orthodox, Roman Catholic (Latin rite), Gregorian-Armenian, Armenian Catholic, Syriac Catholic, Chaldean (Uniate), Melkite (Greek Catholic), Ethiopian Orthodox, Maronite and Syriac Orthodox churches. There are more informal arrangements with other churches such as the Anglican Church and the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Israel's government gives full religious freedom.

The only place in the Mideast where Christian communities continue to grow is in the Jewish State of Israel. Israel’s tolerance is logical. What people of faith knows the dangers of religious persecution better than the people of Israel especially those whose families originated in the Islamic world? Between 1948 and 1956 more than 850,000 Jews were forced to flee the Arab lands where their families had lived for centuries.

http://blog.standforisrael.org/issues/security/persecution-of-christians-in-the-middle-east

Nowhere else in the Middle East is there more religious freedom than in Israel. I would actually say Israel has more religious freedom than America does and certainly it's absurd to compare it to Saudi Arabia or China.

[jberryhill]

5. Not if part of one's Christian doctrine is to witness to others

Many Protestants believe it is an obligation of their faith to preach to and convert others. Leaving aside what the Haredim will do to anyone in "their neighborhoods", are you telling me that Christian missionaries are permitted in Israel?

Absolutely, there are communities who have been there a long time, and were tolerated for centuries by a succession of rulers of various religious persuasions. But you seem to have completely ignored my use of the word "evangelize".

Would you care to address that point?

[Liora24]

6. there is no law that literally prevents missionaries from coming to Israel

Last edited Thu Feb 16, 2012, 09:43 PM - Edit history (1)

Yes there are some very religious Israelis who want to stop Christians from converting Jewish people but there is no law that literally prevents missionaries from coming to Israel. For thousands of years Jews were forced to convert to other religions like Christianity or Islam so you can see why some people in Israel are afraid of people trying to convert them.

However you also have to understand the nature of Judaism and Jewishness. A Jew does not have to be religious to puke at the sight of the missionaries. For thousands of years Jews were forced to convert to other religions like Christianity or Islam so you can see why some people in Israel are afraid of people trying to convert them. Jewish people don't go around the world trying to force people to be Jews, but as soon as the Christians got some boats and guns they were off to the New World to shoot anyone who wouldn't worship "Jee-zus".

Would you have blamed Native Americans for not wanting missionaries to come and convert their children to Christianity?

The Christian sales efforts vis-a-vis the Jews have continued for the last 2000 years. Most Jews are not buying that stuff and yet the sales efforts continue. If a Jewish person is a "practicing" Jew then s/he already has a faith and would want people to respect that. If a Jewish person is non-practicing, then they probably aren't interested in Christianity (or being religious) anyways. Jews do not go around the world trying to missionize the non-Jews. We greatly respect all other beliefs and would appreciate if our faith is treated in the same fashion. You would think that after 2000 years the salesmen who target the Jews would finally get the message but, unfortunately, they have not.

[ellisonz]

7. +1

Welcome to DU. Thank you for your reasoned posts. Feel free to message me with any questions about DU you may have.

[jberryhill]

8. "Jews do not go around the world trying to missionize the non-Jews"

Well, duh, one would not do so in a religion based on heredity anyway.  

Christianity is a religion of choice, and many Protestant Christians take it as an affirmative duty of their faith to present that choice to others.  It is part and parcel of how they practice their faith.  Absolutely, both Protestants and Catholics have historically presented that choice at gunpoint, and my understanding is that ancient Israel was established by wholesale slaughter of the indigenous inhabitants. 

But it is not for lack of trying that there is no law against it:

http://articles.cnn.com/1997-07-08/world/9707_08_israel.missionaries_1_small-christian-bookstore-jews-and-christians-holy-land?_s=PM:WORLD

Proposed Israeli law would ban Christian missionaries

"Most alarming to Christians is a newly proposed law that would let authorities jail anyone who shares Christian literature."

The thread here is about the Chinese government declining to receive a US representative whose job it is to facilitate activities in China run by foreign organizations.  Now, do you believe the US government should be, as you put it, running around the world promoting religion?

(by the way, welcome to DU, and congrats on getting a post hidden on your first day in another thread)