"We interrupt this program to give you breaking news"
Then, I turn on my PC and get on FB only to find a huge mix of emotions and thoughts concerning his death. People seemed to be divided into two categories about Osama.
Category #1: "The Justice Seekers"
This group consists of people who felt a huge relief that the mastermind behind 911 had been finally killed. To this group, justice was served and the thousands that fell on that terrible day had finally been vindicated. Families, firemen, police...and the entire country that watched in horror as planes filled with crazed pilots flew into them could not be more thrilled with the news of Osama Bin Laden's death.
This group is filled with people who's hearts break that another person had to face the ugliness of death. They have questions like: "How does killing another person bring about real justice?" "What did this accomplish in the long run..other than just more violence and killing?" Mercy and Love are the highest of values and killing only reinforces behavior like what Osama put us through on 911. His death will only make certain that more death will happen...
-How do you and I respond?
-How is the military and President supposed to respond?
-Can a government really govern without the use of force?
-Can love and mercy really be expressed? Even to people that threaten our Nation?
Below, I will give, what I believe to be a Biblical response to how a person should respond to Osama Bin Laden's death.
First, as a Christian, my ethical system is based on the Scripture. The nature of God is revealed to us through it, therefore, I can appeal to it as my foundation.
In this case, first I have to ask myself what did the perpetrator actually do.
Answer: Osama Bin Laden was responsible for the murder of thousands of men and women on September 11th.
This being the case, there has to be accountability.
Here is where I differ from my friends in category number 2 (the love givers).
For instance,
If a murderer was brought into a court room, was tried for his crime and also admits to the crime. Could you imagine if the judge does anything but prosecute him to the most extreme point of the law? A judge that ignores murder would be doing the opposite of anything loving.
- In fact. that judge would be wicked-
On to my second point.
I have seen an influx of Bible quotations floating around lately and they all have something in common. They are verses about "turning cheeks" "loving your enemies" and so on. My first comment to this contrived use of the Bible is... do your homework. An overview of the entire Bible is called for in this case, not just a select part of the Bible, say like the red letters. On this point, i'll clear my throat a second and let everyone know that Jesus in no way came preaching a different message than what was contained in the O.T. Same God. Same love, mercy, & justice.
Moving along, if you dive deep into the Bible, you will see that the role of the government is to be a blessing for those who follow the rules and a terror for those that do not. I would go out on a limb and say that Osama Bin Laden was not a guy that followed the rules of life...generally speaking, when your profession is dedicated to killing people your not on the right side of the Law. Therefore, the role of our President is to prevent killing...remember, that is the loving thing to do. So when bad guys want nothing more to do than kill Americans, I say, "Do the loving thing Mr. President and prevent that from happening."
-Alexander Hill says it best when he states, "Doormat love eventually ruins all involved."
So my friends, the answers we come to are not always easy.
That is why we must understand that in between the loving thing to do and the just thing to do sits the Seat of WISDOM.
One last thing...
Let me make a comment about the great country that you and I live in.
Osama Bin Laden was given a proper Muslim burial.
I want you to think about that for a second. Our great enemy. The man who caused such horrific bloodshed and hurt was given a proper burial.
Never in the history of the world has a country treated someone like Osama with such respect. Now I ask you a question...would the same treatment be given to our soldiers? I think not.
All of this only goes to speak toward America's greatness.
We are the light on a shining hill.
And it was on full display for the world with how we treated Bin Laden during his burial.
Sometimes people call me an idealist. Well, that is the way I know I am an American. America is the only idealistic nation in the world.
~Woodrow Wilson
4 comments:
Very well put Anthony. This was a refreshing read on the subject.
On facebook, I'm hearing a lot of hate towards the President in regards to the choice to bury at sea. Mostly because now there is no proof of his death, but also because the people who died on 9/11 didn't have the option to be buried according to their religious beliefs. Do you have a biblical point of view on that subject?
I am SO glad to read a biblical take on this situation. I've been so torn on how I feel about the death of Bin Laden. Your post really put things in perspective for me! Thanks!!!
Courtney, good point. That is what I was writing about at the end of my post. Any other country where another person did what Osama did here would never ever be treated w. the dignity that he did. That is what makes this country great.
i do tend to be more of a red letter follower than an old testament follower, not that there isnt some wisdom in the old testament. it is hard to misinterpret return good for evil. eye for an eye seems to be violence repaid w/ violence. lets pause for a minute and ask how much we know about the guilty party, who was truly involved and what knowledge was known by whom prior to the attacks. truth is we know only what we hv been spoon fed by our media and our government. i put my faith in god, but not the deceptions spewed by news and govt. tradgedy and loss, which originally was met with compassion and heartache, was refocused into anger, hatred, and vengence, not the fruits of the spirit. vengence is mine sayith the lord. truth is our country was shown many weaknesses that were exploited. pilots taught without good enough background checks, airline security which was weak, suspicious behavior not investigated-pilots not learning to land, cockpits not secure. we dropped the ball in our own country. in the beginning it was said that it wld be to expensive to reinforce all cockpits of the airlines. well, what has this war cost us? and still unsecure cockpits. we shldve band together and focused on building a stronger country where we were weak, not retaliating in like. we had an opportunity to be a bright shining example to show our true strength, instead we shown our weakness in spirit and faith. bottom line the course of action our country took was wrong-we dropped the ball. many more lives have been lost since 9-11, and we cannot simply abandon those in the middle east that sided w our country. the US achieved its objective-a foot hold in the middle east, the people of the US were pawns whos emotions were easily coralled and manipulated. we must have our eyes opened, not believe everything we r told, and yes this country has good atributes, but also is in great need of direction and an overhall. let the churches take their rightful place, and be an inspiration to the people to not give in to hatred. to replace loss with faith not vengence. lets not tear down other nations or PEOPLE but increase the strength of our own.
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