At First Things, Richard John Neuhaus weighs in on recent happenings in France:

The intifida in France no doubt supplies some Americans with satisfaction in seeing the haughty French government taken down several notches. The temptation to indulge in Schadenfreude
should be firmly resisted. What is happening in France and other parts of Europe is a tragedy of historic proportions. As I wrote in “The New Europes” (FIRST THINGS, October), we are witnessing the death of a continent. George Weigel addressed the many factors involved in “Europe’s Problem—and Ours” (FIRST THINGS, February, 2004), which he later developed in his bracing little book, The Cube and the Cathedral.

We have over the years received flak for paying close attention to Bat Y’eor’s writings on Islam and dhimmitude—the system by which Muslims, both of the past and present, subjugate Christians and Jews. In her most recent book, Eurabia, Bat Y’eor describes the longstanding European policies that feed the dreams of Muslim conquest.

What is happening in France, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, and elsewhere was not inevitable. The sage warnings of Bernard Lewis have gone largely unheeded. Samuel Huntington’s depiction of “the clash of civilizations” is not the last word, but to dismiss it as alarmist is certain folly. John
Paul the Great persistently called for the re-Christianization of Europe, and Pope Benedict is no less committed to that goal. Europe, in the fine phrase of David Hart, is dying of “metaphysical boredom.” In the absence of a reason for being beyond the satisfaction of creature comforts, Europeans will continue to acquiesce in their own destruction. Call it Muslim-assisted suicide.

“Muslim-assisted suicide.” I like that. A lot. (The expression, that is; definitely not the practice.)

By the way, Hugh Hewitt also linked to the First Things blog today, calling it “magnificent.” Well, that seems like a good cue for me to acknowledge that I actually had the pleasure of helping the estimable people at First Things set up their blog, a fact of which I’m naturally (if sinfully) proud.

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