Christians Deal With Language of Martyrdom

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By BRIAN MURPHY
© 2006 The Associated Press

— After the al-Qaida leader in Saudi Arabia was killed by security forces, his supporters issued a message hailing him as a martyr. A week earlier, Christian groups used the same word for an American peace campaigner whose body was found in Baghdad.

The statements reflect how the West's struggle with radical Islam is creeping into views of religious martyrdom. Some Christians seem ready to embrace the connotations of "victim" and "hero" that have driven extremist Muslim declarations, with each side portraying the other faith as a persecutor.

"Each time Islamic radicals speak of suicide bomber 'martyrs,' for example, it reverberates in Christianity," said Jonathan Bartley, co-director of Ekklesia, a London-based group that examines religious and social trends.

Christians match those claims by citing activists and clergy killed by Muslims. "There's a radicalization of what martyrdom means by some Christian groups," Bartley said. "They focus heavily on the idea of a clash of civilizations."
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http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/ap/world/3762252.html