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Sunday, December 11, 2005Mob of 5,000 attacks Middle Easterners in SydneyThis bothers me tremendously: One of the messages had urged 'Aussies' to take revenge against 'Lebs and wogs'. Another urged locals to rally at a point on the beach today to take retaliation against 'middle eastern' gangs.I read this as I just finished reading an article concerning Pope Benedict XVI's appeal to Catholics in Rome about preserving Christian identity against materialism. This is really the root of the "clash of civilizations." Will the West approach with dialouge or violence? And which West will approach - the secular West or the Christian West? If secular, will it be the free market or the socialist version? If Christian, will it be Pope John Paul II's vision of a secular yet identifiably Christian culture, or will it be the more violent fundamentalist tack that pervaded the Crusader period? Ironically, the "Lebs" (Lebanese expatriates fleeing the Ottoman purges from 1880-1920 and the 1975-1991 Civil War, I imagine) are ambassadors of a cultural crossroads between Islam and the West. Lebanon has a large Maronite Christian community, Lebanon was the site for the Crusader citadels of Acre and Tyre, and Lebanese Christians remained to absorb Islamic culture long after the Crusader states had been swept away. Lebanese history and culture has much to offer and much to teach. My family on my mother's side is Lebanese, and I wince every time I hear someone today speak Arabs as ragheads, towelheads, or terrorists as if the culture could be dismissed and crushed into nothing. Alternatively, every time I hear a secularist whine about the challenge of Islam I can't help but rage at the cultural selfishness we've grown in the West concerning materialism and abortion. Not only have we pruned the next generation to the point it cannot support its elderly, the Muslim population continues to grow to the point of emigrating to Europe and elsewhere. This is why dialouge, ecumenism, and the preservation of Christian identity are so very important for the West. The alternative is for the West to be remembered for our fanaticism, rigidity, and secular approach that bathed the 20th century in so much blood.
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JEFFERSONIAD POLL: Whom do you support for Virginia Attorney General?1) John Brownlee2) Ken Cuccinelli AboutShaunKenney.com is one of Virginia's oldest political blogs, focusing on the role of religion and politics in public life. Shaun Kenney, 30, lives in Fluvanna County, Virginia.ContactThe Jeffersoniad
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