The Archbishop of Canterbury has condemned evangelist “bulies” who attempt to convert people of other faiths to Christianity.

Dr Rowan Williams said it was right to be suspicious of proselytism that involves “bullying, insensitive approaches” to other faiths.

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Malaysia has defended a decision not to prosecute two Muslim journalists accused of desecrating a communion wafer in a Catholic church, saying they acted out of “sheer ignorance”.

The archbishop of Kuala Lumpur Murphy Pakiam has criticised the government’s “failure to act” over the incident, in which the pair joined a Catholic service to investigate claims Muslims were illegally converting.

“The journalists have displayed utmost disrespect for the Catholic community when they admit receiving and spitting out the Holy Communion,” he told a press conference Thursday.

However, the government’s top lawyer, Attorney-General Abdul Gani Patail, said the pair did not understand the significance of the wafer, which Catholics believe represents the body of Jesus Christ.

“The actions of the two reporters may have hurt the feelings of the people but I was satisfied that they did not intend to offend anyone. It was an act of sheer ignorance,” he said in a statement late Thursday.

According to the BBC report the two journalists spat out the communion wafer.

Not that some Muslims, and certainly not those in Malaysia, have a reputation for getting upset at something they deem offensive.

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I want to be clear: this is no milquetoast universalist pablum. Siljander is NOT claiming some notion of all roads leading to God. What he’s doing is far more careful and well-thought than that. He is demonstrating the frequency with which fundamental–often violent–differences between the Abrahamic faiths are based on ignorance: not only ignorance of the “other’s” faith, but all too often ignorance of the actual text and context of our own faith and its creeds.

I read good number of books and Mark still holds a high place for me in terms of promoting interfaith dialog. Via @siljander

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Should the UMNO succeed in their bid to overturn the court ruling permitting Christians to use the name Allah, then I humbly suggest to the Christian community that there are 98 other names they can (and should) iterate through. They can start with “al Aziz”

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[Jonathan] Edwards famously prayed before taking part in competitions but now says he feels “slightly embarrassed” about how devoutly Christian he once was.

“I think I was probably quite narrow-minded and fundamental in my views and a bit of a scary person,” the former Olympic champion told Sky News.

“I believed that what I believed was the truth. Some of those extremes I feel slightly embarrassed about now, but overall no regrets.

“It was where I was at the time – it’s not where I am now.”

Edwards added he now thinks it is “nonsense” that praying to God could help a sportsman before a competition.

“My prayers were always that God would give me the strength to do the best that I could do. Somehow athletes feel it’s a lucky charm,” he said.

“They believe that if they believe in God, He will give them the strength to win.

“When you look at the world and there are people starving and dying and suffering, is God going to be so concerned about the outcome of an athletics contest?

“My guess is not. Why would He intervene in something that is just a game?”

This is a man who refused to participate in sporting events held on Sundays, and who comes from a religious family (his father is a vicar).

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This is the sales verbiage from the website:

The perfect gift that will remind all who see it of the incredible gift of forgiveness that God gave us through His Son, Jesus Christ. The perfect gift for your church, social organizations, hospital rooms, foyers and entry ways, or that large area in your home in need of essential inspirational Wall Decor!

Here’s a link to the image itself. Oh yeah, and they’re selling a LIFE SIZED version now. I’m afraid to think that there might have been a time when I might have bought it.

Should I try to sell it on eBay or Craigslist? Or just walk it straight out to the trash can, do not pass Go, do not collect $200?

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(via Esmay, or Mays as I like to call him in Halal Latin)

UPDATE, via Sully is this extensive analysis by another Catholic blogger. Will there be a similar move by disaffected Episcopalians?

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More than a year after he was forced to disown his Chicago pastor, President Obama has begun to attend services led by a Christian chaplain who views Islam as a violent faith.

The chaplain’s name is Cary Cash.

Mr Cash calls Islam violent, a faith that “from its very birth has used the edge of the sword as a means to convert or conquer those with different religious convictions”.

Cash, a chaplain in one of the first units to reach Baghdad, believes that a “wall of angels” protected his troops when they fought their way to the Iraqi capital in March 2003. During his deployment he baptized more than 50 servicemen. In his book, A Table in the Presence: The Dramatic Account of How a U.S. Marine Battalion Experienced God’s Presence Amidst the Chaos of the War in Iraq, Cash said of the mission: “Yes, our men were lost and separated. But our God was not confused. Just as He had from the very beginning of the war, He was providentially working all things together for the good of a cause that was just and true.”

He added: “Sadly, grace is often absent in Islam, which is based upon binding religious law, requiring strenuous adherence to every tenet of the ‘Five Pillars of Allah.’

“A religion that emerges from the soil of strict adherence to law as a means of gaining God’s favour will always tend toward extreme self sacrifice.”

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