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Glad to see Moscow rejected religious bigotry

I recall from years ago in response to a question, Christ Church’s Doug Wilson responded that he could not imagine a Muslim ever being on the Moscow City Council.

As a tribute to America’s religious pluralism, however, non-Christians (Hindus, Muslims, Sikhs, Buddhists, etc.) are now represented in the entire public sphere, including 26 Muslims just elected to various state and local government positions.

Yet Christ Church’s city council candidate, James Urquidez, wanted the council “Christianized” and Moscow transformed into “a Christian town;” that is “the battle-cry of every religion,” he claimed.

Reflecting his church’s learned ignorance, Mr. Urquidez also expressed another absurdity, “Muslims want everyone to be Muslim.” On the contrary, he should know, conversion-missionaries are hardly ever known in the Islamic world. Islamic pluralism is well known in historic Spain and elsewhere. Even today, from Morocco to Iran to Indonesia, various faiths live in relative harmony, notwithstanding politically-motivated contradictions in recent decades.

On the other hand, Christ Church’s mission reminds one of historic Catholic bulls that called for “universalizing” Christianity and “Christianization” of all Muslims, Jews, and other “pagans,” or else, as “God’s work,” they were to be destroyed or enslaved. Christ Church’s advocacy seems grounded in John Hagee’s Christian Evangelism that awaits armegeddon/rapture and then all non-Christians of the world will either convert or be annihilated. Perhaps the Church seeks a head-start by “Christianizing” Moscow.

It is gratifying to learn, though, that in the recent elections, Moscow has overwhelmingly rejected such bigotry something also absolutely rejected by the Founding-Fathers. Indeed, religious pluralism is deeply embedded in our Constitution and the Bill of Rights.

S.M. Ghazanfar
Acworth, Georgia
(formerly of Moscow)

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