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President Barack Obama addressed the American people Tuesday night regarding the administration's policy on the alleged use of chemical weapons by the Syrian regime, said to have caused the death of approximately 1,400 Syrians, including 426 children. Others have alleged that it was rebel groups using poison gas, while still others believe that at least some of the video evidence was actually staged. Initiallyit was assumed that Obama would argue for a limited military action, but a late-breaking development on the diplomatic front seemed to pull him back from the brink of an intervention that a large majority of Americans oppose.
When Secretary of State John Kerry remarked Monday that a military strike might be averted if Syrian President Bashar al-Assad would turn over his stockpile of chemical weapons to international control so that they could be destroyed, Russia, Syria's closest ally, took up the suggestion as a possible face-saving political solution. Syria's Foreign Minister, Walid al-Muallem, indicated that his government is open to the proposal. United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon added pressure on Obama to consider alternatives to military action by his support of the peace initiative.
Syria began accumulating chemical weapons in the 1970s and '80s as a counterweight to Israel's military power. Some analysts estimate that Syria has in the neighborhood of 1,000 tons of such weapons, sometimes called "the poor man's nuclear weapon," hidden in 50 locations.
The policy of the U.S. government on the use of chemical weapons has not been consistent over the years. In the 1980s, for example, fearing that a strong Iran would be worse than a strong Iraq, the U.S. turned a blind eye toward Iraq's use of sarin gas that killed over 20,000 Iranian troops.
Many Christians in Syria are concerned that strikes against Assad will cause them to sufferloss and hardship similar to that experienced by Iraq's population of 1 million Christians, half of whom were forced to flee their country due to military action by Western forces and to internal strife. Father Raymond Moussalli of the Chaldean Church, a Syrian who serves Iraqi refugees in Amman, Jordan, says, "The Syrian Army is protecting the Christian community, but if [the Army] leaves, they will be massacred."
Religious leaders differ on how the world should respond to the use of chemical weapons in Syria. Ignatius Joseph III Younan, Patriarch of Antioch for the Syrian Catholic Church, stated: "We stress that we reject foreign interference in Syria." At a prayer vigil for peace in St. Peter's Square, Pope Francis warned the crowd of 100,000 about those who are "captivated by the idols of dominion and power." Rick Warren, pastor of the eighth-largest church in America, who visited Syria seven years ago, said a military strike against Syria would be like "dropping a lit match on a powder keg." While deploring war and the suffering it inevitably causes, Peter Morales, president of the Unitarian Universalist Association, acknowledged the dilemma that "inaction in the face of slaughter is not a moral option."
Finally, it should be noted that there is no guarantee nor indication that any of the rebel groups would necessarily be better than the Assad regime -- and some would arguably be much worse on the human rights front. A discussion of the various factions is, however, well beyond the scope of a one-hour lesson.
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The Big Questions
1. What standards should our nation use when evaluating whether the actions
of another country rise to a level so heinous as to justify a military
response? If two nations commit similar acts equally egregious, but we elect to
act against only one of the two, what possible reasons might our government
have for treating them differently? How does the concept of "the national
interest" bear upon military decisions and actions by the government, and
how is this different -- or is it? -- from personal decisions and actions? 2. What roles are appropriate for the United States to take in the internal affairs of another nation-state?
3. What, in your opinion, constitutes a crime against humanity? What level of proof of crimes against humanity should be required before a nation or nations intervene in another nation's internal affairs? What legal and moral authority is needed for such an intervention?
4. If our government takes military action against Syria, what would we be trying to accomplish, and how would we know when we had achieved our objective? What are we as a nation willing to devote in time, people and resources to achieve our purpose regarding Syria?
5. If it can be proven that the Syrian government was behind the chemical weapons attack, what is the best way to hold those responsible accountable? Whose task is it to bring leaders or nations to justice?
Confronting the News With Scripture and Hope
Here are some Bible verses to guide your discussion:
2 Samuel 12:7, 9-10
Nathan said to David, "You are the man!" ... Why have you despised the word of the LORD, to do what is evil in his sight? You have struck down Uriah the Hittite with the sword, and have taken his wife to be your wife, and have killed him with the sword of the Ammonites. Now therefore the sword shall never depart from your house, for you have despised me, and have taken the wife of Uriah the Hittite to be your wife. (For context, read 11:1-27 and 12:1-19.)
God sends his prophet Nathan to call David to admit his sin and account for his crime. He tells the king a story about a rich man who had no compassion on a poor man, and David judges the rich man before realizing that he is the guilty party in Nathan's parable.
Questions: Name David's essential sin. What was his ulterior motive for sending his own officer into battle? Did the fact that Uriah was killed in battle "by the sword of the Ammonites" make David any less culpable in his death? What did David hope "the fog of war" might do for him? Who pays -- or who all pay -- the price for David's crime?
Esther 8:11-12; 9:5, 10
By these letters the king allowed the Jews who were in every city to assemble and defend their lives, to destroy, to kill, and to annihilate any armed force of any people or province that might attack them, with their children and women, and to plunder their goods on a single day throughout all the provinces of King Ahasuerus ... So the Jews struck down all their enemies with the sword, slaughtering, and destroying them, and did as they pleased to those who hated them. ... but they did not touch the plunder. (For context, read Esther 8-9.)
In the book of Esther, the Jews who were in captivity faced the threat of annihilation from Haman, one of the king's top officials, and his cronies. Queen Esther, herself a Jew, tearfully begged her husband to allow the Jews to defend themselves. Her childhood guardian Mordecai was given authority to write letters in the king's name effectively dismantling the genocide Haman had planned. The Jews killed 500 enemies the first day and 300 the second day in the capital city of Susa, including the 10 sons of Haman, whose names are mentioned. Throughout the realm, the Jews killed 75,000 enemies in two days of battle sanctioned by the king, "and gained relief from their enemies" (9:16), but the writer repeatedly emphasizes that they did not take the spoils of war.
Questions: Does the threat of annihilation give anyone the right to retaliate or to act preemptively in a violent manner? What were the Jews empowered to do when their lives were threatened? How was their power limited, by whom, and for what reason(s)? What is the significance of the naming of all 10 of Haman's sons? Why is it significant that the Jews took no plunder?
Jeremiah 42:11, 13-14, 16
Do not be afraid of the king of Babylon, as you have been; do not be afraid of him, says the LORD, for I am with you, to save you and to rescue you from his hand. ... But if you continue to say, "We will not stay in this land," thus disobeying the voice of the LORD your God and saying, "No, we will go to the land of Egypt, where we shall not see war, or hear the sound of the trumpet, or be hungry for bread, and there we will stay," ... then the sword that you fear shall overtake you there, in the land of Egypt; and the famine that you dread shall follow close after you into Egypt; and there you shall die. (For context, read 42:1-22.)
Psalm 121:1-2
I lift up my eyes to the hills -- from where will my help come? My help comes from the LORD, who made heaven and earth. (For context, read 121:1-8.)
The Jews exiled in Babylon (modern-day Iraq) asked the prophet Jeremiah to seek out the will of God so that they would not be completely destroyed. After 10 days, Jeremiah warned them not to seek security in another superpower, but to look to the Lord for restoration and security. Syrian Christian leaders wrestling with whether to seek help from other powers emphasize the need for dialogue rather than military intervention on their behalf. (It is worth noting that the current Ba'athist regime is mainly secular and allows Christians almost as much freedom as it does Muslims, whereas most of the rebel factions are ideological Muslims.)
Questions: If you were a Syrian Christian, with reason to fear enemies within your borders as well as external threats, how would you read these messages? What do these passages say to American Christians?
Matthew 6:9, 10
[Jesus said,] "Pray then in this way: Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come. Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven." (For context, read 6:9-13.)
In this portion of what is known as the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus gives instructions about the kind of attitude we should have when we pray, as well as on how to pray for the things that are close to God's heart.
Questions: Who ushers in God's rule on earth? Does God need military might in order to establish that rule? What is the Christian's role in the establishment or affirmation of God's kingdom on earth?
John 18:36
Jesus answered [Pilate], "My kingdom is not from this world. If my kingdom were from this world, my followers would be fighting to keep me from being handed over to the Jews. But as it is, my kingdom is not from here." (For context, read 18:33-37.)
Psalm 145:13
Your kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and your dominion endures throughout all generations. (For context, read 145:1-13.)
A TWW team member commented: "It is time for the Church to examine to which kingdom their loyalties belong."
Questions: What is the difference between worldly kingdoms and the kingdom of God? Is the Christian Church the same as the kingdom of God? Is it ever possible for the Church to become just another "kingdom of this world" and a betrayal of the kingdom of God? How could that happen? What happens when the Gospel is paired with military force or political coercion?
For Further Discussion
1. Respond to this from an anonymous source who has lived in a predominantly Muslim society for decades: "Jesus never called anyone to military conquest in his name. We are, first and foremost, citizens of a different kingdom -- a kingdom that is 'not of this world.' Jesus' message is that no political party will bring in the kingdom of God. The U.S. military will not bring in the kingdom of God. God's kingdom in this age is not a physical place with geographic boundaries. Jesus said, 'My kingdom.' His kingdom is about transformed hearts, lives and relationships. His kingdom is a matter of offering reconciliation, not conquering human enemies. Jesus came to end enmity based on place of birth. He came to end ethnocentrism. Jesus came to end the attitude that 'my tribe is better than your tribe,' 'my group...,' 'my county....' He came to reconcile people from every nation who acknowledge our weakness and need of a savior. When we step out to proclaim God's kingdom, we don't go to conquer, or to prove that our tribe is better and stronger than their tribe. We go to say, 'I am so weak and sinful that I need a savior. And you're in the same boat as I am.'"
2. View the video "All War Is Sin" (4:51), based on a poem by Ora Huston. Then read this statement from a TWW editorial team member and respond: "There are occasions where all the choices are bad and we have to do what we have to do. Andy Rooney had a great book about his days during the war in which he talks about how he almost registered as a conscientious objector, but realized he objected towar, but not conscientiously. Arriving at a death camp on the day it was liberated, he believed that the war was justified, and it would be hard to argue with him. ... Right now, having seen what I've seen of the gas attacks in Syria, it seems to me that a police action of some sort is probably warranted, but I also think there are no good outcomes in Syria right now. Also, even if one is engaged in what one defines as a just war, the inevitability of civilian casualties almost ensures that sin will occur in every war. One can make the case that we are all guilty of sin. That doesn't mean we should dilute the teachings of Jesus regarding non-resistance. We don't get to talk our way out of our guilt."
Responding to the News
You may wish to gather together for prayer and fasting to "seek God's consolation for the victims of violence," to show "solidarity with the people of Syria, especially fellow Christians," to "seek peace within our hearts and in our way of living, ... to discern ways to provide a witness for peace to the powers and principalities, ... to lament the ways of violence in our world, ... to repent of war, [and] ... to seek after God" ("Day of Fasting and Prayer for Peace in Syria").
You might want to explore what Scripture has to say about peacemaking by looking up terms such as "peace" and "war" in a Bible concordance. You can also do an internet search on the subject using terms such as "conflict transformation" and "peacemakers." Ask your church leaders how to find documents regarding your church's position and efforts in this area. Research the classical Christian writings by St. Augustine and St. Thomas Aquinas on a "just war." Find out whether your denomination or congregation has a statement about what constitutes a "just war." Think about which words of Jesus might speak to that question. You may also wish to communicate your concerns about Syria to elected officials.
Closing Prayer
Prince of Peace, comfort with all the innocents presently suffering in Syria. Teach us all your way of peace, that we may be blessed peacemakers and bring joy to the heart of God. In Jesus' name. Amen.
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