Spiritual Rape

I have been very interested in the recent story of Fox News reporter Steve Centanni and cameraman Olaf Wiig's kidnapping in Gaza by terrorists [at the link, go to the box entitled "Only on Fox" and click on the link to FNC Hostage Ordeal Video for more Q&A with Steve and Olaf]. A couple nights ago, I watched his full hour interview with Greta Van Sustern.

He is the perfect person to interview. He's a reporter. He relates facts to viewers in a visual medium using word pictures. When asked, "Can you describe....?", he does. What bothered me about Greta's interview with him was, from my perspective, the glaring omission. She never asked about his forced conversion to Islam. Why not? For me, this is the core of the violation he endured. He was made physically uncomfortable and put in fear of his life many times. But they fed him, clothed him and tended to him for the 13 days of his captivity. I have not seen the term used elsewhere, and perhaps I'm being a little reactionary, but I believe these men were spiritually raped by their captors. Live or die? Convert to Islam and live. Looking at this pragmatically, I can hardly condemn him. I am pleased they are alive. But the media is glossing over a very big issue.

Today, I read this column on Townhall.com from Kathleen Parker and she addressed my concerns. Her article concludes with this:

Let me be clear: I don't think they were cowards. But those who are willing to strap explosives to their bodies -- or enlist their children to become suicide bombers --surely see them, and us, that way. It is easy to imagine that rancorous Muslims are as attuned to the video as we are, watching replay after replay in the smug satisfaction that they have scored another victory against the infidel and the Great Satan. Those few minutes of choreographed horror affirm for the Islamic world that Westerners are weak, while they reiterate the jihadist's message to the West:

Convert to Islam -- or die.

I pray I never have to choose. Right now, in the detachment of idle thought, I choose earthly death because what they offer is eternal death. There's a quote I've seen floating around that says something like, "she knew she could never be a saint. But she could be a martyr, if they killed her quickly." I prefer my saintly attire to be white. But if the Lord requires me to don the red, I pray the grace to do it.

ADDED: Here's an excellent instruction on this very case and martyrdom in general at Jimmy Akin's blog.