My computer was in my lap as I awaited the important announcement from President Obama on Sunday night. Before the president even spoke, news broke that Osama Bin Laden had been killed in a military operation. Given the startling magnitude of the news, I wanted to follow peoples' reaction in the world of Facebook and Twitter. What transpired was like nothing I had ever witnessed in social media. It began with people simply posting the breaking news. Then statements of celebration followed. However, not too much longer came the posts chiding those who were celebrating for failing to love their enemy. Then full fledged debate and the throwing of scriptural hand grenades were underway!
How Christians should respond to such momentous news that involves the death of another human being is a complex matter. I hope here to articulate a Christian response, but am not claiming to have the Christian response. The fact is that there a lot of tensions in Scripture, and the death of Osama Bin Laden seems to fall right into the middle of such a tension. On the one hand, the Bible clearly contains dozens of passages that call on God for the downfall of the violent and those who oppress others. On the other hand, other passages declare that God himself does not delight in the downfall of the wicked and Jesus called on his followers to love their enemies, exemplified most powerfully in Jesus forgiving his executioners from the cross. For example, compare Ps. 58:10 and Ezek. 33:11. These were just two of the passages being used for the scriptural hand grenades I mentioned above!
Those who were adamantly against the celebrations that broke out on television and the celebratory comments made by their fellow Christians on Facebook look to Jesus as the ultimate example of how to respond to our enemies. So, even if dozens of Psalms and other Old Testament passages seem to give the okay to celebrate the demise of the wicked, such passages are trumped by Jesus and the cross. While I agree that we interpret Scripture with the cross at the center, I am not fond of any interpretative method that simply dismisses the value of large portions of Scripture outright. Besides, even the martyred saints of Revelation--living in a post-cross reality--are portrayed as calling for the vengeance of God upon their enemies, “"How long, Sovereign Lord, holy and true, until you judge the inhabitants of the earth and avenge our blood?" (Rev. 6:10).
Once I was in a jury pool and was asked by the D.A. if I cared about the defendant who was accused of murder. As a Christian, even if he had been found guilty, I would still care about him as a human being made in the image of God and would hope for his eventual redemption. This I suspect is how Jesus would have us love our enemies like Osama Bin Laden. We don't hope for their destruction, but for repentance and knowledge of the truth. My answer to the D.A. got me dismissed almost immediately, because she assumed that my concern for the defendant was primary. She never considered my concern and love for the victim and his family as well and therefore my value for justice.
In the case of Osama Bin Laden, we cannot lose sight that while his destruction is tragic because of how sin had so badly warped him, his killing also brings justice and closure to the suffering of thousands. A Christian response will both mourn the tragic consequences of sin that made such a killing necessary, but also rejoice at the arrival of long awaited justice for thousands around the world.
P.S. Some have objected to the use of the word 'justice' in connection with the killing of Bin Laden. Their problem is with viewing America as the purveyor of justice when we (speaking as an American) have our own evils to answer for. But I am not claiming America has the moral high ground nor that America is the ultimate bearer of justice. I would have the same feelings about the matter, if Pakistan had killed Bin Laden. The country who actually brought justice to Bin Laden is immaterial to the point of this post. Justice belongs to God and one thing the Old Testament Scriptures make clear is that God can bring justice through many means, including through nations that may be even more evil than the one he is punishing. The book of Habakkuk especially explores this issue. In any case, there is no hesitation on my part at speaking of the demise of Osama Bin Laden as the justice of God, and therefore he gets the glory. His simple death may not convince all that justice has been served, but we leave matters of justice in the afterlife to God as well.
10 comments:
I am glad you posted this, David. In my mind, the Old Testament reflects the natural human emotions than run through us all. We can compare one verse against another and still arrive at different conclusions (Psalm 58:10 not said 'from God', while Ezekiel 33:10 is). There are many actions and statements by faithful men of God in the OT that did not necessarily reflect the model God wants for his people.
While I have said many times that God does not hate the sinner, just the sin, I am aware that God has directly said He hates someone (Jeremiah 12:8). I also have the examples of the Psalmist hating people (Ps. 119:113; 139:21). I do not change my statements because I am judging things through what God stated in John 3:16; Romans 5:6-8. God gave the law that included stoning and other big consequences for sin. Yet, Jesus expected people to understand that God was teaching us to love our neighbors as ourselves (Romans 13:8-10; Matthew 22:39-40). So, I do not justify hate in my heart when it surfaces because I find godly men in scripture expressing the same thing. Though godly, not everything expressed reflected the heart of God.
I value the Old Testament as the foundation of our story in Christ. Now, in revelation 6:10, what vengeance are they seeking? are they seeing retributive or redemptive justice? I believe God took retributive justice (eye for an eye justice) out of the way at the cross. Otherwise, he could not be considered 'just' in the classical sense as we understand it. Because they were under the altar does not mean they had complete understanding of how God was working all of this out either. This image, as I understand it, it giving hope to the readers that God has not forgotten them nor is he oblivious to their suffering. But, is it God's plan to do the eye for an eye thing? I wonder if their plea is similar to the groaning of all the creation in Romans 8:19-22? Jesus said there will be a renewal of all things (Matthew 19:28).
Is it God's plan to wipe out or restore? No matter our answer to that question, God does want our hearts and minds shaped like his (Romans 12:1-2). God wants us to imitate Him as dear children (Ephesians 5:1-2). What is the heart of God? Is he seeking eye for an eye, or redemption? when classical justice is achieved by the sword of government, i get the idea that God does not rejoice (Ezekiel 33:10). He also acts with the knowledge of future reconciliation.
Now, on the closure part in regards to Osama's death...Can we only have closure when an enemy is deleted? is it possible to be healed and made whole regardless if the enemy is brought to law? Philippians 4:6-7 reveals that God will guard our hearts and minds with a peace that passes all understanding. We get a sense of relief, closure, etc. when we see things end, or 'work out'. however, can God bring us peace without that? I know he does. He promises he does.
When Saul became Paul, he had a lot of blood on his hands. When Barnabas vouched for Paul before the saints in Jerusalem, were they able to have closure from so many lives lost without having Paul killed? I believe the saints were able to work side by side with the very man that led so many of their brethren to death? How could they do that? I believe they had closure, they had healing, from God...through the peace he gives. That does not mean I believe every Christian in the NT experienced that peace. it was a growing church. But, I believe this is evidence of Philippians 4:6-7 at work.
I do not believe Osama's death was necessary for emotional closure, at least in Christ. I believe another avenue is available besides an eye for an eye to have this peace.
The other night, I had (and still do) a big mix of emotions. But, I know that all our emotions and reactions are natural. However, I would like to contemplate another way of finding closure than eye for an eye. I would like for us to look at how God's heart looks at all this, and how does he respond to the death of the wicked. Can we study these and then grow in our hearts and minds towards this response instead of a response of celebration as was done by some (And, I did have people tell me and justify celebrating). I think there is another way of response, and God can mold us into that way.
I know I wrote a lot, but I wanted to flesh out my thoughts. But, it may look more like a jumbled mess. I apologize if it is.
Ask me what doesn't make sense in what i wrote, seek clarification, and i will be happy to respond.
God bless, David!
James, your responses are insightful and I am not sure I can adequately respond in the comments section. However, I may choose to clarify a few of my points in light of your comments. First, I wanted to ask if you are pacifist. I am not trying to label you, but trying to see if we are approaching the matter from very different angles. Some of your arguments echo pacifism (in my mind, at least) and I wanted to ask if I am hearing the echoes right or if I need to listen a little better!
I have thoughts that lean heavily towards pacifism. I want to have a perspective towards my enemies that I will turn the other cheek out of love. When I am hurt, or endangered, I want to respond in a way that spares all from harm. However, others were blessed through 'harm' in scripture. I do believe that 'safety' in the flesh has become the trump in the discussion of violence and retaliation.
It has been said, "Well, if someone is stupid enough to step foot in my house, then they deserve that bullet right between the eyes." While I can understand that feeling, it is not one I want to nurture in my thoughts and prayers. If I owned a gun, I still pray that if I was ever in a spot that I felt compelled to use it that I would not injure anyone to the point that they could not respond to Jesus. I do not try to entertain the idea of safety at the expense of others' lives.
Vengeance and justice is in God's hands. I believe He wants my focus on prayer and seeking ways to share his grace with others, especially my enemies.
James,
You make some really good points and they need to be heard at a time like this. I, too, believe we are to love our enemies as Jesus called us to do. I addressed what I felt loving our enemies meant in the case of folks like bin Laden in the original blog post. I believe it means praying and hoping for their repentance and their subsequent redemption.
In the case of bin Laden, that did not happen, and was always exceptionally unlikely to happen. What was much more likely to happen was continued killing. Therefore, I am thankful that the justice of God caught up to him and that his death means the opportunity at life for many others (at least, theoretically).
But that really has nothing to do with "lex talionis." We would have to kill bin Laden thousands of times to achieve that. That is the prerogative of divine justice.
A lot of people were simply celebrating a huge military victory and the end of a massive manhunt. When America looks over its collective shoulder Osama is no longer there. Others were celebrating with a "ha, ha, rot in hell" kind of spirit, which is certainly ungodly. I simply celebrate that he can longer take innocent life and I do believe that the vengeance and justice of God finally came to bin Laden, something that you conceded in your comments belongs to him and not us.
But if we have a real difference, it is primarily hermeneutical. I recognize that Jesus is the final word of revelation on everything, but the Old Testament was the authority of the confessing church in its early years. It has historically remained so along with the addition of the New Testament.
To simply reduce the imprecatory Psalms and other similar OT passages to hate-filled passages better left aside in light of the cross is a great hermeneutical fallacy. Those passages are still in our canon for a reason. They are still part of the language and worship of the confessing church. They call for God to move with justice on behalf of the oppressed and the victims of violence. And if you allow them to speak today, then they do provide a place for giving God the glory when wicked people and institutions meet the justice of God. If you take away their voice, then you take away the voice of those who cry out for God's deliverance from evil.
Finally, I will say that if your view is that justice--post-cross-- is only redemptive and never retributive, we will simply have to disagree. If that were true, then there would be no hell, because hell is certainly not redemptive justice. Romans 13 makes clear that God does give the role to the state for retributive justice on the earth. Ideally, justice would be redemptive, but there is a line that a person can cross in which even God (maybe especially God) says enough is enough, and this is demonstrated in both Old and New Testament passages (cf. 2. Thess. 2:11).
We hope and pray for the salvation of all people; we love our enemies, but our concern for others (not necessarily ourselves) also causes us to cry out for the justice of God in the light of violence and oppression proliferated in this world by violent human beings. Osama bin Laden fits that description as much as anyone.
Here's a blog from a professor theology that closely resembles my view on the situation. However, he deals with the doctrine of hell a lot more than I intend in this situation.
http://thegospelcoalition.org/blogs/tgc/2011/05/02/grieving-rejoicing-that-osama-bin-laden-is-dead/
David,
I took the time to read through your post at your request from the other night. I looked over the comments on my fb page, my interaction with others, and I admitted our feelings are a complex matter.
Your first post on this admitted it is a complex matter.
What I have wondered is does God lead and call us to a response much different than many of the expressions that have been witnessed and admitted? I believe that He does, and I scratched the surface on that on fb, here, and in response to others' requests.
My goal and efforts is to encourage faith working through love. I want to do what I can to remind myself and others the power of God available working by that faith that is wrapped up in loving God with all our being and loving our neighbor as ourselves. The discussions in which I have been involved involve how God may bring us to different responses when people are destroyed in response to their actions.
Now....
The Old Testament was the authority for many years. Do you mind explaining how it was used as an authority?
Jesus had the authority to have the adulterous woman stoned, but he did not. Jesus had the authority to chew out the woman that was unclean with the issue of blood for 12 years, but did not. Jesus was looking at a bigger picture.
The Psalms reveal deep sorrows and pain of our souls. It is natural and pleasing to God for us to be raw, and agonize over our deepest pain unto him. But, will we ever get stronger? Or, will our hearts change resulting in changed responses and feeling to difficult, complex situations down the road?
I did not reduce the imprecatory psalms to hate-filled passages.
I did not judge any brother as ungodly for celebrating the demise of Bin Laden.
I do critique the responses. I critique mine. I go to my Father in prayer about these matters. I seek how faith transforms and strengthens our souls in these matters. I do not want to spend my time justifying my natural responses, and find whatever verses are similar to mine just to feel comfortable where I am in my feelings.
Now, I at least brought up examples of how the OT verses contradict in their surface wording. I do not believe God is contradictory. So, if you want to explain how the church used the imprecatory psalms as an authority, I would like to know.
As far as Hell goes, I am not going to wade anymore into that. However, to conclude that if God's justice is only redemptive then there would be no Hell has been adequately challenged. Feel free to explore www.evangelicaluniversalist.com as well as Gregory MacDonald's (aka Robin Parry) The Evangelical Universalist.
I believe God will shape and mold us into different ways of responding to evil. He brings us from the image and ways of natural men to His man in Jesus. In that process, we are still wholly Christian, even if our spirits respond from fear and relief the way the world does.
P.S.
So, a 'Christian' response can be several of the responses you listed, including the 'may he rot in hell' attitude. But, does that we can't be challenged in our faith to responses that are quite different? Or, do we prefer to stay where we are at?
James,
I appreciate all of your thoughtful responses and clarifications.
I see the Psalms as giving expression to our many ups and downs in life while walking with God, so in that sense,I bet we don't differ a lot.
Sometimes I see people responding though as if they wish those Psalms (imprecatory)were not there. Just as some might pretend the passage in Ezek. is not there. They both have their place and one does not trump the other.
If we didn't have the imprecatory Psalms, then in our deep anguish we would respond with vindictiveness. They give both expression and focus to our darkest moments related to facing evil in our world. I just want to see that this role is maintained and that cross-centered hermeneutics don't lead to others claiming the moral/spiritual high ground while diminishing others who very much need those Psalms. That's all I am really saying.
I am aware of the limitations that poetic literature has in formulating doctrine, but I see such scripture as being from God as well, and so did Jesus.
I think your point about not using scripture to justify our natural reactions is very good.
Ultimately, I was trying to formulate a respectful, balanced, and biblical approach to the matter. I know it is not perfect or anything close. But I hope it shows signs of honest struggle, because I have struggled and prayed about this matter. It is a fascinating test case for many of the tensions of justice and love we find in Scripture.
Thanks for having an extensive conversation with me about this. I really appreciate you, James.
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