{"id":6154,"date":"2015-04-28T03:28:38","date_gmt":"2015-04-28T07:28:38","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/faithmediaandculture\/?p=6154"},"modified":"2015-04-28T03:28:38","modified_gmt":"2015-04-28T07:28:38","slug":"rita-cosby-talk-with-former-iraq-pow-jessica-lynch-shines-light-on-current-plight-of-middle-east-christians","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/faithmediaandculture\/2015\/04\/rita-cosby-talk-with-former-iraq-pow-jessica-lynch-shines-light-on-current-plight-of-middle-east-christians.html","title":{"rendered":"Rita Cosby talk with former Iraq POW Jessica Lynch shines light on current plight of Middle East Christians"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Here\u2019s today\u2019s dispatch from the crossroads of faith, media and culture.<\/p>\n

An important issue gets some attention.<\/strong> Congratulations to journalist Rita Cosby. My former Fox News colleague recently scored a rare interview with former Iraq War POW Jessica Lynch<\/a> on her WABC-AM Radio show in New York City.\u00a0 Lynch was an Army private when her capture by and rescue from enemy forces made international headlines in 2003. She still wears a daily leg brace as a result of her injuries sustained during the ambush of her military convoy which killed eleven of her fellow soldiers.
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These days, Lynch is a mom and sought-after inspirational speaker. She is also turning some of her attention to acting — with IMDB-listed roles in three faith-themed films<\/a>,\u00a0 including <\/span>the upcoming political thriller One Church<\/em><\/a> which tackles the issue of religious freedom in America. The plays the daughter of the American president.
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In the Cosby interview, Lynch <\/span>expresses her deep concern over the current situation Iraq, particularly regarding the plight of Christians who are being persecuted and systematically murdered for their faith. It’s a genocidal situation that is receiving remarkably little attention from the media. Here are some highlights from their conversation. \u00a0 <\/span><\/span><\/div>\n
<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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<\/span>RITA COSBY:\u00a0<\/b>\u00a0<\/span>When you look at the images of what’s going on in Iraq, do you feel we can defeat this enemy that\u2019s over there?\u00a0 It’s a very brutal enemy. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n
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JESSICA LYNCH:<\/b>\u00a0 It is.\u00a0 I think it\u2019s just going to be a repeated cycle. I don’t know honestly if we as Americans can change them and I don’t think that\u2019s going to happen. \u00a0<\/span>I think they\u2019re going to continue with the way that it has been for years, for decades. \u00a0 And, I don’t know, I hope\u2026 I hope because I\u2019m a peace lover. I like peace\u2026 like everybody else and I want to see our soldiers come back home safely, and not be hurt. <\/span><\/div>\n

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RC:\u00a0<\/b> How difficult do you think this enemy is?\u00a0 I mean you obviously dealt with it firsthand in a very personal way\u2026 How determined do you think this enemy is? <\/span><\/div>\n

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JL:\u00a0 <\/b>Well, I think that they are determined to keep Iraq the way that it has always been. \u00a0They don\u2019t want to change. \u00a0They want\u2026 That\u2019s what they\u2019ve grown to know\u2026 And that\u2019s what they\u2026 \u00a0I think that\u2019s what they\u2019re still going to continue to do for the next 50 years.\u00a0\u00a0 I don’t think us being there is going help any . \u00a0So, but I hope\u2026 I mean we are there to help them, not hurt them. <\/span><\/div>\n

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RC:\u00a0<\/b> Yeah, and of course, as we look at the pictures too, especially, I think one of the most difficult things that a lot of people have been commenting about is the targeting of Christians that we have seen in Iraq and elsewhere in the world\u2026 in Egypt and elsewhere.\u00a0 What are your thoughts as a woman of faith and as someone who was there on the battlefield? <\/span><\/div>\n

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JL:<\/b> Hey, you know, because as Christians we believe one way and\u2026 they believe another way\u2026 and it\u2019s always going to be a conflict.\u00a0 Whether it\u2019s with Iraq\u2026 or if it\u2019s against another country.\u00a0 And that\u2019s what they do. They\u2019re going to target us.\u00a0 They\u2019re going to try to take away what beliefs or faith we have . \u00a0And, you know as Christians, I believe that we\u2019re going to stand strong.\u00a0 We\u2019re going to continue praying. \u00a0We\u2019re going to continue with what we know\u2026 And we\u2019re going to overpower them in that situation.\u00a0 They may take us by guns and armory\u2026 \u00a0But with us, we\u2019ll just continue praying and having faith that we\u2019re going to stand strong. <\/span><\/div>\n

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RC: <\/b>How concerned are you when you see some of the images and what’s been happening to Christians?\u2026 How concerned are you at sort of the level it has gone to in Iraq and elsewhere? <\/span><\/div>\n

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JL: <\/b>Oh it is\u2026 \u00a0it\u2019s been disturbing. \u00a0I mean, if you look at those pictures, it\u2019s horrible. \u00a0Absolutely horrible. \u00a0I feel for their families. The ones that have been beheaded. I feel for them.\u00a0 I never want to see that happen. And\u2026 yeah, it\u2019s very, very disturbing.\u00a0 And it\u2019s been happening so much lately that I think it\u2019s definitely a concern that we should all be kind of aware of. <\/span><\/div>\n

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RC: <\/b>Do you feel the world is doing enough to protect Christians and others over there, Jessica Lynch? <\/span><\/div>\n

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JL:\u00a0<\/b> Oh, you know that\u2019s a tough one.\u00a0 I think\u2026 the military?\u00a0 I think the military side, I think, you know, we\u2019re doing what we have always been taught, with the tactical side\u2026\u00a0 and\u2026 umm we\u2026 I mean I can\u2019t speak for the government or anything, but I think, definitely with military, we\u2019re doing what we can to protect everybody\u2026 not just Christians. <\/span><\/div>\n

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RC: <\/b> \u00a0Do you think the world is doing enough to protect Christians over there? <\/span><\/div>\n

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JL:<\/b> Maybe not. Maybe not. Definitely I think things could be improved and handled differently. \u00a0But, you know, I think it\u2019s a difficult situation, and I think, you know, it\u2019s going to take some time and it\u2019s going to take some effort by everyone so that the world can get along. <\/span><\/div>\n

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RC:\u00a0 <\/b> I guess, as a Christian, you have to be outraged. I\u2019m outraged when I see what’s happening to Christians and to all good people.\u00a0 \u00a0Is it just frightening to see some of the images that you\u2019re seeing out of Iraq and elsewhere? <\/span><\/div>\n

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JL: …<\/b>These are disturbing, frightful images that we see every day coming across the TV or on the internet. \u00a0It is. It\u2019s definitely disturbing and, you know, for me I look at them, and I pray for their families. And I do what I can on that front. <\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
Note:<\/strong> You can hear the entire interview here<\/a>. The Rita Cosby Shows<\/em> airs Sunday mornings at 6:00 AM (ET) on New York-based WABC Radio.<\/strong><\/div>\n
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Encourage one another and build each other up \u2013 <\/em>1 Thessalonians 5:11<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Here\u2019s today\u2019s dispatch from the crossroads of faith, media and culture. An important issue gets some attention. Congratulations to journalist Rita Cosby. My former Fox News colleague recently scored a rare interview with former Iraq War POW Jessica Lynch on her WABC-AM Radio show in New York City.\u00a0 Lynch was an Army private when her…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":225,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9,10,15,19,24,3586,1],"tags":[7369,8355,8356,8353,5265,8354],"class_list":["post-6154","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-christianity","category-current-events","category-history","category-islam","category-movies","category-religious-liberty-2","category-uncategorized","tag-faith-themed-films","tag-former-iraq-war-pow-jessica-lynch","tag-plight-of-middle-east-christians","tag-political-thriller-one-church","tag-rita-cosby","tag-wabc-am-radio"],"yoast_head":"\nRita Cosby talk with former Iraq POW Jessica Lynch shines light on current plight of Middle East Christians<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/faithmediaandculture\/2015\/04\/rita-cosby-talk-with-former-iraq-pow-jessica-lynch-shines-light-on-current-plight-of-middle-east-christians.html\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Rita Cosby talk with former Iraq POW Jessica Lynch shines light on current plight of Middle East Christians\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Here\u2019s today\u2019s dispatch from the crossroads of faith, media and culture. 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