The Archbishop of Canterbury has come under sharp criticism from Palestinian activists, who have accused Dr. Rowan Williams of being an ill-informed right-winger bent on “demonizing Islam” and supporting the Israeli government.
However, a spokesman for Dr. Williams tells The Church of England Newspaper that Kairos Palestine had improperly construed the archbishop’s remarks about the plight of Christians across the Middle East to be an endorsement of Israeli government policies.
Ill informed? Sure; but I’ll bet that is the first time Rowan Williams has ever been called a “right-winger”.
That was my first thought too, David. Boy, I bet that really stung!
This is what William Oddie had to say about Dr Williams’ recent comments on the UK government:
[blockquote]Frankly, I don’t give a fig about anything Rowan Williams says, as such; for a most amazing quantity of utter drivel issues forth from the midst of that ghastly beard of his (remember his pronouncements on sharia law?) What I do care about is that for most English people, Rowan Williams is the leading spokesman for something they call “The Churchâ€. And that affects those of us who think that “The Church†(ie us) actually can have something to say about political life, in those circumstances when it is appropriate for her representatives to do so. Now, Archbishop Williams has made it less rather than more likely that they will, here at least. That’s a nuisance.[/blockquote]
I couldn’t agree more.
The Christian community in Palestine was a vibrant community, but has been badly depleted by emigration. It is caught between the grindstones of regional politics. I can understand why they leave. Their position on their home ground, whether it be because of Israeli policies or Palestinian Authority incompetence, is untenable.