An inauspicious anniversary for the world today. August 6,
1945 - Hiroshima. An estimated 100,000 people died that day. In
one blow, 70,000 of the city's 76,000 buildings were destroyed or
damaged. As the Enola Gay flew homeward following the mission,
co-pilot, Captain Robert Lewis wrote, "My, God, what have we
done?"
I wonder how many other times that question has been asked
in war. I am sure some of our troops have asked that question in
Iraq and Afghanistan, and not just in response to tragedies like
Haditha. Just in general, "My God, what have we done?"
I wonder about Israeli soldiers. It seems that because of
all the carnage around the globe in recent years, no one thinks
much about civilian casualties anymore, but just as with
Hiroshima, issues of proportionality do not go away. How much
destruction in Beirut is appropriate response to the kidnapping
of two soldiers?
We in the United States have become accustomed to thinking
of the Israelis as diligent and industrious people who have made
the desert blossom like a rose. But they have been hampered in
their work by Palestinian terrorists who are bent on driving them
into the sea. We can understand the Israeli paranoia when we
realize that, prior to the 1967 War, the distance that those
terrorists had to drive the Jews from their border to the
Mediterranean was closer than from here to Youngsville. If I had
a mortal enemy that close, one who had vowed to stop at nothing
till I was wiped out, I would be a little "antsy" too.
Like many of you, I have been glued to the news these past
couple of weeks and feeling sick at the vivid scenes of war's
devastation and the human suffering in the Middle East. We mourn
the violence and, out of habit, pray for peace. But we wonder
what in the world is going on?
As I say, I do understand Israel's concern about their
national security, and I also affirm that nation's right to live
in peace. The evidence is clear that Hizbullah, one of those
groups that insists Israel has no right to exist and has vowed to
do whatever is necessary to destroy it, has provoked this current
crisis. Since Israel withdrew its forces from Southern Lebanon
in 2000, Hizbullah has built up a stockpile of thousands of
rockets, has continued sporadic attacks on Israel, and, recently,
kidnapped two Israeli soldiers. Regardless of any excuses they
might make, regardless of any real or imagined injustices they
feel called to correct, attacks on innocent Israeli civilians is
intolerable. Hizbullah is to be condemned in no uncertain terms
and it has been, even by Arab neighbors.
But then Israel struck back. Hard. Harder than necessary,
some feel. The world watched as the bodies of all those children
were pulled from the rubble following the bombing of Qana, the
same "Cana" where, according to tradition, Jesus performed his
first miracle, the changing of water into wine.(1) The world has
seen the destruction of Lebanon's infrastructure, which took 15
years to rebuild after the devastating civil war. Israel has
gone after Hizbullah, but is destroying Lebanon in the process
and, lest we forget, Lebanon's fledgling democracy. There should
be no double standards when it comes to how we label "terrorist"
acts. When any nation state carries out military policies which
it knows will kill many civilians, and deliberately targets
civilian infrastructures, the label applies.
Last week, Ze'ev Maoz, an Israeli professor, wrote in the
Israeli newspaper Ha'aretz, "This war is not a just war. Israel
is using excessive force without distinguishing between civilian
population and enemy ..." Another Ha'aretz columnist, Gideon
Levy, wrote, "This war must be stopped now and immediately. From
the start it was unnecessary, even if its excuse was justified,
and now is the time to end it. Every day raises its price for no
reason, taking a toll in blood that gives Israel nothing tangible
in return."
Sadly, our own government has provided no real leadership
thus far, being unwilling to embrace the international call for a
ceasefire. It has rather been Israel's major supporter and has
expedited the shipment of additional weapons. What little
influence we had with Israel's neighbors before has been depleted
further by their now being convinced that American foreign policy
for the Middle East is being written in Tel Aviv.
For Christians there are some deeper issues. American
Christians seem to have forgotten that there are Christians and
churches in the Middle East. Lebanon, for example, has had, for
much of its history, a sizable number of Christians - currently
about 1.5 million, or 40% of the population - which means there
are fellow Christians potentially affected as casualties and
refugees by these Israeli military attacks that our government is
supporting.
One of my associates when I was pastor of First Presbyterian
Church in Ft. Myers, FL had on his office wall a poster from the
Mennonites that said "A Modest Proposal for Peace: Let the
Christians of the world agree that they will not kill each
other." Well, you have to begin somewhere, and agreeing not to
kill other Christians is a radical enough idea for us. In the
present atmosphere, it is almost inconceivable that we should be
a nation who would not kill Muslims so, if we could just decide
that America should never support the killing of Christians,
that, in the words of Martha Stewart, would be a good thing.
"Pray for the peace of Jerusalem," says the psalmist. The
Hebrew pilgrims have arrived in the Holy City and are thrilled at
what they see. But they know that Jerusalem has seen its share
of violence and bloodshed - throughout history, more wars have
been fought at the gates of Jerusalem than anywhere else in the
world. Ironic when you consider the name Jerusalem means
"possession" or "foundation of peace."
Riad Kassis is executive director and chaplain at the J. L.
Schneller School in West Bekaa, Lebanon. He is also a lecturer
in Old Testament Studies at the Near East School of Theology in
Beirut and formerly at the Arab Baptist Theological Seminary
there. On Christianity Today's web site this week he wrote,
Children normally pray brief and sweet prayers before
they go to bed. Friday evening, my seven-year-old
daughter, a Lebanese, and her four-year-old cousin, an
American, stood side by side, stretched up their hands,
and prayed. It was neither a prayer to keep them safe
during the night nor was it a prayer to bless Dad and
Mom. It was not even addressed to God or Jesus, as
prayers usually are. It was a spontaneous prayer that
came from pure hearts, mingled with politics and the
current tragic events. "Condoleezza Rice," they said.
"We are in trouble in Lebanon. Please save us!" They
repeated this prayer several times. When my daughter
was told that prayers should be directed toward Jesus
or God, she answered: "But Condoleezza is able to stop
the war on us, is she not?"
Ms. Rice, would you hear and answer this prayer? It is
not a prayer of just two children. It is a prayer of
thousands of children who are displaced in Lebanon and
thousands of children who are in shelters in Israel.
It is a prayer of children who are physically and
psychologically injured. It is a prayer that comes out
of the rubble of southern Lebanon and Haifa.
I beg you not to respond by saying that circumstances
are not right for a cease-fire or that it is not
politically appropriate to do so. There is and will
never be an acceptable excuse for the killing of
civilians.(2)
Pray for the peace of Jerusalem. Pray for the peace of the
entire Middle East, if not for the sake of the poor folks caught
in the midst of the ongoing conflicts, then for ourselves. If
these tensions are not resolved, the likelihood of them spilling
over and involving the whole world is becoming greater by the
day.
August 6. An auspicious anniversary, and with the state of
the world currently, it is with a real sense of urgency that we
pray for peace.
Amen!
1. John 2:1-11
2. http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2006/131/32.0.html
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