sent home without pay for refusing to cover up or remove a small cross which she wore on a chain around her neck, BosNewsLife monitored Thursday, October 19.
Nadia Eweida, a self-declared committed Christian who worked for BA for seven years, received a notice on September 20 that the cross she wears on a chain around her neck was visible.
"In accordance with BA Uniform Wearer Standards she was asked to either remove the cross or cover it with her cravat. When Miss Eweida refused she was given the choice of being sent home suspended on full pay or taking unpaid leave," said UK-based Barnabas Fund in a statement to BosNewsLife.
"Discrimination against Christians is commonplace in Muslim-majority contexts, such as Egypt where Nadia’s family roots are. It is part of Barnabas Fund’s work to make known cases of anti-Christian injustice around the world, and where possible to assist. Now we see the same thing increasingly happening within the UK," said Barnabas Fund International Director Patrick Sookhdeo.
Eweida, who has an "unblemished employee record" claims that BA’s uniform policy is discriminatory against Christians, Barnabas Fund explained. The policy states that all jewellery and religious symbols can be worn, but concealed. However it makes exceptions for the Muslim hijab and Sikh turbans and bangles, which it says are an essential part of the respective religious beliefs, and impractical to conceal.
FAITH DISPUTE
A main point of contention appears to be what constitutes an essential part of a religious faith. Eweida was asked in her formal grievance meeting if she agreed that there is nothing in the Bible which requires a Christian to wear the cross visibly. British Airways has ruled that the wearing or displaying of the cross is not an essential part of Christianity.
But "this definition is not applied consistently across other faiths. The wearing of the hijab is an area of contention amongst Muslims who disagree on whether it is obligatory to wear it," Barnabas Fund countered. "A verse in the Qur’an which talks about women covering up is interpreted by some Muslim women as a command to wear the hijab, though the garment itself is not specifically mentioned."
The group stressed that in the Christian faith "the cross is a symbol of the sacrificial death of Jesus Christ, God incarnate, and His resurrection, to take away the sins of the world, that is, a symbol of the most central doctrines of Christianity."
Barnabas Fund said many Christians wear the cross "in order to publicly declare their faith. During the grievance hearing Eweida reportedly quoted Jesus as saying,» If you deny Me on earth I will deny you before my Father in heaven." Eweida is of Anglo-Egyptian roots, and in her culture the cross is deeply important, added the group.
CHRISTIAN TATOO
"Many Egyptian Christians will tattoo the cross on to their wrists, even though this will bring them increased persecution, as it defines them as a Christian. To Miss Eweida displaying her cross is as essentially part of her faith as the hijab and turban are to Muslims and Sikhs," Barnabas Fund said.
Sookhdeo stressed that "Nadia has been a committed supporter of Barnabas Fund for many years, giving her support to persecuted Christians. Now she herself is suffering discrimination for her faith, and Barnabas Fund is committed to supporting her through this ordeal…"
The Barnabas Fund described her as a "courageous Christian woman in her desire to show her faith by means of a visible symbol – the cross, which is central to the Christian faith. Her Sikh and Muslim colleagues at BA can show their faith publicly in what they wear, but Nadia and other Christians cannot. All we are asking for is a level playing field for all faiths."
Barnabas Fund suggested it wants to prevent a similar situation in the UK as in Pakistan where on September 13 a teenage Christian girl was beaten by her Muslim teachers for refusing to remove a cross.
CHRISTIAN REBUKED
Kiran Shahzadi, 15, was rebuked for wearing the cross and ordered to remove it from her neck. She refused, saying the "cross is our Christian religious symbol so I cannot remove it," Pakistani Christians told BosNewsLife.
Her teacher allegedly began beating Kiran, and then took her to the head teacher who also mistreated her. The cross was pulled from her neck and thrown in the rubbish bin. Kiran was then made to stand in the scorching sun for several hours without water until she fainted, local sources said.
The UK is not the only European Union country where rights groups have expressed concern over what they see as a growing trend to persecute evangelical Christians. Last year, human rights group Open Doors warned Christians in the Netherlands they may soon be persecuted. Open Doors has developed a "power of defense handbook" to help Dutch believers prepare for the expected persecution.
"That time may come sooner than we think," Open Doors spokesman Jeno Sebok told Uitdaging, a leading evangelical newspaper in the Netherlands. (With BosNewsLife reports from the Netherlands, BosNewsLife Research and reports from London).
