In lieu of the London bombings I have been thinking a lot about the war on terror. First the title of the war strikes me as odd because it hides the real enemy and replaces it with a vague idea. We are not at war with terror per se but rather with Islamic extremists who hate western civilization. Why we are afraid to come out and say this is a mystery. By not stating who our real enemy is it becomes difficult to measure our successes. If our enemy is only terror, then America is doing okay because we haven't had an attack since 9/11 and most Americans are not terrified. But if our enemy is radical Islam then we are losing that battle because Islam is growing rapidly in some of our bigger cities and especially in our prison system where they are recruiting followers at an alarming rate. Terror is not our enemy but merely our real enemy's weapon of choice.
I found it laughable when a London TV reporter interviewed a leader in the Muslim community and the leader said that the bombers were not indicative of a larger problem within the Islamic community as a whole. Really? Where does he think these men learned this type of hatred? It wasn't by default. They were indoctrinated by a radical theology that appears to be all too prevalent in mainstream Islam. What scares me the most is that the men who blew up the subway and buses in London were not poor or mistreated. They were not first generation immigrants to Europe. No, they were middle class citizens who had grown up in the very culture they had come to hate. The fact that these men could become convinced to kill their own countrymen reveals the depth and power of our enemy's ideals. It also reveals that their battle is not an economic or cultural battle but rather a religious one.
Perhaps the biggest problem we have in winning the war is that we didn't ask for this war in the first place. We were happy to keep our heads in the sand and pretend the world was a peaceful place since the fall of communism. Most Americans didn't know much about radical Islam and didn't realize we were their enemy until September 11th. Many can still not figure out why we are hated so much. We didn't do anything to them so while are they plotting to kill us. It is a difficult war to win when you're fighting a battle for different reasons than your opponents. They are fighting a religious war and we are simply trying to defend ourselves from future attacks. Under this scenario one can understand why our will is weakening and the enemies resolve continues. We haven't had an attack in America since 2001 and so our reasoning for fighting loses importance, while the enemy still feels compelled by religion to fight until the end.
A few last thoughts. If our battle is a religious battle then how do we as Christians respond? The bible says that our battle is not against flesh and blood but spiritual instead. Does that mean we shouldn't fight a physical battle against Islam in defense of our country? Does it mean we should instead engage the Islamic community in theological debates? How should Christians treat their moslem neighbors? Should we fight this war as Americans or as Christians? What would winning the war even look like? Suppose there were no more terrorist attacks, Islam is still an oppressive religion that is opposed to Christianity and persecutes Christians in several countries around the world.
I am not sure I have any answers but I guess I haven't really heard the church asking these questions either.
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3 comments:
Well put. As I was trying to say on Kyperman's, it is a battle against ideas. The falsehood of Islam and the treachery of Wahhabism in particular. There is no negotiating with Al Qaeda (Wahhabist Extremists). But even if the current Al Qaeda terrorists are eliminated, they will be replaced as there is still the problem of Islam/Wahhabism.
The Christian's response is Jesus. We cannot defeat terrorism or Islamic extremists with our carnal weapons, even though they are the appropriate response at times. The battle behongs to the Lord. Bin Laden (and similar) remind me of the giant Goliath-stupid, arrogant, ugly, intimidating, mocking, etc. God will defeat Islamic Terrorists through the faith of His children. We must not fear terror or Al Qaeda. That is their goal and God often reminds us not to be afraid. We must speak up against the lies and call Islam what it is-a false religion. And we must stand up and be salt and light.
Personally, I believe America will continue to suffer from violence and the threat of violence until America ends aborting our own children and other iniquities. Not because of Bin Laden, but because God cannot fully bless us due to our own disobedience.
Jeff, thanks for pointing out the need to stop calling it a war on terror.
I disaggree John we can beat them with our "carnal weapons". The problem is noone in Washington is willing to fight this war no matter what the cost. I am convinced that next attack here we need to wipe Syria off the map and keep going. If there were innocent muslims why aren't they speaking up. I don't buy this they are afraid arguement because you and I both know that all it takes is for one man to stand up, then if there are others they will be inboldened. How many times did God tell the Israelites to kill every man, woman, child, and animals?
I think the reason we don't fight the war it needs to be is we don't want to hurt anyones feelings. DAMN baby bombers.
Heck I wish we could work out our differences but when your sucker punched there is NO rules. You fight as dirty and as ugly as you have to. I am infavor of uses our nukes to take Syria, Iran, China (in case no one heard we were threatend by a Chinese General), et Al.
Is this harsh, No we are at war with people who are fighing with 12th Century rules we CANNOT fight with a wimpy mentality.
I agree with both jonw777 and ranger....while I believe we are responsible for these attacks in so far as we are not obeying Gods laws and therefor cannot expect to be blessed like we would were we...I also believe that we are tip-toeing around and afraid to send in the big guns for fear of being labeled. We are fighting a war on two fronts right now...at home with our culture and outside of our borders. We have to win both fronts...but lets start with killing these terrorist scum wherever and by whatever means necessary.
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