Egypt Update: Christians Asked to Bow in Worship of Allah. Is this how it begins?

Recently I blogged about the results of a Pew Poll on What Egyptians Really Want. It was not good news for Egypt's Coptic Christians. And now, in the latest development, World Net Daily reports that a senior Islamic cleric, Yusuf al-Qaradawi, called on the Christians who joined in a celebration rally in Cairo's Tahrir Square to bow in worship of Allah. Most of those attending were Muslims. Bit of an intimidation, don't you think? Maybe even more considering that al-Quaradawi is a spiritual leader for the Muslim Brotherhood, the extremist group that advocates violence to advance Islam. Both Hamas and al-Qaida, the terrorist groups, started in The Muslim Brotherhood.

It's true that al-Qaradawi had conciliatory words for the Christians. Nevertheless, the article reported:

A top source in Egypt's Coptic Christian community told WND he and other Coptic Christians held a meeting last Monday with officials at the U.S. Embassy in Cairo to raise objections about the inclusion of the Brotherhood in the constitutional committee.

The source said the Christian community pointed out that the official Muslim Brotherhood charter, amended in 2007, calls for the imposition of Islamic law in Egypt.

Among other things, the charter, obtained by WND, states that non-Muslims cannot hold government positions and must pay to the state the jizya, or special Islamic protection tax.

So what kind of a government is going to rise from the ashes of Egypt's revolution? Will it remind us more of Philadelphia's Constitutional Convention in 1787, Paris in 1793 during the Reign of Terror, or Moscow in 1917 when the Bolsheviks came to power? Check out my post on Pat Buchanan's description of the aftermath of Turkey's "democratic" changes. Revolutions don't necessarily have happy endings. Think of the poor Cuban people in 1959 after Castro came to power. Please pray for the Christian Copts in Egypt. They must be very nervous at present.

Pew Poll Tells "What Egyptians Really Want"

If you are under the impression that Egypt will suddenly jump into the "democracy" column of world governments, you need a reality check. Here's what a Pew Research Center poll last year found according to an editorial in Investors Business Daily:

• 49% of Egyptians say Islam plays only a "small role" in public affairs under President Hosni Mubarak, while 95% prefer the religion play a "large role in politics."

• 84% favor the death penalty for people who leave the Muslim faith.

• 82% support stoning adulterers.

• 77% think thieves should have their hands cut off.

• 54% support a law segregating women from men in the workplace.

• 54% believe suicide bombings that kill civilians can be justified.

• Nearly half support the terrorist group Hamas.

• 30% have a favorable opinion of Hezbollah.
• 20% maintain positive views of al-Qaida and Osama bin Laden.

• 82% of Egyptians dislike the U.S. — the highest unfavorable rating among the 18 Muslim nations Pew surveyed

How these attitudes will play out in forming the new government is yet to be seen. Pray hard!