Renouncing one's Muslim faith in Afghanistan is a crime punishable by death. When news trickled out of Kabul late last month that a former aid worker named Abdul Rahman, 41, was on trial for converting to Christianity, the U.S. government responded with dismay--but not much else. The case "is not under the competence of the U.S.," Under Secretary of State Nicholas Burns said. "If there is to be a trial, we hope that it's going to be transparent." That was the diplomatic equivalent of shrugging and saying, "What more can we do?"
The answer came swiftly from President Bush's outraged Christian...