This is in no way meant to continue a religious discussion of another thread. I just thought it was an excellent look at the historic Christian perspective towards war from a preacher/scholor.
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<br>This is a partial quote from Dr. Herb Sadler's sermon this past Sunday at Gulf Breeze Methodist Church. You can find the entire text at www.gbumc.org under the Attack on America tab - Sept. 23rd Sermon:
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<br>The second question we raise this morning is, “CAN A CHRISTIAN JUSTIFY WAR?” A lot of people have been asking us that. How can I as a Christian justify retaliation? In answering that question what I want to do is to give you a survey of Christian attitudes toward war throughout history. There are basically three positions you can take in relationship to war if you are a Christian. Any position you take will be some variation of one of these three. I’ll take them in chronological order:
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<br>1. Pacifism - This is the belief that a Christian can never respond to evil except with non-violence. This belief grew out of the sayings of Jesus like, “Turn the other cheek,” and “Love your enemy.” So the early Christians tried as best they could to be non-violent. The pacifist position would say in answer to the question, “Can a Christian justify war?” Never. Never under any circumstance.
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<br>2. Just War - This is the place where the vast majority of Christians are. This position holds that there are those times when a Christian should respond and defend. I would say it this way: what is possible at a personal level may not be preferable in the face of corporate evil. Did you follow that? If you chose to strike me what’s at risk is a black eye and a lost tooth. But if a nation chooses to attack, or an organization of terrorists do, what’s at risk is far, far greater. And so over the course of time, Christians began to believe - maybe it is more evil not to respond.
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<br>The great Christian leader St. Augustine formulated in about the 4th century the “Just War Doctrine” which basically says for a Christian to respond in a violent way, 3 things have to be present:
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<br>1. It has to be a just cause.
<br>2. It has to be a last resort; diplomacy and non-violent means have been tried.
<br>3. It is less evil to respond and resist than it is not to respond and resist.
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<br>I think we saw a vivid example of this September 11th in the life of a man whose name we all know by now, Todd Beamer. Todd Beamer was a 32-year-old businessman, devout Christian, Sunday school teacher at Princeton Alliance Church in Princeton, New Jersey. The President at his address to Congress Thursday night introduced Todd’s wife, Lisa.
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<br>Todd Beamer was on United Flight 93 when it was taken by highjackers. He used a GTE phone on the airplane and explained to an operator that there were 3 highjackers with knives, one with what appeared to be a bomb strapped to his body. Two others had taken over the **** of the airplane. Lisa Jefferson, the GTE operator, told him that two planes had crashed into the World Trade Towers and one into the Pentagon. He asked the operator if she would pray with him. They prayed, then recited the 23rd Psalm together. Todd Beamer had a phrase he always used when his family had to go somewhere. “Come on guys, let’s roll”. He has two young sons and Lisa is pregnant with a third child. “Come on guys, let’s roll.” After praying with the operator and reciting the 23rd Psalm, he laid the phone down and Lisa Jefferson, on the other end of the phone, heard the words from the plane, “Let’s roll”. And there was nothing after that.
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<br>What did Todd Beamer do? He decided it was more important to respond as a Christian, to defend, than not to do so. In the course of making that decision, he and three others made sure that the plane was crashed in Pennsylvania rather than into one of our national shrines in Washington, and thereby destroying even more innocent civilians.
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<br>The person who holds the “Just war” position would say in answer to the question, Can a Christian ever justify war? Seldom. Not often, but sometimes if the evil is great enough.
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<br>3. The Crusade position - This concept emerged more than 1000 years after Christ. It is the belief that maybe sometimes it is ok to be the aggressor. We can attack and take the initiative and God will go with us and lead us to destroy our enemies. That school of thought hasn’t happened very often in Christian history - thankfully. Do you know who holds the crusade position? Bin Laden does. Jihad - Holy War! It is the stance of extremism that God want us to destroy others for Him. Let me suggest to you that those of whatever religion, including Christianity, who take the crusade position tend to be self righteous and morally blind.
<br>A Pacifist says never.
<br>A “Just War” person says seldom.
<br>A Crusader says always.
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<br>After watching on the nightly news tonight the protests going on in Afghanistan, I am more convinced now than ever that we MUST take this war to Afghanistan. I believe our inaction will only embolden our enemies and make the recruitment of these "evil-doers" easier for these terrorists organizations.
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<br>To me, it is unbelievable that we are even discussing in Congress and the Nation of giving up personal liberties/freedoms, while not acting against those that would attempt to take them from us. I won't repost again "Give Me Liberty or Give Me Death" but it is more appropriate with each passing day as Colin Powell attempts to get "permission" from other nations for America to act in Self Defense.
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<br>I fear that if we don't bring incredible destruction on these people, not in secret, but in the open, as public as we can make it, so all of them can SEE what happens when you attack a nation based on the principles of freedom, we have had it. I mean it. This country will either be overrun, or will become a police state, as we clamp down on our own citizens, because we won't destroy these terrorist countries.
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<br>I have a friend who is one of the great veterans of the Normandy Invasion of WWII, I am afraid that our generation is going to give away everything that he and that that great generation of Americans sacrificed to ensure the very freedoms we are so easily willing to deal away.
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<br>"Let's roll."
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<br>ScaredyCat
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