New Limits on Religious Freedom
David Johnston, author of Earth, Empire and Sacred Text, Christine Schirrmacher, a scholar with the Institute of Islamic Studies of the Evangelical Alliance in Germany, Austria, and Switzerland, and Joseph Cumming, director of the reconciliation program at Yale Divinity School, discuss whether Christians should support laws that ban Muslim women from wearing the face veil in public.
Christians Should Oppose the Muslim Face Veil Ban
David Johnston
Recent efforts in Europe to ban the face veil (the niqab or burqa) are not so much concerned with women's rights and security as they are with obtaining votes from an electorate that is increasingly xenophobic and anxious about national identity.
Indeed, it's a convenient tactic for politicians to unite people from the Right (concerned with the "threat of Islam") and the Left (moved by issues of gender equality and secularism) in order to draw attention away from pressing social and economic issues.
First, let's clear away some false problems. The specter of "Eurabia" is a no-show. Studies point to the decline of Muslim birthrates in ways that parallel other populations worldwide. Also, over the centuries Islamic jurists never agreed on the specifics of modest dress for women. Local cultures determined what women wore. The face covering is mostly a recent invention, and, in fact, a rarity, even if numbers seem to be growing. Some sources put the number of women wearing it in all of Europe at 2,000.
The wider issue is that worries over identity have been exacerbated by globalization and a wave of religious revivalism across the board. France has by far the highest percentage of Muslims in Europe (8.3 percent, more than double the UK's figure), and its brand of extreme secularism (laïcité) requires minorities to shed their cultural distinctives to conform to the majority. Perhaps it's no coincidence that in France the burqa ban, passed by Parliament on the eve of Bastille Day, was followed by threats to strip people of their citizenship for crimes like polygamy, female circumcision, and threatening a policeman, and the deportation of hundreds of Roma, or Gypsies. Issues of cultural and national identity are rolled up under the burqa heading.
The proposed law would fine burqa-clad women $190 and men who are convicted of forcing women to wear it $20,000. Muslim organizations are divided on the issue. Some see it as a problem of extreme coreligionists and prefer to back the secular state. But most also point to its discriminatory nature: only Muslims are singled out. If security is the issue, then why does the law explicitly exempt motorcycle helmets, carnival costumes, fencing gear, and the like? Furthermore, should a state whose motto includes the word liberty presume to tell people what to wear?
Why, then, should Christians support a law that reinforces discrimination against a particular group (Muslims) and appears to exploit feelings of vulnerability for political gain? Jesus showcased love—even love of enemy—as the central virtue of his kingdom, and therefore consistently defended society's most despised: women, lepers, Samaritans, tax collectors, and prostitutes. Shouldn't we who claim to follow him do our utmost to build bridges of love and trust with fellow citizens who feel beleaguered today? It seems to me that this call would mean opposing the burqa-ban law. Other solutions may be found to resolve legitimate security issues.
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Christine Schirrmacher
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Marianne Whitlock
Fritz S said he could not go beyond the first paragraph without finding fault in logic. He poses the question, "Pray tell, since when is doing right a tit-for-tat principle?" Fritz should have read the next paragraph. The writer agrees with him about "tit-for-tat." The very next paragraph says: "Jesus adds in the Luke passage, "Do good … expecting nothing in return" (6:35). We must defend liberty for others whether or not they reciprocate. Christians should set a moral example for the world, not wait for others to lead."
Original Anna Anna
Amish and Mennonite wear long dresses and caps that don't cover their faces and due to the caps small size, has to be pinned so as not to fall off to their hair which is good due to their beautiful faces. The burka is a cape with a facial piece with holes in it and is very hard to see out of and mostly worn outdoors over inside clothes. Outside of Islam, the people covering their faces are robbers hiding their identity or those working in the cold North so their faces don't freeze, not to free up men from controlling their sexual urges. Amish and Mennonites at a certain age go out into the secular world and they as young adults make the decision to return to their religion or not. No Muslim is given that right. Women are either married to men at very young ages or given to men as babies to marry at 11 or 12 if the men want them then. Afganistan with its sharia law for Muslims has judges giving girl babies as payment for acts committed against adults by adults. The veil is slavery.
clare bridge
We pray for the basics~ people to be set free, that they come to know Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior. Freedom comes first from within; passing a mere law won't touch a woman's or man's heart toward the Lord...Sharia Law and it's violent precepts are the opposite of a democracy. Through prayer, through witnessing, through love, a deep change occurs by the power of the Holy Spirit. The laws in Europe are important for identity purposes in airports & other public places. Not to confuse apples & oranges!