Scott Freeman

We stand in the brutal aftermath of the worst disaster this nation has seen in any of our lifetimes.
As we collectively sit in front of our TV screens transfixed and astonished that a tragedy of this magnitude can inflict us, we must give grim acknowledgment of a bitter divide that runs through the heart of this country.
We are awash in a game of blame.
Who is responsible for the lack of preparation, the slow response time, the seemingly cavalier attitude to a grisly death toll that is expected to be more than 5 times that experienced by our troops in Iraq?
Who must be held accountable for this gross travesty, the blatant ineptitude that has marked the residuum since Katrina tore her path through this land?
If we back away from our partisan leaning then the answer will probably become more clear: that there is plenty of blame to go around to all those involved (or not involved).
But I am reluctant to point my fingers at this point.
Don’t get me wrong, I believe that there are people who are culpable for the extent of this disaster.
People should be called into account for their actions, or lack thereof.
I have my own conclusions but I hesitate to say much about them.
The reason for my reluctance is not out of fear of being political or incendiary. My reticence in this area is quickly receding.
However, my lack of a voice is because I see an even bigger failure on my part: an offense for which I, and many people like me, are imminently impeachable.
You see, this disaster had been predicted for years.
Scientist, meteorologists, ET AL had warned that New Orleans would suffer dramatically under a direct hit from a category 5 hurricane.
These experts trumpeted the call to action, the need for preparation, the urgency of immediate response to prevent a cataclysm, the staggering loss of life.
In the blame game, in the assessing of responsibility, the call for accountability some important questions emerge:

• What was known;
• Who knew it;
• When was it known;
• What was done with what was known.

Christians, that thought alone, against the backdrop of Katrina’s desolation, should drive us to our knees.
It should make us rethink our approach to living, our comfort with our place, our contentment with conformity.
It should propel us toward repentance for the times that our voices have been silent, our love has been absent, and our compassion misplaced.

We should look at life like this:

• What do we know? Jesus Christ is Lord. There is no other way to salvation but through Him. He is returning to call His children home. It has been commissioned to us to go and share the good news of His salvation to a lost and dying world. To sound the alarm that He is the way.
• Who knows this? Those of us that have fallen at His feet and called Him Lord and God.
• When did we learn this? The Hour We First Believed
• What have we done with this knowledge? Sadly, too often, not enough. We have too often been content with being a part of our culture without being counter-cultural. We have too often adopted a Constantinian mentality that aligns religious conviction with political partisanship. We have too often perpetuated a message of condescension and omitted Jesus’ example of love. We have too often remained silent when a kind word or a loving embrace would have communicated the singular message of hope.

Please don’t misunderstand me. I am not trying to be judgmental.
Instead, I am reminding myself and hopefully some others about the urgency of our message.
Let this be a clarion call for us to go into our world and be the incarnation of the Risen Lord.
We must be ever vigilant, ever prepared, ever willing to share the good news of salvation to all who would come to Him.
I do not mean that we resurrect a debating mentality.
I do not mean that we advocate a coercive approach to evangelism.
I do not mean that we perpetuate a stereotype of an us-vs-them mentality.

I do mean that we love the unloved.
I do mean that we invest ourselves in deeper relationships with the disenfranchised, the lost, the struggling, the hurting.
I do mean that we go to the edges, where the people are in need.
I do mean that we befriend the “least of these” that we might win some.
I do mean that we go into uncomfortable places to comfort the aching hearts that Jesus loves.

Jesus is coming.
That is a promise.
Let us do all that we can to share that Good News.
For if we do not, the blame will be ours.

There is nothing more polarizing in my community right now than the presence of a group of protesters in Crawford.
After much thought and discussion we decided not to go to Crawford this weekend because of safety concerns for our children. But in the midst of this political divide I find myself firmly in the camp of Cindy Sheehan.
My position is not a political one. I write as neither a Republican or a Democrat.
My politics do not determine my theology.
Instead, my theology determines the way I believe politics should be.
I am against the war. However, I know that there are godly, devout people who sincerely disagree with me.
I do not support the protest because I believe that without alternatives there is no point. I also don’t support the protests of protesters.
However there are some things, to me, that are more important than political expediency: being Christ in the hearts and lives of people.

George W. Bush once said that his favorite philosopher is Jesus. He has been consistent in his message that his faith informs his decisions as leader of the free world.
I do not for a moment question the sincerity of his faith. I believe him to be a deeply devout man. That does not mean that I agree with all of his policy decisions. Nor do I believe that he is without fail.
One reason that I cannot be a Democrat is their seemingly unswerving commitment to marginalize religious thinking. As evidenced in the last election, when Democrats do turn to religious speak it seems forced and nothing more than an pandering for votes.
Likewise, I disagree with an Imperialistic Eschatology that many Republicans espouse.
So, I am a man without a party. But I am a man with a Kingdom. And the way I live my life must be more eternally-focused than merely here and now. I am not an American Christian but a Christian who happens to be American.

As a Christian, I believe it is the moral imperative for George Bush to meet with Cindy Sheehan. Scripture is clear, that if someone has a problem with you, you go to them and try to resolve the matter. I don’t see an exemption based upon position or title.
As a minister, if someone is offended by something that I say or do, then I have a responsibility to go to them and allow them the opportunity to be heard. It may not change anything. It may not alleviate their concerns or win them over to my point of view but it will be a sign of faithful sincerity to community and Christian love.
Most Christians I know believe that to be true. Yet for some reason we are quick to dismiss this principle in this situation. This to me is an example of a political theology rather than theological politics. The tale wagging the dog, so to speak.
Some people don’t want the President to meet with Cindy because it would begin a “slippery slope” that would cause other people to line up and demand the same. “Slippery Slope” arguments are argumental fallacies, an attempt to avoid solutions by painting worst-case scenarios. Even if more people did want to meet with him isn’t that one of the advantages of being a part of a representative democracy? That the people have access to their representatives?
Some are against the meeting because they have fallen prey to one of the greatest divides that our country faces: hatred of those with divergent viewpoints. But that is folly. There are good people in support of this war. And equally good people who cannot justify it. There are good Democrats and good Republicans. Let’s stop the either/or non-sense and talk with one another.
The Christian thing to do is to meet with her. It is not the politically expedient thing to do, but there is a higher, nobler purpose. We cannot be just if we will not be true.
To me, our positions on the war are irrelevant here. There is the duties of a Christian first, president second commingled with the purpose and intent of a representative democracy.
I mean, come on, if a woman decides to camp-out throughout the month of August in Central Texas where the average high is about 348 degrees, it seems that great opportunities abound to act in good faith toward one another. To do, as GW said in December of 2000 to reach across party lines and be a healer.
Do the Christian thing, Mr. President. Meet with Cindy.

Or do you find this just plain wrong like I do?

It seems this site is selling car magnets with “Bush” inside the Christian icthus, a symbol dating back to the early days of the church that represented to those persecuted followers of Christ a message of hope and salvation, not American policy or leadership.
The letters, icthus, stood for JESUS CHRIST, SON OF GOD, SAVIOR. Not G.W.
That means a lot to me. I have to deal with pagans co-opting the fish for their sacrilegious pleasure and Christians slapping it on their car with little regard for how often they fail to drive with the spirit of Christ but this really galls me.
Don’t get me wrong, I love this country. I am as patriotic as the next guy. But the United States of America is not my Kingdom. I await another world.
I don’t even dislike GW. I mean, I’ve even voted for him in the past. But he is a president, not a Savior. And I don’t agree that all of his policies reflect the intent and desire of Christ.
To intimate that the US and the Kingdom of God have the identical purposes and intent is to grossly overestimate the nobility of earthly kingdoms. And it diminishes the Sovereignty and Power of God.
I could rail on but I will get off my soapbox now.

I am putting together a CD of songs that emphasize love and peace. Any suggestions? Here is what I have so far:

Link: Songs of Peace.

1. Land Of Hope And Dreams – Bruce Springsteen (We are all in this together)

2. Peaceful World (Unreleased Live Acoustic Version) – John Mellencamp

3. I Heard An Owl – Carrie Newcomer (This song drives me to my knees)

4. Change – Tracy Chapman (Powerful)

5. My City Of Ruins – Bruce Springsteen (My favorite post 9/11 inspired tune)

6. What Are We Fighting For? – Live (What will I tell my daughter, indeed)

7. Peace On Earth – U2

8. Hole In The World – The Eagles

9. Into The Fire – Bruce Springsteen

10. The Gathering Of Spirits – Carrie Newcomer (I insist this song is played at my funeral)

11. All That We Let In – Indigo Girls

12. I Am A Patriot – Jackson Browne (More meaningful to me now than when I first heard it almost 20 years ago)

13. What’s So Funny ‘Bout Peace, Love and Understanding? – Nick Lowe

14. The World’s Not Falling Apart – Dar Williams

15. Now More Than Ever – John Mellencamp

16. Final Straw – R.E.M.

17. Big Blue Ball Of War – Nanci Griffith

18. Take To The World – Derek Webb (An evangelical call to arms)

20. Bare To The Bone – Carrie Newcomer

Bear with me, this will not be an easy post to write.

A couple of years ago just before the Iraq war began I taught a class entitled, “Is It Right to Fight?” I took the idea of a Christian Just War theology to convice my Sunday school class that not only was it morally acceptable to invade Iraq it was imperative.
For a long time I held unswervingly to that position.
Despite any problems that we encountered I was firmly pro-war.
When the quagmire grew deeper I dug my heels in deeper.
My rhetoric was constant.

“We are defending the right to liberty for all.”
“Al Gore would have handed the country to Osama”
“No WMD’s? So what, Saddam would have had them eventually.”

I was a poster-boy for U.S. aggression.

But along the line something began to change inside of me.
I began to question the reasons for going to war.

No, better said, I began to question MY reasons for going to war.
The answers I found were not comforting.
They did not make me proud.

Instead, they shamed me deeply.
My reasons for going to war with Iraq was not because of WMD’s
It was not because I was afraid of Saddam.
It was not to ensure liberty and justice for all.

My reason for going to war with Iraq was because I hated them.
I hated their religion.
I hated their rhetoric.
I hated all that they stood for.

When Muslims flew planes into the World Trade Center and the Pentagon I seethed in anger and hatred toward those who would infringe upon our way of life.
When my wife had to fly alone with our newborn out of Detroit on a plane full of young Middle-Easterners I despised them and their turbans.

I not only wanted to invade Iraq, I wanted to head to the other “Axis of Evil” countries when we were done.

I repent.
Carrie Newcomer has a song titled, “I Heard an Owl.” One lyric of the songs says, “Don’t tell me hate is ever right or God’s will.”

How true that is. God never legislated hate.
It’s a pretty poor justification for going to war.

The realization for me is this: I must learn to love more.
I must stop hating those who look differently and believe differently than I do.

I must be as Jesus demanded and love my enemies.

For this reason, I personally oppose the war.
Now, please don’t misunderstand me. I’m talking about my own reasons not that of anyone else.
I am not even making a statement as to the rightness or wrongness of American forces in Baghdad. Please understand that I support our troops and hope that every one of them will come home soon and come home safely.

But my reasons for this war are wrong. They were borne out of hatred. A hatred that does not find its genesis out of the character and nature of Christ.

I will pray.
I will pray for our troops in harm’s way.
I will pray for the soldier whose wife lies in a hospital bed thousands of miles away. I will pray that our government will truly value it’s citizens and allow him to return home to be by her side.
And I will pray for the citizens of Iraq.
I will pray that God will replace my hatred with love.
The love that imitates the Christ who died for them.

OK, so I’m preaching through the book of Romans right? I started this back in January and was supposed to be done by Mother’s Day.
Mother’s Day!
Sunday is July 3rd and I’m just starting chapter 13.
I resolve here today that I will be done with Romans by the end of July.
This Sunday, the day before Independence day, I will deal with the passage on submitting to governing authorities.
Is this providential? No. It is purely by design and creative timing that this has happened.
But as I sit before Scripture, commentaries, lexicons, dictionaries and concordances I find myself somewhat at a loss with my own conflicting emotions over the state of this nation.
I am distressed.
I am so sick of political rhetoric. I mean, really, what is being said that is of a substantive nature today by our elected officials? After last night’s address by GW and the predictable Democratic response the answer is nothing.
I am tired of our incessant need to label people as extremist, conservative, green, liberal, myopic, fundamentalist, etc. People are more than a label, right?
I’m tired of Howard Dean on one side saying ludicrous things.
I’m tired of Rush Limbaugh on the other side saying equally ludicrous things.
I’m tired of being unable to question our role in Iraq without being lumped with Teddy Kennedy.
I’m tired of being unable to hold a pro-life position without being lumped with those brandishing Molotov cocktails outside of Planned Parenthood clinics.
I’m simply tired. Preaching through Romans 12 Paul was clear about how we are to treat one another: with respect, kind words, and no thoughts of retribution or vengeance.
The Democrats in this country fail miserably in this regard: they treat Republicans with scorn, ridicule and contempt.
The Republicans in this country fail miserably in this regard: they treat Democrats with scorn, ridicule and contempt.
We need to restore those principles in Romans 12: kindness, civility and respect. Not by force or coercion. I don’t want anyone to agree with me without discovering truth for themselves.
In the meantime let’s be about the business:
Let’s eradicate poverty–if every Christian in America would simply tithe we would eliminate poverty in the world with millions left over.
Let’s be a beacon of hope for the hopeless–yes, we hold tightly to the conviction that we possess the truth. That will not change even in a multi-cultural, pluralistic society. People are free to choose their own paths but we must be vigilant in extending the gift of God’s grace for all those who would come to Him.
Let’s be peace-lovers–War is a bad thing. Whether or not our excursion into Iraq is justified or not, we must be people who seek peace at all costs. There may be times when war is the only alternative. But peace must always be our primary intent. We must be people who endeavor first to reconcile before we engage.

I know I’m not supposed to do politics here but somehow I am supposed to preach this passage Sunday and, to be honest, I don’t yet know what I am going to say.
Paul always does this to me. I can be cruising along in a text and then he throws me a curve.
But this I do know: it does not matter what the state of our nation is. It does not matter what other people believe or what political positions that they hold.
It does not matter if I feel I am in the minority caught in the crossfire of warring political parties.
It does not matter if I cannot verbalize the answers or reasons for the positions I hold.

What does matter is if I treat others with love and respect.
That I be Jesus to the world.

C’mere Democrats.
Step on over Republicans.
You too, Perot, Nadar, Ventura, ET AL.
Let’s have a group hug, shall we?

When I started writing on this site I made a silent agreement with myself:
No politics.
It’s just too messy and all I will do is fire people up when there are others more qualified than myself to deal with sticky hot-button issues of the day.
I’m not sure how much longer I can keep that agreement.
The way it is shaping up only for about another sentence or two.
For my heart is breaking. And I feel that we are repeating the same mistakes of the past.
In 1994 the African nation of Rwanda lost over 800,000 people due to tribal fighting.
America did nothing.
I was 26 years old and knew next to nothing about what was taking place on the other side of the world.
When I did learn of the atrocities I brushed it off as not my problem.
“We can’t bail out the entire world.”
“Let’s offer a hand-up and not a hand-out”
And precious souls, the least of these, found themselves abandoned and broken on the unforgiving wheels of living.
In 1998 Bill Clinton went to Rwanda and apologized for our blindness:
We did not act quickly enough after the killing began. We should not
have allowed the refugee camps to become safe havens for the killers.
We did not immediately call these crimes by their rightful name:
genocide. We cannot change the past. But we can and must do everything
in our power to help you build a future without fear, and full of
hope…. We owe to all the people in the world our best efforts to
organize ourselves so that we can maximize the chances of preventing
these events. And where they cannot be prevented, we can move more
quickly to minimize the horror.

Although no excuse exists for not intervening, the pledge to be more vigilant in the future is the least that we can do.
Yesterday, after a 6 month silence on the issue, President Bush acknowledged that there is genocide taking place in the Darfur region of Sudan.
400,000 people are dead.
2.5 million people are without homes.
Now we must make sure that we stand up. That our government is not once again silent to genocide in a nation that has no money to give us, no precious resources that we covet.
We must make sure that this time we value human life not just what human life can give us.
This is not a Republican issue.
This is not a Democrat issue.
The blame does not go solely to Bill Clinton for our un-involvement in Rwanda.
The blame will not go solely to George W. Bush for our un-involvement in Darfur.
We must stand up and make our voices heard.
For this is a Christian issue.
It smacks at the heart of who we are called to be.
To be hope for the hopeless.
Provide homes for the homeless.
Salvation for the lost and downtrodden.
And a voice for those whose voices have been muted by the cacophony of war.

I am ashamed that I have been so silent in my cries for social justice.
That I have been content to live a prosperous life while others struggle for survival.
That I have relegated to the government the work of developing a heart for those in need.

I don’t know where I got the idea that dropping a tithe in the collection basket was giving enough.
I don’t know where I got the idea that preaching as a career was service enough.
I don’t know where I got the idea that loving my family was loving enough.
I don’t know where I got the idea that it was solely the responsibility of Washington D.C. to tend to the needs of others.

I do know that I did not get this ideas from Jesus.
I did not get these ideas from the example that He set.
He loved people. He gave all of Himself.
I must endeavor to do the same.
Will you? Go to Sojourners and Darfur Genocide to learn more.
Together we can make a difference.
Thank you for listening to me.
Now back to the regularly scheduled stuff.

We can now legally starve people to death. We rail against the atrocities at Abu Ghraib but how is this different?
Link: Yahoo! News – Schiavo Dies 13 Days After Feeding Tube Removed.