Thursday, February 28, 2008

Because They Hate by Brigitte Gabriel


I've almost come to believe that any book on the threat of Islam is a must read. This one is no different.  The most poignant point Gabriel makes seems to be a common one among this genera.  It is that one need not wonder if the author is telling the truth, or has an agenda. No, the authors I've read are not simply asking us to listen to the them, they are asking us to listen to the  Muslims pouring out of their hate filled Friday morning pep-rallies, yelling Death to America.

Miss Gabriel is not only informative but she also draws you into the drama of a young life lived through a small nation's transition from peace to civil war. The first half reads much like an auto-biography in which she chronicles her life in a small-town in Lebanon. Lebanon's Civil war placed her in a bomb shelter from age 10 to 17. She later found work at a news agency in Israel, where she met her American husband and moved to the U.S.

I would recommend this book to the person not possessing the gumption to sit and read a 200 or so page documentary on the threats posed by militant Islam. Gabriel puts forth a human element in the Middle Eastern conflict as she describes daily life in a war torn country from a child's perspective. She, and her family, are touched in every way by war.  All receive injuries, she looses her first love to a bomb blast, sniper bullets are a daily reality, and they learn to survive, even though it meant eating weeds just outside of their shelter.

Perhaps the most enlightening aspect of the story is the contrast of cultures Gabriel is able to present. For although she was raised as a Christian, she was still raised in an Arab culture which meant that she was raised to hate Jews. But when her mother was seriously injured by shrapnel she found herself in an Israeli hospital where she received her first taste of Israeli life and compassion. Much of the remainder of her story is intertwined with comparisons of Arab and Western cultures. It is this comparison with an inside perspective that gives this book its biggest punch.

Also visit Mrs. Gabriel's activist organization American Congress for Truth (ACT).

6 comments:

Unknown said...

Danny, have you ever read any of Mark Gabriel's books? They are really good..."Answering Islam", "Jesus and Muhammad" and his newest hasn't come out yet, "Culture Clash." In "Answering Islam" he gives his own story, which is amazing. Just thought you might be interested.

Kristi said...

Thanks for the suggestion, I really want to read it. Although I also want to hide under my bed with my fingers in my ears, sing "la la la" and pretend Little House on the Prairie is real.

Danny Wright said...

Janelle- is Mark Brigitte's husband? I would love to read his side of that story.

kristi- I'm with you on that one all the way. Unfortunately, we are so very much not alone.

Unknown said...

Actually, he's single and goes to my church. He had to change his name because his family was trying to kill him when he converted to Christianity.

We have it so easy.

Susan said...

We have seen this woman on a couple of video's. She is outstanding.
Susan

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