"I hope my father and family open their eyes to Jesus and the Kingdom of God"
Thursday July 31, 2008
Categories: Christianity, Religion
Those are the words of the son of a top Hamas leader! Amazing! Talk about the power of God:The son of one of the most popular leaders in the Hamas terrorist organization has moved to the U.S. and converted to...
Add to Del.icio.us
Add to Technorati
Add to Digg
Add to Newsvine
Add to Facebook
Add to StumbleUpon
Advertisement
Advertisement
Search This Blog
Subscribe
About Reformed Chicks Blabbing
Read more about the Reformed Chicks: Michele McGinty, Angela Arnold, and Susan Johnson
Recent Posts
Calendar
Resources
- Westminster Theological Seminary
- WTS Bookstore
- Casting Stones
- Christian Blogosphere
- Monergism.com
- reformation21 blog
- evangelical outpost
- Dr Jim West
- Green Baggins
- Between Two Worlds
- once more with feeling
- The Boar's Head Tavern
- Think Christian
- ScrappleFace
- Breitbart.com
- News Busters
- The Brody File
- Hugh Hewitt
- Hot Air
- Fred Thompson Links
- Fishwrap
- Righ Wing News
- RealClearPolitics
- Instapundit.com
- RedState
- MorgueFile
- Tail Rank
- Doorkeeper's Delight
I have always thought it is utterly unreasonable to expect either Muslims or Jews to behave in accordance with Christian teaching.
There are extremists on both sides of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and were I to reveal my last name, a few of you would recognize that I am related to one of the most extreme of the anti-Palestinian rabbis (who has nothing to do with me, since I became a born-again Christian), the successor to Meier Kahane. There are extremist Jews who only seem to read the verses of Torah that encourage hate and a divine right to land, and there are Muslims who skip over the references in Koran to Mohammed receiving help from the Jews (at one point).
And there are Christians that I think Jesus would not recognize as followers, too. Michelle is the expert on Reformed theology here, so I'll let her address salvation and the Jewish people.
But I will say that there's plenty of blame on both sides. And Golda Meier was right, there will be no peace as long as the Arabs hate Jews (or Jews hate Arabs) more than they love their own children.
I probably should elaborate a bit.
Here's the dynamic as this no-longer-Jew sees it.
Israel, as Ben Gurion said when it was a much younger country, is a nation with 600,000 Presidents. Recent Likud leaders have achieved a measure of cohesion among the Jewish population despite their coming from 100 different nations with backgrounds ranging from African tribe people to Harvard professor by uniting against a common enemy.
Some of the Palestinian families in fact were in Palestine before 1948. Many were not, and most live in poverty and squalor. Palestinian leaders keep their population unified in indignation and resentment against the Jews.
There are real reasons for resentment and grief and indignation on both sides, lots of them. And the turning point for me, in considering whether I'd ever seek to live as an Israeli came with Sabra and Shatilah. The massacre encouraged by Sharon revolted me. But I also had a Christian father who worked with Mennonites, so I can see this lay down your life rather than take up your sword thing--or feel it. My rejection of the possibility of living in Israel also led to my growth as a Christian (duh, you might say, or some of you might see the matter very differently).
Bill Clinton was naive to suppose that Arafat would give up his power just to turn the West Bank into a Middle Eastern Switzerland--although that's what $58,000 per Palestinian could have done. Bush was right to refuse to deal with Arafat as he was dying of AIDS. And I'm a Democrat.
The man Michelle mentions here at least does not seem to be naive of the world from which he came. Bless him for the faith God has revealed to him.
Sorry not to offer a more cogent narrative, as these are personal and emotional and complex issues for me, but maybe some of you can elaborate on the story.
Rob, I really appreciated your two posts. Very insightful. I have to remind myself that plenty of people have a tangible, vested interest in ME peace, it's more than an academic exercise for them.
here we have a solution to the Israel-Palestinian conflict in the Middle East, conversion to Christianity :-)
What would you have proposed for Northern Ireland?
"What would you have proposed for Northern Ireland?"
A more thorough understanding of this:
ESV 1 John 4:20 If anyone says, "I love God," and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen cannot love God whom he has not seen.
Rob, thanks for your insight. It is clear that both sides have grievances against the other and that true peace will probably only come when both sides decide they no longer want to fight. I can't see that happening on the Palestinian side and I'm not sure what there is for the Israelite can do to make it happen.
What do you think they can do when the other side wants them to cease to exist?
Israel has a record of adhering to peace treaties, the Palestinians DO NOT!
"So, here we have a solution to the Israel-Palestinian conflict in the Middle East, conversion to Christianity"
echoes from 912 years ago... a rallying cry for christian crusades?
unfortunately some people don't understand that you don't have to be christian to understand peace and to want peace. and as Moonshadow correctly points out, being christian does not guarantee peace, either. thinking otherwise is being naive.
both have ignored UN resolutions meant to bring peace.
Post a Comment
By submitting these comments, I agree to the beliefnet.com terms of service, rules of conduct and privacy policy (the "agreements"). I understand and agree that any content I post is licensed to beliefnet.com and may be used by beliefnet.com in accordance with the agreements.