{"id":1468882,"date":"2022-05-09T12:29:46","date_gmt":"2022-05-09T16:29:46","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=1468882"},"modified":"2022-05-09T12:29:50","modified_gmt":"2022-05-09T16:29:50","slug":"how-joe-biden-made-christian-persecution-even-worse","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/how-joe-biden-made-christian-persecution-even-worse\/","title":{"rendered":"How Joe Biden Made Christian Persecution Even Worse"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">16<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fhow-joe-biden-made-christian-persecution-even-worse%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=1468882&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><div><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/dw-wp-production.imgix.net\/2022\/05\/Biden-2.jpg?w=1200&#038;h=800&#038;ixlib=react-9.3.0\" class=\"ff-og-image-inserted\" alt=\"image\" \/><\/div>\n<p><span>The legacy media have taken pains to describe President Joe Biden as a \u201cdevout Catholic.\u201d Yet when it comes to Christians so devout that they risk death for their faith, the Biden administration has in too many cases done nothing, or adopted policies that have actively made their lives worse. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>The actions, and inactions, of Biden\u2019s administration in Nigeria, Afghanistan, Iran, Finland and the United States have harmed the world\u2019s most ardent believers to further his policy objectives.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>Nigeria<\/b><\/p>\n<p><span>No nation has suffered the effects of Biden\u2019s malign neglect more than Nigeria. In 2021, the African nation engaged in \u201csystematic, ongoing, and egregious violations of religious freedom,\u201d according to the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.uscirf.gov\/sites\/default\/files\/2022-04\/2022%20USCIRF%20Annual%20Report_1.pdf\"><span>report<\/span><\/a><span>, released on April 25.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Both government officials and gangs such as Boko Haram target Christians for persecution. The organization cited a handful of examples; for instance, \u201ca mob in Kano State killed a reverend in retaliation for his alleged involvement in converting a local member of a Muslim family to Christianity,\u201d it said. \u201cAt least 13 religious leaders were kidnapped for ransom over the course of the year, including eight priests, two pastors, and two imams.\u201d Furthermore, \u201ccriminal and armed groups throughout the year accounted for \u2026 six attacks against churches in Kaduna State.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Strangely, the Biden administration had designated Nigeria a \u201ccountry of particular concern\u201d (CPC) for religious freedom in 2020, then removed the nation in an apparent bid to curry favor with President Muhammadu Buhari. Biden also sent Secretary of State Antony Blinken on a visit to Nigeria \u2014 but shortly after his return, one website published an expos\u00e9 that suggested \u201ca Nigerian Department of State Services agent [was] allegedly complicit in torture and extrajudicial killings, including of children, in southeastern Nigeria.\u201d AEI scholar Michael Rubin <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.aei.org\/op-eds\/blinkens-blinkered-actions-have-accelerated-nigerias-anti-christian-pogroms\/\"><span>wrote<\/span><\/a><span> on the issue: \u201cSuch videos and investigations belie the State Department\u2019s talking point that violence against Christians is actually due to the climate-driven migration of ethnic Fulani and Muslim herdsmen into largely Christian-farmland.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Human rights advocates found themselves flummoxed by the flip-flop. The USCIRF took the unusual step of releasing a <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.uscirf.gov\/news-room\/releases-statements\/uscirf-appalled-administrations-removal-nigeria-list-violators\"><span>public statement<\/span><\/a><span> in November 2021 denouncing the administration\u2019s intransigence: The Commission \u201cfinds it unexplainable that the U.S. Department of State did not redesignate Nigeria as a \u2018Country of Particular Concern\u2019 (CPC) and treated it as a country with no severe religious freedom violations.\u201d The press release went on to describe USCIRF\u2019s members as \u201cappalled\u201d and \u201cespecially displeased\u201d with Biden\u2019s inaction. Its report calls on the administration to redesignate Nigeria as a country that quashes religious liberty.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>Afghanistan<\/b><\/p>\n<p><span>Since Biden withdrew U.S. troops from Afghanistan last August, the Taliban has reimposed a repressive form of Islamic Shari\u2019a<\/span> <span>law on the nation \u2014 targeting non-compliant citizens for persecution. The international Christian ministry Open Doors USA, which publishes an annual list of the world\u2019s most oppressive, anti-Christian regimes, <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.opendoorsusa.org\/christian-persecution\/stories\/the-10-most-dangerous-places-for-christians-2022\/\"><span>said<\/span><\/a><span> things have worsened so badly in Afghanistan since the U.S. pullout that it has eclipsed North Korea as the <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.dailywire.com\/news\/the-5-worst-nations-for-christian-persecution\"><span>world\u2019s worst place to be a Christian<\/span><\/a><span>.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>\u201c<\/span><span>Some women are already being kidnapped, taken from their houses, and forced into marriage,<\/span><span>\u201d <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.opendoorsusa.org\/christian-persecution\/stories\/whats-really-happening-to-christians-in-afghanistan\/\"><span>said<\/span><\/a><span> Open Doors USA. USCIRF agrees, saying in its annual report that \u201cChristian converts, Baha\u2019is, and Ahmadiyya Muslims practiced their faith in hiding due to fear of reprisal and threats from the Taliban. Years of progress toward more equitable access to education and representation of women and girls disappeared.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Afghanistan has been trending more repressive for years, and the United States could not stay in Kabul forever. Yet Biden\u2019s poorly executed withdrawal, which many commentators compared to the <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.dailywire.com\/news\/3-times-joe-biden-ignored-his-advisers-and-disaster-followed\"><span>fall of Saigon<\/span><\/a><span> or \u201c<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.dailywire.com\/news\/biden-administration-this-is-not-saigon-cnn-its-worse-than-saigon\"><span>worse<\/span><\/a><span>,\u201d left many of the most vulnerable elements of Afghani society at the tender mercies of the Taliban.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>Iran<\/b><\/p>\n<p><span>Iran\u2019s Shi\u2019ite theocracy has little tolerance for displays of Christian faith. As the USCIRF report notes, \u201cIran\u2019s government also continued to arrest, charge, sentence, and jail scores of Christians on charges including \u2018propaganda against the regime.\u2019 Christian converts from Islam faced particular targeting for persecution.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Despite this record, the Biden administration has signaled its interest in reviving the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), which would bring Iran a whirlwind of cash. How much? \u201c<\/span><span>In its <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.imf.org\/en\/Publications\/REO\/MECA\/Issues\/2021\/10\/14\/regional-economic-outlook-october\"><span>latest regional economic outlook<\/span><\/a><span>,<\/span><span> the IMF noted that Iran\u2019s usable reserves are $12.2 billion compared to reported reserves of $115.4 billion,\u201d The Washington Institute for Near East Policy <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtoninstitute.org\/policy-analysis\/how-much-would-iran-gain-financially-returning-jcpoa\"><span>reported<\/span><\/a><span>. Senator Lindsey Graham (R-SC) <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/foreignpolicy.com\/2021\/04\/28\/iran-deal-biden-bailout\/\"><span>called<\/span><\/a><span> restarting the JCPOA \u201cBiden\u2019s $90 Billion Bailout to Tehran.\u201d While the full amount may not be in readily available liquid assets, jump-starting the agreement would bring an infusion of cash into the world\u2019s leading funder of terrorism \u2014 and one of the region\u2019s worst persecutors of Christians.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Furthermore, thanks to <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.dailywire.com\/news\/running-on-empty-how-bidens-anti-energy-policies-helped-build-putins-war-machine\"><span>Biden\u2019s anti-exploration energy policies<\/span><\/a><span>, the president has courted Tehran in hopes the mullahs will supply the nation\u2019s fuel deficit. Like his closest historical antecedent, <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/therightswriter.com\/2005\/11\/a-failed-former-president\/\"><span>Jimmy Carter<\/span><\/a><span>, Joe Biden seems determined to reward Iran\u2019s worst behaviors.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>Finland<\/b><\/p>\n<p><span>While Finland hardly belongs in the same category as Iran or Afghanistan, anti-Christian persecution has broken out there with no comment from the Biden administration. The nation essentially put Finnish member of Parliament P\u00e4ivi R\u00e4s\u00e4nen and Lutheran Bishop Juhana Pohjola on trial for thoughtcrime. The government charged the two believers with \u201cethnic agitation\u201d for \u201chaving published a pamphlet on marriage in 2004\u201d and for hosting that pamphlet on a website, respectively,<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.foxnews.com\/opinion\/religious-freedom-trial-finland-christians\"> <span>wrote<\/span><\/a> <span>Representative Chip Roy (R-TX) and Family Research Council President Tony Perkins at FoxNews.com. The pamphlet reiterated the immemorial Christian teaching that sexual activity outside marriage is sinful and that marriage is between a man and woman; for that, they faced two years in prison. While a Finnish court <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/adfinternational.org\/free-speech-victory-finnish-mp-wins-trial-over-bible-tweet\/\"><span>ruled in R\u00e4s\u00e4nen and Pohjola\u2019s favor<\/span><\/a><span> in March 2022, saying \u201cit is not for the district court to interpret biblical concepts,\u201d the Biden administration did nothing to come to the pair\u2019s aid or defense.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>\u201cIf it can happen in Finland, it can happen here,\u201d <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hammackmckenna\/status\/1494141601232277505\"><span>warned<\/span><\/a><span> McKenna Hammack, who monitors global religious freedom for the <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/adfinternational.org\/\"><span>Alliance Defending Freedom International<\/span><\/a><span>.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>The United States<\/b><\/p>\n<p><span>While Biden has often neglected Christians abroad, he has added to their woes at home. The Biden administration announced in April that it <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.dailywire.com\/news\/abortion-to-transgender-treatment-biden-to-remove-trump-rule-protecting-religious-health-care-workers\"><span>plans to rescind<\/span><\/a><span> a Trump-era Health and Human Services (HHS) regulation respecting the conscience rights of those who hold to traditional values. The rule, which a court has enjoined since its introduction, <\/span><span>\u201callowed doctors, nurses, medical students, pharmacists and other health workers to refuse to provide abortions, contraception, gender affirming care, HIV and STD services, vasectomies or any procedure to which they object,\u201d <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.politico.com\/news\/2022\/04\/19\/biden-trump-conscience-rule-00026082\"><span>reported<\/span><\/a><span> Politico. If upheld in court, the resultant coercion would force Christians to perform actions that their faith teaches is sinful or leave their profession altogether. Similar situations have already occurred in <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/stream.org\/sweden-rules-pro-life-midwife-free-market-solution\/\"><span>Sweden<\/span><\/a><span> and <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/blog.acton.org\/archives\/109620-national-healthcare-is-driving-christian-doctors-out-of-medicine.html\"><span>Canada<\/span><\/a><span>.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Through his actions toward the persecuted church abroad, and increasingly beleaguered Christians at home, Biden\u2019s policies seem anything but devout.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><i>The views expressed in this opinion piece are the author\u2019s own and do not necessarily represent those of The Daily Wire.<\/i><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The legacy media have taken pains to describe President Joe Biden as a \u201cdevout Catholic.\u201d Yet when it comes to Christians so devout that they risk death for their faith,<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":76,"featured_media":1482124,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1468882","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1468882","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/76"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1468882"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1468882\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1482124"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1468882"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1468882"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1468882"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}