[Peace-discuss] Response to Bush's Christinanity

[Paul Mueth]

this from british website .. .
FYI


Evangelicals slam Bush for his 'theology of war' 
-12/10/04 
  A group of theologians have signed a statement
opposing President Bush's attempt to converge God,
church and nation and what they call his 'theology of
war.' 
  Glen Stassen, Fuller Theological Seminary's Louis B.
Smedes professor of Christian ethics, said Bush's
religious rhetoric confuses the cause of Christianity
with that of a nation at war. 
  For instance, in Bush's 2002 State of the Union
address the president labeled Iran, Iraq and North
Korea the 'axis of evil,' Stassen said. 
   "Calling the three nations the 'axis of evil' and
refusing to acknowledge any errors that he has made,
that sets up a dichotomy between righteous United
States and unrighteous 'axis of evil,' Stassen said.
"... It leads to a crusade in which Christians think
the Christian thing to do is support war-making
against an allegedly unrighteous enemy.' 
    The statement of beliefs, called "Confessing
Christ in a World of Violence,' criticizes Bush's use
of scripture in a speech on the first anniversary of
the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. Bush described the
hope offered by America by saying, "... the light
shines in the darkness. And the darkness will not
overcome it.' 
     These words, used in the Bible, apply only to
Jesus Christ and no political leader has the right to
"twist them into the service of war," the confession
says. 
     The statement's assertions include the claim that
Jesus Christ knows no national boundaries, that
Christians should have a strong presumption against
war and that Christians should exercise humility,
which would temper political disagreements. 
 About 20 professors have signed it, though it has not
made the full rounds at Fuller, Stassen said. 
 Stassen expects that almost all of the seminary's 80
full-time professors will sign it. Fuller is the
largest evangelical seminary in the country. 
 The current confession is not the first time Fuller
professors have publicly objected to Bush. About 40
faculty members signed a September 2002 letter
opposing Bush's statements about a unilateral
pre-emptive war in Iraq. Bush is now campaigning on
pre-emptive war and using Christian language in the
process, Stassen said. 
 The Fuller educators are part of a national movement
of theologians and ethicists who are signing the
document. They are being organized by Stassen, George
Hunsinger of Princeton Theological Seminary, Richard
B. Hays of Duke Divinity School, Richard Pierard of
Gordon College and Jim Wallis, editor of Sojourners
magazine. 
 The same five leaders endorsed a recent ad campaign
in the national media that proclai "God is Not a
Republican. Or a Democrat." 
 According to a recent study on religion and politics
from the University of Akron, 68 percent of Americans
want a president to have strong religious beliefs and
63 percent are comfortable when candidates discuss
their faith. 
 The full text of the letter and statement is as
follows: 

Dear Colleagues, 
 We're writing to you at what we believe is a time of
grave moral crisis in our nation. As we listen to the
rhetoric coming from the highest levels of the
American government, we hear more and more a "theology
of war" that sets the US on a messianic crusade, while
wrapping itself in a Christian identification. There
are times and places in human history when political
powers attempt to claim the loyalty of the church of
Jesus Christ. In those times, the church is called to
reaffirm its fundamental beliefs. We believe that 2004
in the United States is one of those times and places.
We have come to the conviction that as followers of
Jesus Christ, it is our responsibility to affirm a new
confession of Christ. 
 Over the last weeks, we have agreed to the attached
statement. We identify five points that we believe are
indispensable for followers of Jesus, and rejections
of the current teachings that nullify those points. We
believe we have made a critical and thoughtful
statement on the theology of war that endangers us,
and points to a better alternative. 

We invite you to join us in signing this statement. It
is our hope that a significant number of leading
theologians and ethicists will agree to publicly
affirm this confession with us. We would then use the
statement and signatories to attract media attention
to it. 

Please thoughtfully and prayerfully consider this
invitation, and if you can join us, please return the
form below to dshank at sojo.net. Sojourners has offered
to collect and coordinate this process. 

Thanks very much for your consideration. We invite you
to suggest the names of others you think might be
interested in this statement. If you have any
questions, please feel free to be in touch with any
one of us. 

Grace and Peace, 

Richard B. Hays, George Washington Ivey Professor of
New Testament 

Duke Divinity School 

George Hunsinger, Hazel Thompson McCord Professor of
Systematic Theology 

Princeton Theological Seminary 

Richard V. Pierard, Stephen Phillips Professor of
History 

Gordon College 

Glen Stassen, Lewis Smedes Professor of Christian
Ethics 

Fuller Theological Seminary 

Jim Wallis, Editor, Sojourners 

Confessing Christ in a World of Violence 


The Statement: 

Our world is wracked with violence and war. But Jesus
said: "Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be
called the children of God" (Matt. 5:9). Innocent
people, at home and abroad, are increasingly
threatened by terrorist attacks. But Jesus said: "Love
your enemies, pray for those who persecute you" (Matt.
5:44). These words, which have never been easy, seem
all the more difficult today. 

Nevertheless, a time comes when silence is betrayal.
How many churches have heard sermons on these texts
since the terrorist atrocities of September 11? Where
is the serious debate about what it means to confess
Christ in a world of violence? Does Christian
"realism" mean resigning ourselves to an endless
future of "pre-emptive wars"? Does it mean turning a
blind eye to torture and massive civilian casualties?
Does it mean acting out of fear and resentment rather
than intelligence and restraint? 

Faithfully confessing Christ is the church's task, and
never more so than when its confession is co-opted by
militarism and nationalism. 

* A "theology of war" is emanating from the highest
circles of American government. 

* The language of "righteous empire" is employed with
growing frequency. 

* The roles of God, church, and nation are confused by
talk of an American "mission" and "divine appointment"
to "rid the world of evil." 

The security issues before our nation allow no easy
solutions. No one has a monopoly on the truth. But a
policy that rejects the wisdom of international
consultation should not be baptized by religiosity.
The danger today is political idolatry exacerbated by
the politics of fear. 

In this time of crisis, we need a new confession of
Christ. 

1. Jesus Christ, as attested in Holy Scripture, knows
no national boundaries. Those who confess his name are
found throughout the earth. Our allegiance to Christ
takes priority over national identity. Whenever
Christianity compromises with empire, the gospel of
Christ is discredited. 

We reject the false teaching that any nation-state can
ever be described with the words, "the light shines in
the darkness and the darkness has not overcome it."
These words, used in scripture, apply only to Christ.
No political leader has the right to twist them in the
service of war. 

2. Christ commits Christians to a strong presumption
against war. The wanton destructiveness of modern
warfare strengthens this obligation. Standing in the
shadow of the Cross, Christians have a responsibility
to count the cost, speak out for the victims, and
explore every alternative before a nation goes to war.
We are committed to international cooperation rather
than unilateral policies. 

We reject the false teaching that a war on terrorism
takes precedence over ethical and legal norms. Some
things ought never be done -- torture, the deliberate
bombing of civilians, the use of indiscriminate
weapons of mass destruction -- regardless of the
consequences. 

3. Christ commands us to see not only the splinter in
our adversary's eye, but also the beam in our own.
Alexander Solzhenitsyn observed that the distinction
between good and evil does not run between one nation
and another, or one group and another. It runs
straight through every human heart. 

We reject the false teaching that America is a
"Christian nation," representing only virtue, while
its adversaries are nothing but vicious. We reject the
belief that America has nothing to repent of, even as
we reject that it represents most of the world's evil.
All have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God
(Rom. 3:23). 

4. Christ shows us that enemy-love is the heart of the
gospel. While we were yet enemies, Christ died for us
(Rom. 5:8, 10). We are to show love to our enemies
even as we believe God in Christ has shown love to us
and the whole world. Enemy-love does not mean
capitulating to hostile agendas or domination. It does
mean refusing to demonize any human being created in
God's image. 

We reject the false teaching that any human being can
be defined as outside the law's protection. We reject
the demonization of perceived enemies, which only
paves the way to abuse; and we reject the mistreatment
of prisoners, regardless of supposed benefits to their
captors. 

5. Christ teaches us that humility is the virtue
befitting forgiven sinners. It tempers all political
disagreements, and it allows that our own political
perceptions, in a complex world, may be wrong. We
reject the false teaching that those who are not for
our nation politically are against it or that those
who fundamentally question American policies must be
with the "evil-doers." Such crude distinctions,
especially when used by Christians, are expressions of
the Manichaean heresy, in which the world is divided
into forces of absolute good and absolute evil. 

The Lord Jesus Christ is either authoritative for
Christians, or he is not. His Lordship cannot be set
aside by any earthly power. His words may not be
distorted for propagandistic purposes. No nation-state
may usurp the place of God. 

We believe that acknowledging these truths is
indispensable for followers of Christ. We urge them to
remember these principles in making their decisions as
citizens. Peacemaking is central to our vocation in a
troubled world where Christ is Lord.