I am an American, and I am grateful for my freedom to worship and pray without fear of attack or persecution. However, is it right for churches to take time out of worship to God (and maybe even devote an entire Sunday) to honoring veterans? The more I think about this question, the more it troubles me. I watch videos and hear sermons that honor fallen soldiers in a church service and often incorporate verses such as "greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friend." Is this an appropriate use of this verse and is the church service an appropriate time to focus on those who fought or died in wars...no matter how noble?
I think not. Although I am not a pacifist, I have trouble reconciling Jesus' non-violent approach to his enemies with times in a worship service to focus on "honoring" people who fought or died in national conflicts. Is this really a fitting time to turn our attention from the Lord to honor the American military? Here are a list of reasons why I feel this focus is inappropriate and often distasteful.
1. Often fallen American soldiers (not sure how this is viewed in other countries) are given more admiration and reverence than saints who died for the faith. When is the last time we took a service to remember martyrs who gave their lives for their faith in Jesus Christ? Thousands die every day for their faith, yet we hardly even take notice.
2. We may see no problem with OUR country using the verse "greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friend" because we are a "godly" nation. But isn't this just a bit presumptuous? Does a godly nation legalize the murder of over one million unborn children a year? Does a godly nation give approval for acts and behaviors God declares to be abominations? Does a godly nation create laws against prayer in the schools and refuse to teach children about their creator? Imagine if we found inscriptions of Roman centurions using the verse "greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friend" with reference to Roman soldiers who died in a battle against a foreign army. Wouldn't we find that a misuse of the verse? I think anytime we take a verse about Christ's love for us in giving his sinless life on our behalf as a springboard to exalt war victims, it may be a bit too far. That verse is not about the advancement of any nation or empires ideals (no matter how noble they may seem) and to use it as such is disturbing.
3. I think Americans are in incredible danger of blending the national cause of this country with the Kingdom of God. The two are NOT the same. America has some very good ideals and some wonderful principles. However, it also has some pretty bad ideas and bad principles. America is just another nation in the world that could one day be discussed by future nations who are sifting through our archeological ruins. America is not a NT Israel and she is not the hope of the world. Jesus Christ is and we would do well to remember that. Why is it that America wants us to keep our religion out of her secular schools, yet we are so eager to inject her into our religion? Something seems a bit off here.
4. Should we really be singing the "Pledge of Allegiance" in our churches and flying an American flag next to a "Christian" flag? Is our worship to God a suitable time to "pledge allegiance to the flag...and to the republic for which it stands"? Personally, I am not comfortable "pledging allegiance" to Caesar, Bush, Obama, or any human institution. I'd rather be an American than any other nationality (personally). But my allegiance belongs to Jesus, not to any flag, republic, or human institution.
5. What about the other nations that attend your church? We have Japanese international students that sometimes attend where I worship. How do you think they feel when we take 10 minutes or an entire service to pledge our flag, remember our fallen warriors and celebrate our victories over America's enemies (including their grandparents). This is not to say that WWII was not justified...or any war for that matter. But do these issues really belong in our worship? What if you went to worship with Japanese Christians and they took a service to pay homage to their country and their fallen who died in their war against Americans? Would you feel welcome in such a place or that such a focus was warranted?
Again, I am glad I am an American and I love many of the things this country stands for. However, America is a country, not God. Fallen soldiers are not martyrs. America's wars are not spiritual crusades. We can appreciate or argue against political stances, wars, or appreciate those who serve in the military anytime we wish. I just don't think it should include Bible verses or occur when we come to gather to celebrate Jesus. What do you think?
I think not. Although I am not a pacifist, I have trouble reconciling Jesus' non-violent approach to his enemies with times in a worship service to focus on "honoring" people who fought or died in national conflicts. Is this really a fitting time to turn our attention from the Lord to honor the American military? Here are a list of reasons why I feel this focus is inappropriate and often distasteful.
1. Often fallen American soldiers (not sure how this is viewed in other countries) are given more admiration and reverence than saints who died for the faith. When is the last time we took a service to remember martyrs who gave their lives for their faith in Jesus Christ? Thousands die every day for their faith, yet we hardly even take notice.
2. We may see no problem with OUR country using the verse "greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friend" because we are a "godly" nation. But isn't this just a bit presumptuous? Does a godly nation legalize the murder of over one million unborn children a year? Does a godly nation give approval for acts and behaviors God declares to be abominations? Does a godly nation create laws against prayer in the schools and refuse to teach children about their creator? Imagine if we found inscriptions of Roman centurions using the verse "greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friend" with reference to Roman soldiers who died in a battle against a foreign army. Wouldn't we find that a misuse of the verse? I think anytime we take a verse about Christ's love for us in giving his sinless life on our behalf as a springboard to exalt war victims, it may be a bit too far. That verse is not about the advancement of any nation or empires ideals (no matter how noble they may seem) and to use it as such is disturbing.
3. I think Americans are in incredible danger of blending the national cause of this country with the Kingdom of God. The two are NOT the same. America has some very good ideals and some wonderful principles. However, it also has some pretty bad ideas and bad principles. America is just another nation in the world that could one day be discussed by future nations who are sifting through our archeological ruins. America is not a NT Israel and she is not the hope of the world. Jesus Christ is and we would do well to remember that. Why is it that America wants us to keep our religion out of her secular schools, yet we are so eager to inject her into our religion? Something seems a bit off here.
4. Should we really be singing the "Pledge of Allegiance" in our churches and flying an American flag next to a "Christian" flag? Is our worship to God a suitable time to "pledge allegiance to the flag...and to the republic for which it stands"? Personally, I am not comfortable "pledging allegiance" to Caesar, Bush, Obama, or any human institution. I'd rather be an American than any other nationality (personally). But my allegiance belongs to Jesus, not to any flag, republic, or human institution.
5. What about the other nations that attend your church? We have Japanese international students that sometimes attend where I worship. How do you think they feel when we take 10 minutes or an entire service to pledge our flag, remember our fallen warriors and celebrate our victories over America's enemies (including their grandparents). This is not to say that WWII was not justified...or any war for that matter. But do these issues really belong in our worship? What if you went to worship with Japanese Christians and they took a service to pay homage to their country and their fallen who died in their war against Americans? Would you feel welcome in such a place or that such a focus was warranted?
Again, I am glad I am an American and I love many of the things this country stands for. However, America is a country, not God. Fallen soldiers are not martyrs. America's wars are not spiritual crusades. We can appreciate or argue against political stances, wars, or appreciate those who serve in the military anytime we wish. I just don't think it should include Bible verses or occur when we come to gather to celebrate Jesus. What do you think?