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$\"\"$ <\/a><\/div>\n

Writing for the Washington Post<\/a>, Andrew Doran, a former State Department employee, writes about the plight of Middle Eastern Christians as revolutions continue to shake the Middle East. He argues that they are caught in the middle between Muslim fundamentalism and modernity. \u00a0He notes that Muslim religious toleration has been a hallmark of Islamic history, especially during Islam\u2019s golden age in medieval Spain under the Umayyad dynasty. There, Christians and Jews were seen as \u201cpeople of the book.\u201d<\/p>\n

What happened to that \u201cmedieval moment?\u201d \u00a0Doran believes that it disappeared, in part, because of the rise of secularism. \u201cThe preeminence of secularism in the West coincided with \u2013 and likely contributed to \u2013 the rise of fundamentalism in the Middle East. Perhaps most disconcerting for Middle Eastern Christians, generally proponents of liberalism, is how comfortable Western liberal democracies have become with political Islam and even extremism. In consequence, many feel betrayed, especially by America.. \u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

Is Doran right? \u00a0Are western democracies too comfortable with political Islam and even fundamentalism? This could be an interesting discussion in class and the article could also serve as a good review of Islam\u2019s golden age.<\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"