“Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works? And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity. Therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock. And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell not: for it was founded upon a rock.” Matt 7:22-25
Two thousand years ago Jesus predicted that there would be people who would claim to be acting in His name, but in fact had no idea what He was talking about.
The litmus test of fidelity and understanding is the works. If you hear AND do, then you have built your house on a rock.
What brings this thought to mind is the curious reaction around the world to Prime Minister Ahmadinejad’s visit to the United States. Here in the US we viewed him as a blustering clown. He was nearly hooted off the stage when he claimed that there are no homosexuals in Iran. He questioned the holocaust. He defended his country’s right to develop nuclear weapons.
In the Muslim world, however, he was viewed as hero. He stood up to the West in general and the United States in particular. The harsh treatment he received at the hands of Columbia President Lee Bollinger upset Muslim sensibilities regarding the treatment of guests and only confirmed that we are a boorish and uncultured people.
I suspect that there is a similar dichotomy regarding our own President. There are many in this country who feel that he has done an excellent job in protecting us and promoting our interests abroad. The Muslim world views him, though, in much the same way that we view Ahmadinejad – a dangerous fool.
So which house is built on the rock?
At the moment, I would say neither.
Ahmadinejad’s claims regarding the holocaust have root in the Arab rejection of Israel as a state. Israel was created after WWII by the Allies in reaction to the holocaust. The problem was that this state was created at the expense of the Palestinians. Questioning the holocaust is code for supporting the Palestinians and questioning the legitimacy of the Israeli state. Arabs understand this. American’s don’t.
Ahmadinejad’s claim that there are no homosexuals in Iran is based on his view that Iran is a devout Muslim nation and that Islam prohibits homosexuality. How different is that from Mr. Bush’s view that the US is a Christian nation and that the Bible prohibits homosexuality? Mr. Bush doesn’t claim that there aren’t homosexuals in this country, he just wants to label them as sinners so he can justify restricting their rights to marry, adopt, or serve in the military.
We think that Ahmadinejad is fanatical because he claims Iran has the right to develop a nuclear bomb. What we don’t say is that we have already helped Israel develop a nuclear weapon. Clearly we felt threatened enough when Russia put missiles capable of carrying nuclear weapons in Cuba to go the brink of nuclear war with Russia. Why is Iran’s reaction to Israel so hard to understand? Also Iran is looking at the US, who claimed that Iran was part of an axis of evil, building what appear to be permanent military bases on its borders.
We don’t trust that Iran will use it’s nuclear power responsibly, and there is no indication that they will. However, the US is the only country who has actually used nuclear weapons. That’s what the Arab world sees.
Bush holds up violated UN resolutions as legal foundation for invading Iraq. Arabs look at all of the UN resolutions condemning Israel which the US has unilaterally blocked and questions our integrity.
Bush talks about democracy, freedom, and the rule of law. Arabs look at Abu Ghraib and see only the eleven who appeared in the photos being convicted with sentences ranging from community service to 10 years in jail.
Arabs also look at the massacre at Haditha where 24 Iraqi civilians were killed including children shot in the head. They hear of our outrage and shock, but they see charges being dropped against all but one of the marines involved. In this case also charges are starting to be dropped against the officers supposed to be responsible for these men.
I submit that both our country and Iraq have leaders who have lost their way. The difference is that we have an opportunity to change that direction by selecting a new leader and rejecting the policies of the old. We have an opportunity to demonstrate that we expect our leaders to be accountable for their actions. We have also an opportunity to insist that our leaders are doers of the word, not just speakers.
I would also go further and assert that as long as we are in Iraq we will not be able to claim any high moral ground in discussions with any other country whether they are in the Middle East, Indonesia, or Africa.
The consequences of inaction for us and Iraq are clear.
“And every one that heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them not, shall be likened unto a foolish man, which built his house upon the sand: And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell: and great was the fall of it.” Matt 7: 26-27
This entry was posted
on Saturday, September 29th, 2007 at 10:35 pm and is filed under Bias, Politics, Religious Conservatism.
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