How can religious men participate in violence?
This entry is mostly a response to my sister's comments. I was going to reply to her in a private email but then I thought maybe what I will write will be interesting to someone else as well.
Pride and ego can and do corrupt mankind. They can make a person, or country, think that they are more deserving of life, happiness, property, etc than the "other". In turn, this causes the egotistical party to disregard the rights of the "other". And oppression ensues. Is peaceful resistance the correct reaction to oppression? In some situations, I see that it is beneficial and the best choice. Martin Luther King, Jr. and Ghandi not only needed to stand up for minority rights, but they also wanted to change public opinion. But as far as I recall, neither of those situations were dealing with smart bombs and missiles. A missile does not care if you sit quietly and protest. It doesn't have a conscience. Israel has said that they will not cease until Hezbollah is rooted out. Well, that's not really an option. That's like saying to the US, ok, well you have to give up your Independent Party, and then we'll stop attacking you. Israel has stated, in so many words, that it really doesn't matter what Lebanon does, they will keep attacking. So peaceful resistance doesn't seem to help the situation here. It would only lead to more civilian casualties, namely innocent Lebanese civilians. It's not going to slow down the slaughtering process. Suicide in any form is against God's Law. You must always take action to return justice to the world.
A country has the right to defend itself against outside attacks. A strong person must prevent oppression of those who can't defend themselves. That is an obligation God put on us. The able must help the disabled. Maybe no one else remembers, but the Prime Minister of Lebanon, even almost in tears, has pleaded several times for intervention, and everyone just stands by with their hands tied. The Lebanese do not want to be fighting this war.
It's been said by some "wise" man that Israel has the right to defend itself. Does Lebanon not have that right? Who is the one being attacked, anyway? Who is the one trying to defend themselves?
Recognizing and validating the right to life and peaceful existence is paramount to each individual, no matter where they live on the Earth. Every American needs to start to appreciate and respect every other human as his own relative and in turn treat them as equals. Global change starts on a local level. But... doing so would ultimately disrupt the consumeristic lifestyle of 95% of Americans and when people feel something in their wallet, they tend to feel it less in their heart. Their values waver as they weigh the personal consequences of their actions. Yah someone should feed all those Africans... but I really need that money to pay my car payment so it'll have to be someone else, sorry. American economy and society is built on breaking things and then offering a temporary solution so that money is spent and "earned" and that's what makes the world go round. Hey, start (or encourage or condone) a war and then sell weapons to both sides. Great way to get rich. It's been going on for centuries. There is corruption in the world and the higher you get up on the ladder, the harder it is to get back down.
Yes, each human on the Earth needs to humble himself and realize he is not innately any better than anyone else on the face of the Earth. Regardless of race, color, nationality, personal preferences, etc. If everyone did this and lived in a state of mutual respect, yes, we would acheive world peace. However, there is a force that whispers into men's ears and incites arrogance. That force will never cease, and humans will always be weak and some will always succomb to it. People will always be arrogant and always try to violate the rights of others, and that is why there will never be world peace. And because there will always be violaters, good people will always need to stand up for the oppressed, even if it means killing in defense.
Pride and ego can and do corrupt mankind. They can make a person, or country, think that they are more deserving of life, happiness, property, etc than the "other". In turn, this causes the egotistical party to disregard the rights of the "other". And oppression ensues. Is peaceful resistance the correct reaction to oppression? In some situations, I see that it is beneficial and the best choice. Martin Luther King, Jr. and Ghandi not only needed to stand up for minority rights, but they also wanted to change public opinion. But as far as I recall, neither of those situations were dealing with smart bombs and missiles. A missile does not care if you sit quietly and protest. It doesn't have a conscience. Israel has said that they will not cease until Hezbollah is rooted out. Well, that's not really an option. That's like saying to the US, ok, well you have to give up your Independent Party, and then we'll stop attacking you. Israel has stated, in so many words, that it really doesn't matter what Lebanon does, they will keep attacking. So peaceful resistance doesn't seem to help the situation here. It would only lead to more civilian casualties, namely innocent Lebanese civilians. It's not going to slow down the slaughtering process. Suicide in any form is against God's Law. You must always take action to return justice to the world.
A country has the right to defend itself against outside attacks. A strong person must prevent oppression of those who can't defend themselves. That is an obligation God put on us. The able must help the disabled. Maybe no one else remembers, but the Prime Minister of Lebanon, even almost in tears, has pleaded several times for intervention, and everyone just stands by with their hands tied. The Lebanese do not want to be fighting this war.
It's been said by some "wise" man that Israel has the right to defend itself. Does Lebanon not have that right? Who is the one being attacked, anyway? Who is the one trying to defend themselves?
Recognizing and validating the right to life and peaceful existence is paramount to each individual, no matter where they live on the Earth. Every American needs to start to appreciate and respect every other human as his own relative and in turn treat them as equals. Global change starts on a local level. But... doing so would ultimately disrupt the consumeristic lifestyle of 95% of Americans and when people feel something in their wallet, they tend to feel it less in their heart. Their values waver as they weigh the personal consequences of their actions. Yah someone should feed all those Africans... but I really need that money to pay my car payment so it'll have to be someone else, sorry. American economy and society is built on breaking things and then offering a temporary solution so that money is spent and "earned" and that's what makes the world go round. Hey, start (or encourage or condone) a war and then sell weapons to both sides. Great way to get rich. It's been going on for centuries. There is corruption in the world and the higher you get up on the ladder, the harder it is to get back down.
Yes, each human on the Earth needs to humble himself and realize he is not innately any better than anyone else on the face of the Earth. Regardless of race, color, nationality, personal preferences, etc. If everyone did this and lived in a state of mutual respect, yes, we would acheive world peace. However, there is a force that whispers into men's ears and incites arrogance. That force will never cease, and humans will always be weak and some will always succomb to it. People will always be arrogant and always try to violate the rights of others, and that is why there will never be world peace. And because there will always be violaters, good people will always need to stand up for the oppressed, even if it means killing in defense.
posted by Just Ruthie at 8:05 AM
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