Many of you have probably heard on the news that Omar Osama bin Laden, son of Osama bin Laden, wants to begin a campaign for peace.
Yeah, right. We, in the Penn-Del District, know that this is just Doug Sayers, our District Youth Director, in dreadlocks and up to one of his elaborate practical jokes.
You don't fool me, Doug!
9 comments:
Too funny, Paul! Looks like I'm doing well in the poll though. Smile: )
Hey, I was once told I was the spitting image of Jimmy Swaggart, and I wasn't even spitting--at the time.
Maybe it isn't one of Doug's elaborate jokes. Maybe Doug really is Osama bin Laden's peacemaking son. And maybe your pacifist theology, Paul, has converted him, and, just maybe, you've thwarted his secret plans to poison the communion at the next youth convention.
Thanks, Paul! You are my hero, a real anabaptist Jack Bauer!
Thanks, Bill.
Actually I'm somewhere between pacificism and just war, leaning toward the former. The early church was pacifist; the roman Catholic church adopted the just war view when they gained earthly power; only American evangelicals have adopted preemptive war.
God help us.
Yes, Paul.
The use of force to rescue an innocent without such force hurting even more innocents is surely a just cause.
The innocent, however, who suffer violence without returning violence in order to shame the violent is the most effective, yet most difficult (Christlike) way. I wonder what Jesus meant when he said the Holy Spirit would empower us to be "witnesses"? Isn't the story of Steven, whose last words mirrored Jesus' last words, the template of the kind of sacrificial love a "witness" was supposed to exhibit? Isn't that how the kingdom expanded so effectively before Constantine? How does the doctrine of preemptive war ever fit that template?
I do pray that God will help us. And I'm hopeful that God will. I just wonder what it will take.
I'm not advocating preemptive war by any means, but doesn't Romans 13make it clear that God uses government for essentially two things: 1) Promote Good; and 2) Punish evil.
Therefore, Godly and sometimes even the undgodly governments, and the military powers that act on their behalf, are ultimately under God's authority and are able to bring judgement and promote peace.
Bill, you make a great point, and Dave, you ask a great question. However, I'm hesitant to take the attention off of Doug here.:)
Seriously, I think this goes beyond the scope of our blog, so I'll wave the white flag at this point, call a truce and pick this up in another forum.
Paul....you are awesome in this place!
Anon, that is *way* too close to the words of a song that I grew up singing.:)
Not to mention a bit restrictive as well.:) I think Arline would not limit it to this blog. At least I hope not.
Post a Comment