CommentaryThe Redefinintion of Terrorism in America My childhood was filled with angels and demons. I never saw or felt the presence of either of these entities, but at a young age I was convinced that these forces were entwined in every aspect of my life. Halloween, Ninja Turtles and my bad dog Sparky were all aligned with Satan (I’m not kidding). Every Sunday, I witnessed dozens of adults lose themselves in religious ecstasy. I could speak in tongues before I could read or write, and I ate up every biblical story I was ever told. I was raised by an evangelical Christian. Now that I have mastered the skill of reading, my eyes have been averted to other pieces of literature. The mega-churches of America pump out tons of pamphlets, magazines, tapes and books supporting their crusades (my home is full of them). So out of curiosity I began to read, and I was immediately taken into a world full of demons. I had not faced these demons since I was a child, but this time I felt better prepared. A pamphlet referred to Kim Jong-il and Mahmoud Ahmedinejad as “possessed by the devil.” A magazine chronicled the journey of “the demon buster,” a woman who was touring the United States to cure homosexuals, witches and drug addicts. Another pro-Israeli magazine cried out against Hezbollah for the 44 Israelis killed during the summer conflict, while completely dismissing the deaths of over 1,000 Lebanese. I thought I had had enough evangelical rhetoric for one week, but then the New York Times published an article entitled, “For Evangelicals, Supporting Israel Is ‘God’s Foreign Policy’.” “God’s foreign policy” is referencing Rev. John Hagee, founder of Christians United For Israel. In short, the article spoke of many Christian leaders who have displayed overwhelming support for Israel because of its correlation with the second coming of Christ. Normally I would not care about anyone’s personal religious conviction, but this is something that really alarms me. This ideology is not contained within the mega-churches or close circles of like-minded people, but it has trickled into the White House. It is no secret that evangelical Christians are the backbone of the Republican Party, and President Bush has kept close ties with his faithful supporters. But if there is any chance that this faith base is influencing foreign policy the world might as well end tomorrow, because we are all screwed. It worries me that people are sitting on the sidelines and cheering on conflict in the Middle East to invoke the apocalypse. The reality is that people are dying. I would hope that there is a greater moral obligation to save lives and seek peace, but somehow the voices of those people do not have nearly as much political influence in this country. When people start speaking of good and evil, there is no room for negotiation. But negotiation may be the only way to resolve these ongoing disputes. We all know that President Bush refuses to negotiate with terrorists, but “terrorist” has become an umbrella term for everyone who is not pro-Israel. Our foreign policy should not be “Israel can do no wrong.” Plenty of innocent people have died at the hands of the Israeli government. Everyone in that region of the world is mourning, and it has been a tragedy on all sides of the conflict. As Americans, I do not think we should remain unaffected by the chaos. It is easy to be detached because this warfare is not taking place on our own soil. It is easy to rally behind one group or another because of whatever religious affiliation. However, I think everyone should be equally disgusted when innocent people die. Americans have collectively huddled in fear of terrorism, but I fear something else. I fear Pat Robertson and Dr. James Dobson. I fear a world where the government makes decisions by following a book written thousands of years ago, instead of serving in the best interest of the people here and now. I fear people who are so obsessed with demons and the afterlife, that they jeopardize the wellbeing of the living. I am not speaking out of contempt, but experience. You do not have to strap a bomb to your chest to be an extremist. |