wfn.org | 'We Are Not to Please Politicians Who Seek War'

["Frank Imhoff" <FRANKI@ELCA.ORG>]

Use Your Religious Authority to Confront World Polarization,
Palestinian Bishop Tells LWF Churches in Asia
"We Are Not to Please Politicians Who Seek War"

MEDAN, Indonesia/GENEVA, 4 March 2003 (LWI) * Palestinian Lutheran
Bishop Dr. Munib A. Younan has criticized proponents of a world
polarized into either "good or bad people," and reminded
Christians and people of other religions of their authority to
challenge the world through interfaith dialogue.

"We are not to please politicians who seek war," said Younan, head
of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Jordan (ELCJ), serving in
Israel, Jordan and Palestine. He was addressing representatives of
the Lutheran World Federation (LWF) member churches from Asia
during the region's preparatory meeting for the July 2003 LWF
Tenth Assembly.

In his keynote address to the over 120 participants in the Asia
Pre-Assembly Consultation and Asia Church Leadership Conference
(APAC/ACLC), Younan called on the world religions to use their
prophetic authority to press for the global disarmament of all
nations and regions and "not only [of] one country or some
countries [that] we don't like." The world religions can assume
their prophetic role if they stand against militarism and call for
non-violent means to solve world problems he stressed.

Younan criticized the "axis of evil" rhetoric, (referring to US
President George W. Bush categorization of some countries thus and
the possibility of a US-led war against Iraq) saying it fans war
fever to convince many people that miitary options against the bad
group are the only way of dealing with destructive leaders and
governments. Such labeling, he said, also depersonalizes an entire
people "so we no longer see them, lest we notice the destruction
that our national policies wreak on nations that are being
demonized." It blinds the world to justice and to the reality that
life is interconnected.

But Younan expressed hope that where politicians see barriers, the
Christian Church finds companions with whom it can oppose the
barbarism of death, destruction and demonization. "United in its
opposition, the Church becomes the 'axis of hope' created by the
[Holy] Spirit, sharing in God's loving dream for all peoples and
the whole creation," he said, citing remarks by LWF President,
Bishop em. Dr. Christian Krause, during the September 2002 Council
meeting in Wittenberg, Germany. The ELCJ bishop is a member of the
Council, the Federation's governing body that meets annually.

The Jerusalem bishop said he was convinced that justification by
grace through faith calls the church to be prophetic, and swim
against the waves of injustice in the world. His keynote address
to the APAC /ACLC participants, who included delegates to the July
21-31 Assembly in Winnipeg, Canada was titled "For the Healing of
the World * What is the Role of the Church?" It was based on the
New Testament story about the paralyzed man and his encounter with
Jesus. (Mark 2: 1-12), through which Younan emphasized the aspect
of wholistic healing.

Younan cited LWF General Secretary, Rev. Dr Ishmael Noko's
explanation on the  relationship between justice and
justification: It is a call to all those who are baptized into
Christ to take part in building community across the barriers that
exist between nations, ethnic groups, genders and generations. The
gift of justification that "we are given in Christ is an
affirmation that we are all made in God's image, that we are each
of value as individuals," Younan emphasized.

He highlighted four topics that the churchneeds to address for the
healing of the world namely Justice Heals the World; Globalization
- Blessing or Curse? Or Both?; Ecumenism as a Process of Healing
Among Communities; and Interfaith Relationships as a Process of
Healing the World.

For Younan, the church must pursue the practical, theological and
spiritual challenges posed by economic globalization. "It is the
call of the church in this globalized world to care for God's
children so there will be a new Pentecost instead of a new tower
of Babel," he said.

The ecumenical movement, the ELCJ bishop stressed, is not an end
in itself. He recognized that there are disparities between
churches in the North and South and emphasized that these should
be challenged. But he wondered what it means to be together in
God's mission and to have a common strategy for mission and
development."Are we really speaking about the one mission of
Christ or different missions?" he asked. He challenged the
churches that "we must have one mission of Christ in order to face
the globalized world." Younan also called for the theology of
accompaniment, a process through which "churches accompany each
other on the way, sharing with each other as equals, bringing
healing to each other, learning from each other."

"The Mission of the Church in Multi-faith Contexts" is one of the
subjects that will be discussed in one of the ten Assembly Village
Groups in Winnipeg. This is also a major discussion of the
APAC/ACLC. The Jerusalem bishop noted that religion can be a
problem when it uses the Holy Writings of the respective faith
group to justify injustice, violence and war in the   world.

In addition, narrow religion can be a source and tool to create
religious extremism, which in turn adopts intolerant positions or
biased attitudes with exclusive claims on the truth. But Younan
stressed that there is no religion that monopolizes the existence
of tolerant and intolerant groups in its midst. Both tolerance and
intolerance exist in Christianity, Judaism, Islam and othe
religions, but intolerant groups should not be allowed to hijack
God or religion, he said.

"How can religion through interfaith dialogue contribute to
tolerance among religions; justice, peace and reconciliation; and
the healing of our world?" Younan asked. Interfaith dialogue, he
concluded, must be prophetic. It must not create more bitterness
and injustice but must be able to heal.

(The LWF is a global communion of Christian churches in the
Lutheran tradition. Founded in 1947 in Lund (Sweden), the LWF now
has 136 member churches in 76 countries representing over 61.7
million of the 65.4 million Lutherans worldwide. The LWF acts on
behalf of its member churches in areas of common interest such as
ecumenical relations, theology, humanitarian assistance, human
rights, communication, and the various aspects of mission and
development work. Its secretariat is located in Geneva,
Switzerland.)

[Lutheran World Information (LWI) is LWF's information service.
Unless specifically noted, material presented does not represent
positions or opinions of the LWF or of its various units. Where
the dateline of an article contains the notation (LWI), the
material may be freely reproduced with acknowledgment.]

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