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Hawks should let God stand down 02/16/03 Help me out on this one, please: Whose side is God on? In his taped broadcast last week, Osama bin Laden re peatedly invoked the name of God in urging Iraq to rise up against the American "Crusaders," a not-so-veiled link to Pope Urban II`s declaration in 1095 of a "Holy War" or Crusade to rout the Muslims and to reclaim Palestine for the Christian faith. Bin Laden made it clear that God is on the side of the Muslim world, urging Iraqis to "fight the allies of the devil." He warned that President George W. Bush wants to install a Baghdad regime run by Israel and the United States "in preparation for the establishment of greater Israel, God forbid." Distancing himself from Iraq`s secular ruler, Saddam Hussein, bin Laden directed that "the fighting should be in the name of God only, not in the name of national ideologies nor to seek victory for the ignorant governments that rule all Arab states, including Iraq. Victory is from God alone. . . ." Saddam has a reputation for reveling in women and wine, not to mention acts of cruelty against his own people, but that does not deter him from proclaiming that God is on his side. Saddam rails against "the hopeless cowardly Americans . . . hiding behind a technological advance that God, most gracious, wanted to be their curse and cause for shame," and tells his troops that God sees war against the West as "a source of honor, pride, glory and blessing for you in this life and the hereafter." No matter how many times Saddam pays tribute to "God, the most gracious, the most merciful," he is no match for our president in the God-fearing department. Bush, who credits Jesus with enabling him to kick a heavy drinking habit, has infused the presidency with an evangelical fervor unrivaled in American history. Bush was introduced at the National Religious Broadcasters convention in Nashville last week as a man who "unapologetically proclaims his faith in the Lord Jesus Christ." Bush dismissed any doubts that the Prince of Peace might not look kindly on a U.S.-led attack against Iraq, saying such an attack would be "in the highest moral traditions of our country." The Washington Post reported that many of the broadcasters said Bush was divinely chosen to lead the country during its trials, an interpretation that the president does not shy from. In a speech to a joint session of Congress shortly after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks against the United States, the president confidently assured the country that God is on our side. "The course of this conflict is not known, yet its outcome is certain," he said. "Freedom and fear, justice and cruelty, have always been at war. And we know that God is not neutral between them." He called bin Laden "the evil one," a term synonymous with the devil. Bush`s attorney general, John Ashcroft, the son and grandson of Pentecostal preachers, echoed the boss` words in his speech to the religious broadcasters a year ago, describing "a conflict between those who believe that God grants us choice and those who seek to impose their choices on us . . . a conflict between good and evil." He said God has no trouble picking between the two. In an interview with syndicated columnist Cal Thomas, Ashcroft went further, saying, "Islam is a religion in which God requires you to send your son to die for him. Christianity is a faith in which God sends his son to die for you." When American Muslims objected, Ashcroft said his reported remarks "do not accurately reflect what I believe I said." But Thomas said he had cleared the quotation with Ashcroft beforehand. Osama bin Laden, Saddam Hussein and President Bush are hardly the first to claim God as an ally. No less a beast than Adolph Hitler, in "Mein Kampf," unabashedly wrote, "I believe that I am acting in accordance with the will of the Almighty Creator. By defending myself against the Jew, I am fighting for the work of the Lord." The Rev. Jerry Falwell at first blamed the 9/11 attacks on liberal decadence in America, saying that God was punishing those who promote abortion and homosexuality. Later, in an apparent attempt to redeem himself, he tried a different tack, suggesting that the terrorists were following the misguided teachings of Mohammed, himself "a terrorist . . . a violent man, a man of war." Come to think of it, instead of arguing over whose side God is on, the world would be better off if the all-too-human instigators of war would leave God out of it. Brazaitis, formerly a Plain Dealer senior editor, is a Washington columnist. Contact Tom Brazaitis at: tbrazaitis@starpower.net, 202-638-1366 |
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| aus der Diskussion: | Guten Morgen Mr. Bush |
| Autor (Datum des Eintrages): | Joerver (17.02.03 23:57:22) |
| Beitrag: | 33 von 35,423 (ID:8640995) |
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