I was e-mailed an article titled Rescuing Jesus
by Alessandro Camon at salon.com
"Bush & Co. have hijacked Jesus, using him as the poster child for their
callous worldview. It's time to rescue Christ from his kidnappers."
Due to its length I decided to use just this portion, which
was ironically written a day before the Earthquake in
South Asia, one that claimed the lives of so many children as
they sat in their classrooms. A well-written piece :
Natural disasters are often labeled "acts of God." Those who take the
expression literally may think that God is punishing our sins (a belief
shared by some Christians with those Muslims who think Katrina is
Allah's reprisal), or they may struggle to reconcile the idea of an
infinitely good God with the devastation he brings upon us. But you
don't have to take the expression literally to feel that natural disasters
call into question the meaning of life. They cut us down to size, and
challenge us to rise up again. They make us mourn for the dead
and reach out for the survivors. If we do believe in God, even just a
little bit, they are a true test of our faith, and an opportunity to do
what we preach: to give, to comfort, to assist.
Wars are acts of man, yet all too often are fought for a "holy" cause,
painted as deeds of "infinite justice" or "crusades" of good vs. evil.
But it's when we look at the victims that faith is truly tested. A religious
person will have the chance to show all his horror, regret, compassion,
forgiveness. In war, many parents will lose their children, a sacrifice
so profound that it is more than a human being can be expected
to bear; a sacrifice that is, in fact, made by God --
the Christian one -- and proof of godliness. (In one of the harshest and
most controversial biblical tales, Abraham is ready to sacrifice his son
before God, as he believes God asked him to do, but God stops him
before he goes through with it. However one wants to interpret the tale
-- whether it's about obedience or misunderstanding -- the point is, God
doesn't actually want to impose on a parent the loss of a child.)
To those who suffer such a loss, we have a chance -- and an
obligation -- to offer utmost solidarity.*
From the BBC : Schools collapse kills 400 children
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/south_asia/4322930.stm
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