A serviceman home from the sandbox decided to greet his kids in a highly original way.
I'm very glad he came home safely to them. Please pray for those who don't come home . . . and for the families they leave behind.
Also, if you can find it in your heart to do so, pray for the families of those who die on the other side. They may have been our enemies, but their spouses and children feel their loss as deeply as do our own. As John Donne pointed out in Meditation XVII:
No man is an island, entire of itself; every man is a piece of the continent, a part of the main. If a clod be washed away by the sea, Europe is the less, as well as if a promontory were, as well as if a manor of thy friend's or of thine own were: any man's death diminishes me, because I am involved in mankind, and therefore never send to know for whom the bells tolls; it tolls for thee.
Peter
18 comments:
Sorry, I guess I'm just not a big enough man to pray for those who behead their enemies, stone women to death, use women and children as human bombs or carry out "honor killings" of women. Or pray for those who support them. Sorry. Can't do it.
Peter,
If this was an actual war such as WWI or WWII I could share your sentiments regarding respect and honour for the other side.
I actually just had this same discussion yesterday, and I'd like to share the words of one of the participants because he says it far more politely than I could.
"I thought it was clearly established long ago that the Taliban don't have wives and children.
They have property. Lawyers would call it "chattel".
Except that "property" generally denotes something of value to the owner. I generally would not consider something I'd use as cover to be of any lasting value.
A thousand Taliban dead gets no sympathy from me."
This is why I cannot hold any respect for the Taliban/Al Qaeda fighters or their families.
Perhaps this in some way makes me lesser of a person, but I seriously doubt that anything would change my mind where these particular antagonists are involved.
@W.R. and Lance: I can only quote, in response, a greater man than any of us.
"Do unto others as you would have them do unto you."
He didn't say to 'do unto only those others whom you respect' - he placed no limits on his instruction. Therefore, we should 'do unto all others'. That includes our enemies, no matter how barbaric or fiendish we may find them.
In the absence of a better way, I choose to follow the Master on this one.
I understand the request, but have a hard time. I realize this would hold true of Germany/WWII, Japan/Pearl Harbor, Korea, Vietnam, Serbia, the Middle East attacks on us, etc. I still have a hard time. And, we are shelling out billions of dollars as goodwill gestures so they do not attack us, which is ironic.
But, yes, I understand your request. You have a good heart. Thanks for trying.
Indeed, it is a bitter pill to swallow that Jesus had given us. It's easy to pray for those whom we admire, love and care for. It's easy to give to those who can give back to you. But what is the reward in that?
But to pray for our enemies (that they see the light, that they turn away from sin, that they repent their sins, that their families are comforted by a God that loves all of us despite our sins) is difficult, at best.
If it was easy, Jesus never would have had to come show us the way, or save us from our sins.
Thanks for the reminder, Peter.
I tell 'ya, if that doesn't bring a tear to your eye...well.
The son of a cousin will be leaving for the Sand Box at the end of the month. He's ANG from Washington state but is at Ft. Leonard Wood for training on (?). He'll be in Afganistan for at least six months then elsewhere in the Mid-East. Suffice to say he's spending every weekend with his parents and wife/kids here near KC.
His mother has already started a countdown clock.
Tears in the eye on that one, and it IS awfully hard to forgive those who kill our men and women... Especially since they are claiming Mohammed allows them to do it for the good of their religion.
Teared up, too. Great video. Really warms the heart. Thanks for posting it.
So, please 'splain to me how exactly is it okay to respect/pray for/etc. the enemies that led the Jews to the camps, but not for our enemies in the Sandbox?
Anyone?
tweaker
The response to Jesus was to nail him to a cross. I don't intend for that kind of thing to happen to my kids. You pray for 'em. I'll defend my loved ones.
Dusty in here. Yeah that's the ticket...
Darn dust out here as well; must be the drought.
A preacher I respect once pointed out that we have a duty to love people but we don't have to like them. So I pray for the conversion of those who will listen to the voice of G-d, G-d's justice for those who won't, mercy for those trapped by ignorance, and the safety of all who defend civilization. My head does at least - some days my heart is not so willing.
LittleRed1
"...You pray for 'em. I'll defend my loved ones."
@Anon
No where on this blog has someone suggested that the two are separate, or that they must be separated.
Even Jesus recognized that there was a time for defending one's self when he told the disciples,
"But now if you have a purse, take it, and also a bag; and if you don't have a sword, sell your cloak and buy one." He knew that they would face enemies and a hostile world, and that it would be prudent to be armed and ready for such.
That isn't a contrary position to "love one another" or praying for those who persecute you.
Praying for your enemies doesn't mean that you wish them success.
You could pray simply that they see the error of their ways and cease seeking to harm others. You would have prayed for them, and your prayer would be perfectly in-line with your intention to defend yourself from them.
I guess this is why I'm happy that I am not Christian. If I was I would have to blindly follow tenets that I do not concur with.
Don't get me wrong, I am not trying to slam Christianity (or any other religion) here, I just don't grok why anyone should follow anyone else's word just because they said it, and I firmly believe in situational ethics.
"So, please 'splain to me how exactly is it okay to respect/pray for/etc. the enemies that led the Jews to the camps, but not for our enemies in the Sandbox?"
I never said anything about respecting anyone that led the Jews to the camps if you were questioning me there. When I said "actual war" I was alluding to a war based on politics where the common front line soldiers of either side were just doing what they were told to do as opposed to the Taliban who are allegedly following their own "religious guidance" and want to kill western troops mainly for the reason that the western troops "do not believe" in a way acceptable to the Taliban. You may not agree and equate all "enemies" the same, and that is your right to do so. I however can and do separate "enemies" based on *why* exactly they are "enemies" to begin with.
"If I was I would have to blindly follow tenets that I do not concur with."
Do you presume that all who follow Christ do so blindly, or that they do not concur with said Christian beliefs?
Or is it just that you would not/do not concur with certain tenets, and in order to 'belong' to Christianity, you would have to follow along blindly?
Please understand I am not trying to slam your position, just trying to clarify it.
I will admit that I have never read the bible, and I am basing my opinion solely on 40 years of personal observation.
With that said, it appears to me that the vast majority of Christians follow their religion pretty blindly. I don't mean to say they can't think for themselves, but I am constantly hearing "God said do this, so I do". That is of course really simplifying the argument, but I hope you get my gist.
Just to use Peter's example above, I see no reason to treat others that have no urge to return the favour as we would wish to be treated. Peter says, basically, he would act that way because "the Master" said so. In no way am I trying to disparage Peter, but to me that is not thinking for one's self and blindly following the word of another. Maybe blindly isn't the correct word, but it portrays my opinion well.
To further clarify, I believe that any person who follows *any* religion is living their life by blindly following the word of another.
So to answer your question, it's a bit of both. I believe any follower of any religion (Christianity just happened to be the example used since it had already been brought up) does blindly follow their chosen religion, and I myself choose to not align with any specific religion because I choose to not wear blinders.
Peter,
Sweet as the homecoming is, I've seen dad-in-a-box before. How about dad-as-surprise-baseball-catcher? :D
http://www.wapt.com/r/28784536/detail.html
Or dad-as-surprise-in-the-outfield?
http://thestir.cafemom.com/sports/124323/homecoming_soldier_gives_family_surprise
:D
-Scott
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CWRag1QKwTA
Always makes me cry. Every single time. I mean, dusty in here. That's what I meant.
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