Posted by pancho from pool0052.cvx25-bradley.dialup.earthlink.net (209.179.216.52) on Sunday, January 19, 2003 at 9:00AM :
In a post Wm the Dim tells a funny story about the Turks seizing Christian corporate buildings. It's a tragedy of course, but no great shakes when compared to others...nothing special. It makes me wonder again at how much of the Assyrian identity is wraped up with religion and only religion.
Every complaint against a Muslim has a Christian source, never an Assyrian one. In fact Christian complaints that Iraq is subverting the Assyrian identity are lies...the ancient Assyrian heritage is safe and well in Iraq..it is the CHRISTIAN presence that is in danger in the MidEast...and deservedly so.
While we only think of the warm and fuzzy parts of Christianity, the Easter Egg Hunt...Christmas presents...church music and after church festivals and good eats...our Muslim counterparts see something else entirely...like we do when we think of Islam...and only see its negative aspects.
If a coalition of Muslim countries had travelled to the West to attack America starting 200 years ago...and had continued their attacks since then, culminating in a regime of sanctions against the United States that led to the same proportion of our children dying as in Iraq, in other words far more than the 500,000 old Uncle Sam has killed already...I doubt if Muslims in America could expect much in the way of protection or respect for their rights and property.
Hell, ordinary Christian Americans are being treated as "suspect" and "sympathizers" with the enemy just for protesting or exercising our Constitutional rights. And we're not even talking Muslims yet!
It should come as no surprise or ellicit any wonder that Christians are not popular or well regarded in the MidEast, that they are viewed as a nest of potential traitors, the worst kind because religion makes a fanatic out of enough people on all sides to take us all down to hell. The West is, after all, Christian...they keep saying it often enough...and they send missions and what not to the Mideast under their own governments protection. How is a Muslim supposed to regard a religion whose adherents cut off medicine and food to children?
You want to put these things in perspective. The Muslim world hasn't been showered with presents or Easter Eggs by the Christian West...they've gotten bombs and missiles and depleted uranium. All we can think of is ISLAMIC soldiers...ISLAMIC TERRORISTS...ISLAMIC Fundamentalists.
Is it so surprising that they return the favor and only see CHRISTIAN soldiers...and CHRISTIAN politicians???
This thing is Christian vs Muslim...with the Jews caught between. It is ALL madness, but you have to step out of your own religious straitjacket to see it that way. And once you step out, you experience the kind of peace and serenity the followers of these battling religions used to promise you if you stepped IN.
Get Out!!!
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Plundering the properties of Jesus and Mary
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Beth Suryoyo Assyrian (Othuroyo) Forum
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Written by Wm warda on 19 Jan 2003 06:23:20:
Plundering the properties of Jesus and Mary
Jesus and Mary were personally called to the Turkish court
The National Real Estate Directorate, Milli Emlak, was prosecuting Jesus, his mother Mary and Angel Gabriel. When they did not show up at court in Istanbul, their property was confiscated. This appears to be a joke, but it is nevertheless true.
On the 11th of November in 1959, the court served a summons, through the police in Istanbul, to Mariam Bind Ovahim, for her indicment at the court. The police replied on the 2nd of December, stating they did not find the person wanted and that her address was unknown. The court delivered its verdict on the 8th of January 1960, in the absence of the accused. The judgement reads as follows:
"Mariam Bind Ovahim has disappeared and her property is to fall to the stateÓ. Large properties in Istanbul belonging to Mariam were confiscated without any delay. On different occasions, the National Real Estate Directorate processed law suits against 80 holy persons. When the people did not appearin court, the authorities confiscated more than 300 different properties in this manner, with the total value of the properties amounting to several billions of SEK (Swedish crowns).
These procedures were carried out across the country. The Syrian Catholic residence in Mardin, had its properties, its buildings and its land confiscated in this manner.
How did the Turkish authorities carry through this?
Following a decree in 1913, Christian pious foundations were forced to register their property in the names of sacred persons, taking such names as the Jesus Foundation, the Mother Mary Foundation, the Angel Foundation, and other similar names.
In 1936 the authorities demanded that the Christians would again register their property and the Christian foundations were forbidden to hold any property. When the authorities decided to usurp the properties, during the court proceedings these foundations were treated as private persons. When these persons did not come to court, their property was confiscated. These violations of rights were
carried out by the Turkish state during the years of 1956-1960, 1975-1979 and also during 1982-1991, when all Christians were persecuted and their lives, properties and legal rights were not protected.
The Christians, with great difficulties, tried to reacquire their property. However, Christian representatives can up to this day be questioned by the courts being asked such questions as: Òwhere is JesusÓ, Òwhere is Virgin MaryÓ, Òin which register is she enrolledÓ, and Òdoes she have inheritorsÓ?
The above mentioned absurd example of suppression of minorities in Turkey is taken from an article on the 23rd of November 2002 in the newspaper Sabah.
However, this confiscation policy has side effects, which even affected the ÒgentlemenÓ that took over the properties belonging to the Christians. The following
tragic/comic report was found in Turkish press, on October the 31st, in the Bia newspaper.
Residents of Buyukdere went to the press and complained about their poverty. They blamed their poverty on the acquisition of the Christian holdings, when the latter were driven away weeping in 1915.
The villagers believed that the property and the buildings are cursed. The authorities have turned a church into a school, which is said to be warm in winter and cold in summer. But since there is a curse upon the building, poverty mars the district. The villagers claim to be unhappy. The suffering of the Christians did not leave these Turkish citizens with any satisfaction.
It can be added that Buyukdere for decades have been known for its fertile earth, its access to running water, and its wealth of fruits, vineyards and olives.
TurkeyÕs entry to the EU cannot be discussed, if the country does not deal with its past, acknowledge its violations of rights and fully confess to all of those that have been affected It is our responsibility to confront Turkey for its violations.
Our ancestors that were treated in a barbaric way are no longer alive. It is thus our duty to demand justice. This must be done now.
S‰dert·lje the 25th of November, 2002.
ACSA
Assyrian Chaldean Syriac Association
-- pancho
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