Muslim radicals have stolen the word and been misusing it ever since they started their murderous rampages throughout the world.
According to standard, accepted usage a martyr is someone who suffers death, rather than renounce his or her faith. A martyr is someone who is put upon by others who demand that he or she renounce their faith.
Martyrdom is never self-described or self-defined. That status or condition is bestowed upon someone who suffered death at the hands of others who held them captive, specifically for not renouncing their faith.
At no time in history has a Martyr been anyone who deliberately planned and executed mass murder for some twisted cause. That is more in the realm of Blasphemy.
"Martyring oneself" is an oxymoron. Martyrdom cannot be self-generated. It is probably used by the manipulators who lure confused souls to commit mass murder in the hope of seeing their forbidden fantasies realized in paradise. [But that's another story.]
Let us honor Martyrs of all ages and all faiths, and not allow their legacies to be debased by mass murderers trying to usurp their mantle.
You can't be a Martyr if you're a Murderer.
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| St. Stephen |
