John Couwels, CNN, September 3, 2009
A Muslim teenager from Ohio says her father threatened to kill her because she converted to Christianity.
Rifqa Bary, 17, ran away from her family in Columbus, Ohio, in July and took refuge in the central Florida home of the Rev. Blake Lorenz with the Global Revolution Church in Orlando.
The teen heard of the pastor and his church through a prayer group on Facebook. The girl’s parents reported her missing to Columbus police, who found her two weeks later in Florida through cell phone records.
The teenager, in a sworn affidavit, claims her father, Mohamed Bary, 47, was pressured by the mosque the family attends in Ohio to “deal with the situation.” In the court filing, Rifqa Bary stated her father said, “If you have this Jesus in your heart, you are dead to me!” The teenager claims her father added, “I will kill you!”
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Stemberger [John Stemberger, Rifqa Bary’s attorney and president of the Christian advocacy organization Florida Family Policy Council] told CNN he agreed with his client that she would be killed by radical Muslims if she is returned to Ohio.
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The teen’s attorney said his client has endured a history of abuse from her family. Stemberger said the young girl was forced to wear the Muslim headscarf called a hijab and was punched in the face by her father for being ashamed while wearing it.
{snip}
Mohamed Bary, who is not a United States citizen, said he can’t believe all the false allegations and the bad image caused by the situation.
“We are not bad people,” Bary said. “We are not like that, we are normal.”
The mother’s attorney said the teenager was a normal girl, a cheerleader in Ohio, and what Muslim extremist would allow his daughter be a cheerleader?
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Original article
(Posted on September 3, 2009)
Comments
Has anyone been able to verify that she was a cheerleader? It seems totally contradictory that her father makes her wear a hijab and then lets her be one. Someone in this story is flat-out lying.
What joys diversity brings upon and amongst us. Here in Ohio, the state where I grew into adulthood. Where I raised my family. Unbelievable. Where did my majority white, christian state go? I see more and more people of color, and less white faces everyday in this state. Thanks to the Kennedys and their liberal constituents, we are facing an uphill battle for survival. At times I find the magnitude of it all overwhelming. And then I get very angry at those whom sold us out, and especially angry at myself for not sounding an alarm sooner for all those that would listen. I fear not for myself, but for those generations to come that will suffer from our lack of action. I wonder what I will say when my grandchildren ask me how and why things are so bad for the white people. I am ashamed.
If he does follow through on his threat to kill her, my bet says the mainstream media will scarcely mention the story. They are just itching for another story of White on Black racism.
I know of a guy who had to flee Egypt for this very reason. He was born and raised Muslim, but delved into it a bit more and found out just how outrageous the entire belief system is. He renounced his religion and began dating another non-Muslim Egyptian girl. After finding out what a religion of peace the Muslims are and receiving death threat after death threat, he eventually emigrated to the US.
Ahh yes, Islam — just misunderstood, ya know?
Once again, it will only stop when we demand that it stops.
Even if her father kills her for becoming Christian, this will not be a hate crime. I’d be surprised if it fell into a domestic case.
Why call her a “Muslim Teen” if she converted to Christianity?
“Rifqa Bary stated her father said, “If you have this Jesus in your heart, you are dead to me!” The teenager claims her father added, “I will kill you!”
I do not believe her father said that.
Muslims consider Jesus Christ to be one of the Prophets (with Mohammed being the LAST prophet) and they would NOT insult or slander any of the Prophets. To insult or slander any of the prophets would be blasphemous.
Could someone explain to me why this Islamic man move to a predominately Christian country but is outraged that his daughter wants to be a Christian?
Since the father in not a citizen of the USA, he should be deported, if tried and convicted. The charges should be child abuse, assault and battery, making terroristic threats and attempted murder.
Recovering Republican wrote at 8:37 AM on September 4:
“Why call her a “Muslim Teen” if she converted to Christianity?”
Because after Whites the group that matters least to the MSM are Christians.
This line from the article was telling.
‘The teenager, in a sworn affidavit, claims her father, Mohamed Bary, 47, was pressured by the mosque the family attends in Ohio to “deal with the situation.”’
Radical Islamism permeates the very fabric of Islamic society. Even if the majority of Muslims are “good Muslims,” it is irrelevant. They cower in fear before the more fanatical of their brethren. Even if her father gave his reluctant consent to her conversion, his “Muslim brothers” wouldn’t allow it.
Thanks to the late Teddy Kennedy (I withhold any comment on him), we now have millions of these people infesting our shores, many of whom are already involved in “sleeper cells” awaiting orders to strike at the “Great Satan” (a la Al Qaeda).
Stories similar to this one pop up only rarely in the MSM, even though they occur more often than most people realize.
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,188728,00.html
Like the Daily Separatist, years ago I knew a young woman from Iran who secretly converted from Islam to Christianity. For years she tried to emigrate to America (she has relatives here), living with the fear that if she was ever discovered, she’d be dead meat. She finally made it here and immediately renounced both Islam and the gov’t in Iran.
From what I’ve read, Rifqa Bary is almost 18. If those mindless, faceless bureaucrats have any human compassion, they’d stall proceedings until her 18th birthday and then this whole matter is resolved.
Anonymous post #1: Has anyone been able to verify that she was a cheerleader? It seems totally contradictory that her father makes her wear a hijab and then lets her be one.
Several online stories have shown photos of her in a cheerleader uniform. Do a Google Image search on her name.
I live in the Orlando area, and obviously this has become a major story here. With typical MSM contempt for the facts, the local Fox affiliate tried to claim that Rifqa came here in order to convert to Christianity, when in fact she had converted several years ago.
And “Recovering Republican” is right. The headline should read “Ex-Muslim Teen …”
I don’t think this story adds up at all. It stinks of sensationalism. I’m not saying it’s not completely untrue and everyone knows that Muslims don’t like their youngsters straying away from Islam, but…
“Rifqa Bary stated her father said, “If you have this Jesus in your heart, you are dead to me!” The teenager claims her father added, “I will kill you!”
I do not believe her father said that.
I don’t believe he said those exact words either. As you state below, “Muslims consider Jesus Christ to be one of the Prophets” so he wouldn’t have referred to Jesus as if he didn’t know who he was, as if his daughter was into Marilyn Manson or something.
“Muslims consider Jesus Christ to be one of the Prophets (with Mohammed being the LAST prophet) and they would NOT insult or slander any of the Prophets. To insult or slander any of the prophets would be blasphemous.”
That’s right, even I know that!
8 — Sonya wrote at 1:51 PM on September 4:
AND of course we all know the muslims would NEVER do anything like blaspheme RIGHT!!! only murder, bomb, oppress, slaughter and anything else to further the muslim agenda. You need to learn more about the muslims, especially the black American converts and the east African ones.
I agree with Anders — (“I don’t think this story adds up at all. It stinks of sensationalism.”)
I did some checking up. Her family, though Moslems, are from Sri Lanka (Ceylon), an overwhelmingly Buddhist country, which is only 7% Moslem. So they were a small religious minority even there. It’s important to note that these are not Arabs or Africans, or your typical kind of Moslems, therefore. They’re not from a country where they’re accustomed to having their way.
And she’s a Christian convert now? Oh? Just what kind of “Christian” might that be? What Christian denomination?
This “church” is very suspicious too. The church of “Global Revolution” ??? Huh? Just what kind of “Christian” denomination is THAT? I couldn’t manage to find that out. Is this a cult? Her father claims it is and that she’s being manipulated. I don’t know, but I’m reserving judgement. He could be right.
It’s leader is a FORMER Methodist minister who left that denomination to start his own religion. It caters (by its own statements) to persons who are incarcerated, those who work in the prison system, residents of the inner cities, unwed mothers, etc. It even gives showers for unwed mothers! How nice. They clearly don’t want me. And they just finished leading a march through Zambia a couple of months ago.
I don’t care much for what I’m hearing. I’m leery of “Christian” churches that have “Revolution” in their name, but nothing about Christ. Doesn’t sound like a “church” I’ll be attending anytime soon. (Doesn’t sound like they would want my kind anyway).
And many newspaper posters have pointed out that no devout Moslem parents would ever have allowed their daughter to become a cheerleader in the first place. Quoting from the main article in Broward Palm Beach New Times: “Anyway, Christians: Are you all positive that you want to stand squarely behind a guy like Blake Lorenz, the pastor of a church called Global Revolution? ”
My answer is: Probably not!
Yeah I agree with all the skeptics.
Plus the comment “Jesus in your heart” is something a Christian would say, that is one of their favorite phrases. A Muslim would be very unlikely to use that term. He would be far more likely to accuse her of polytheism.
