Path: utzoo!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!cs.utexas.edu!bcm!dimacs.rutgers.edu!aramis.rutgers.edu!athos.rutgers.edu!christian From: bobby@retix.retix.com (Bobby Martyna) Newsgroups: soc.religion.christian Subject: Re: Christianity and war Message-ID: Date: 7 Mar 91 08:17:15 GMT Sender: hedrick@athos.rutgers.edu Lines: 43 Approved: christian@aramis.rutgers.edu (please post this. i am mailing it because our posting software stinks. also, off the air, i would like to say how much i enjoy and appreciate this newsgroup and your editorial comments. thanks. your last message also indicated that you didn't want a discussion over the wisdom of the recent war. this posting holds a more general view). only in a perfect world will there be no war. as a christian supporter of the war to liberate kuwait, i find war in this case, a necessary, though horrible consequence of a world filled with evil intents and desires. christians, and others, who take the stance that all war is wrong have simply not thought this issue through. keep in mind that if we follow jesus' words to the letter, not only would there be no military and no war, but also no police forces or security guards. all good christians and pacifists should leave their doors wide open to invite the unfortunate, whether they be the hungry and destitute or path- ological murderers. upon seeing a neighbor being beaten to death, he should offer the killer his coat, if not a blunt object, and advise the victim to turn the other cheek. instead, each christian makes a personal decision regarding the consequences of his actions. the decision about whether to confront and destroy a given evil is one which we find very easy in the personal cases which threaten us directly. similar circumstances, emotions and judgments apply in the global community. in either situation, less than a wholehearted stand risks blurring the distinctions between good and evil, reducing us to moral relativists. until the second coming, i believe that, even in our own imperfection, we must try to build a world free of poverty and hatred. we should also seek freedom of all peoples from the sadistic evil of such tyrrants as saddam hussein. sometimes, war and violence are the only means. in the case of the neighbor-killer, would he stop (or laugh) if our response was to threaten sanctions against his family? our christianity need not mean we sit idly in the face of evil. instead, let us rejoice and give thanks for this victory and peace. let us pray for the brave men who won it for us, for those who gave their lives, and for our former enemies. and let us hope and pray for divine guidance in our daily lives as well as in world affairs.