Every now and again, radically conservative "Christians" do something to shoot Christ's Bride in the kneecap. In the eighties, it was the abortion clinic bombers. In the nineties, it was the abortion clinic bombers AND the ones who spoke against the liberal President's indiscretions. Today, it's the abortion clinic bombers, the ones who speak out against the liberal President in general, and Terry Jones.
This is not Terry Jones, beloved Python, childrens' author, and documentarian. Nor is it Terry Jones, the controversial and convicted Canadian politician. No, this Terry Jones is in Florida, and, if you've not read the news recently, plans to burn copies of the Qur'an at his church on September 11th.
Do I support Islam? As a Christian, I believe it to be a perversion of the relationship I have with God the Father through Jesus Christ and His Holy Spirit; while I cannot actively support it, I am not called to actively oppose it. I am called to love the sinner and show a better way, NOT to shock the general public with an amazingly crass display of narrow-minded thinking.
What does it prove, holding a Qur'an roast? It shows the flammability of paper, for one. It shows that you are radically and diametrically opposed to the words of the book, for another. Maybe it will remind you of other book burnings from the past: comic books in Binghamton, NY, in 1948; Jewish literature in the 1930's and 1940's; Communist literature in the 1950's; and the list goes on. Of course, in fairness, we have to add the Bible to the list of literature that has gone up in smoke - several times over, if one makes the count. Or perhaps it will bring to your memory "Fahrenheit 451" by Ray Bradbury.
Of course, scanning through other notable Christian book burnings of the past, we find the KJV exclusive congregants of the Amazing Grace Baptist Church of Canton, NC. Besides their exclusivity to the 1611 version (possible blog fodder), they held a book "burning" in 2009 which was put out by rain, protestors, and local law enforcement. They moved it inside and "burned" heretical works of Satan - including: books by TD Jakes, James Dobson, Joyce Meyer; Satan's music, including country (which i can somewhat get behind), CCM (which, again, I'm having a problem not getting behind), jazz (completely over the line), and "soft and easy" (direct from their website, cannot make this up).
When a church moves in such diametric opposition to the Kingdom of God, I fail to see how God can bless such actions. We are called to be inclusive, not exclusive; in the world, yet not of it. Love thy enemy, bless those who curse you, go two miles instead of the required one, give your shirt as well as the requested jacket: THESE are the methods in which one builds the Kingdom, for His glory and Honor.
I grieve over the people who believe that book burnings are a positive message to those who speak against them. I pray for the souls in the congregation of Dove World Outreach Center. While their leader's intent is pure, his actions are reprehensible; may God have mercy on Gainesville.
I'm not sure the leader's intentions are pure. Not convinced. Is he thinking this will drive Muslims to convert in droves? No, he's just fueling another kind of fire.
ReplyDeleteTheir website clearly states that they're burning Qur'ans "to raise awareness and warn. In a sense it is neither an act of love nor of hate...We are using this act to warn about the teaching and ideology of Islam, which we do hate as it is hateful. We do not hate any people, however. We love, as God loves, all the people in the world and we want them to come to a knowledge of the truth. To warn of danger and harm is a loving act. God is love and truth. If you know the truth it can set you free."
ReplyDeleteOf course, the problem there is that God becomes an "it" long about the last few sentences. This reduces their relationship and their faith down to an intellectual exercise, nullifying the power and personhood of Almighty God.
Im with Grace....Im not sure their intentions are pure. Since when did burning a peoples ideals, culture and way of daily life, bring those people to the God of the ones inflicting the burning?
ReplyDeleteIm just sayin.....
Your blogs are refreshing Ryan! Keep them coming!
~Nomes
In Acts, when the new converts burned their old scrolls, it wasn't a protest or a warning to those with whom they formerly associated; it was a heart-felt, Spirit birthed show of repentance, a baptism by putting to death (by fire) of their old ways of doing and thinking and such like. A couple places, I saw where the churches talked about in this post justified their burning "heretical" material by quoting Acts; like I said earlier, it's an intellectual exercise without a personal relationship, and it had no positive effect on the Kingdom of God. Well, except for maybe keeping it warm.
ReplyDeleteThank you for the encouragement, Nomes!