David Winfrey
Kentucky Western Recorder
Be it the chaplain in Manhattan, the pastor in Pittsburgh or
the farmer in Kentucky, Christians across the country searched for answers to
explain what happened September 11 and to offer a God-centered response.
From the Oval Office to the pulpit, one word came up consistently
to describe the recent terrorist attacks – evil.
Be it the chaplain in Manhattan, the pastor in Pittsburgh or
the farmer in Kentucky, Christians across the country searched for answers to
explain what happened September 11 and to offer a God-centered response.
From the Oval Office to the pulpit, one word came up consistently
to describe the recent terrorist attacks – evil.
Charting a Christian response to such evil requires prayer,
pause and purpose, observers emphasize.
“You have what Paul called the mystery of iniquity,
and evil is there,” said Henlee Barnette, professor emeritus of Christian
ethics at Southern Baptist Theological Seminary.
“Its everywhere, and the challenge to the Christian
is to respond in an intelligent, reasonable way to evil in his or her own life,
in the lives of others and in the life of our nation.”
Such a challenge involves three major questions:
How could this happen?
Understanding the human potential to cause such destruction
leads Christians back to the basic doctrines of their faith, including sin and
the freedom to choose right from wrong.
“Why this happened is really in a sense the same answer
to Why did Adam and Eve sin?” said David Gushee, professor
of moral philosophy at Union University in Jackson, Tenn. “It happened
because we have the freedom to make bad choices.”
Southern Baptist Theological Seminary President Al Mohler agreed. “We
need to be very clear that the problem behind all of this does not
come down to a lack of security in an airport. Ultimately, we still have to
deal with the reality that God has allowed a sinful world to exist and, for
some time, he is allowing sin to take its toll.”
Mohler and Gushee said persons should avoid answers that are
simplistic – such as “God will always protect me” – or heretical
– such as “God must have caused this to happen.”
Romans 8:28 often is cited in times of suffering, proclaiming
“that in all things God works for the good of those who love him.”
However, Mohler said that passage does not imply that God causes tragedies.
Indeed, the Bible consistently insists God does not cause suffering, he said.
“No way can we dignify these murderous acts by proclaiming
in a glib way that some good is going to come of it,” Mohler said. “The
biblical affirmation is that even in the face of such awful evil, Gods
grace will triumph.”
Still, Gods ability to redeem a tragedy does not eliminate
the challenge of proclaiming a God who is loving and powerful, even though he
permits sin to cause terrible consequences.
The challenge is not new. It even has a name – theodicy,
the effort to vindicate Gods permission for evil to exist.
Evil is a major theme in both Psalms and Job, said George Klein,
an Old Testament professor at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary. However,
while both books contain agonizing petitions to God in the face of evil, neither
holds Gods answer for why he allows suffering, Klein said.
Many psalms do not stay focused on evil but “jump fast-forward
to their conclusion … that the Lord is righteous, the Lord is powerful and
he should be revered even in the midst of uncertainty and trouble, …”
he noted.
“The fact that somebody appears to do well even though
they are evil does not undercut Gods righteousness. He will deal with
them in his own way. Its not a nice bumper-sticker theology, but it really
is a hope, a confidence.”
The book of Job also never defends God as well, Klein said.
“It just … says God is worthy of worship,
God is good and in his
way, in his time, what is mysterious, unknown, troubling to us will be seen
in a different light. But for now, our responsibility is to accept the painful
mysteries and uncertainties and to trust in God wholeheartedly and his righteousness
and his power and his knowledge, his providence.”
What should America do?
Christians dare not shrink from their responsibility to influence
a governments response to evil, observers insist. Indeed, from outlining
“just war” theories of combat to offering an introspective view of
American policies, Christians must lead the country to develop a moral response,
they said.
Romans 13 outlines governments responsibility to maintain
order and punish evildoers, Mohler pointed out. However, biblical admonitions
to turn the other cheek do not apply to a proper response to last weeks
attack, Barnette added.
“As Christians we should respond with love, even to our
enemies,” he said. “Jesus taught us to love our enemies. But let me
add, love without justice is pure sentimentality. …”
“This is a defensive war against a destructive evil. As a Christian ethicist,
I believe that the most loving thing to do is to seek out the evil perpetrators
and their supporters and bring them to justice. If someone comes up and strikes
me on the right cheek, I turn the other one. But if someone comes to destroy
my family, love becomes justice.”
However, Christians also must lead the country in controlling
its emotions, Gushee added. “We may be setting ourselves up for a deep
sense of national rage if we are not able to achieve the kind of perfect justice
that we appear to be looking for.”
Indeed, Americans might have to come to terms with an inability
to balance the scales of justice in this life, he said.
“The theme that there is an eternal Judge and that we
dont have to hinge all of our future hopes on achieving some earthly justice
is very important right now,” Gushee stressed.
The Christian command to love ones enemies also dictates
a willingness to understand the motivation of perceived injustice behind such
hateful acts, Gushee continued. “I think a distinctively Christian response
says there is humanity in the image of God, even in the adversary. And you seek
to recognize that even while you deal with appropriate responses to protect
yourself from being harmed like this in the future.”
What should Christians do?
A Christians personal response to evil begins with a
willingness to base actions on something other than simple human nature –
to respond, not merely react, Barnette said.
Part of that response begins with a decision to engage in the
experiences and suffering of others, said Vicki Hollon, director of the Wayne
Oates Institute, a Louisville, Ky., agency focused on Christian-based ethics
and pastoral care.
More than just showing compassion or being a good civic person,
a Christians involvement in assembling care packages, donating money,
giving blood or praying for victims should be based on Gods instructions
and be intended to help others find God, she said.
Prayer also is a basic response to any tragedy, many noted.
“I heard one person say all we can do is pray, but you
know thats not a little thing,” Mohler said. “Prayer is one
of the most important ministries a Christian can perform in order to reach out
to those we cannot see, we do not even know.”
Christians leaders also must be prepared to interpret events
through the lens of the Christian faith, Gushee added.
For instance, in the wake of such events, Christians can call
persons to examine their own spiritual needs, leaders note.
Likewise, Christians have an opportunity to offer a distinctive
moral vision and spiritual presence, Gushee said.
“I cringe when I think about the inevitable Sunday School classes that
will mainly consist of We need to go nuke those guys kind of response,”
he acknowledged.