The Greatest Things to Remember about Seeking Biblical Justice - Essay Example

Religion and Theology Justice, truth, and reconciliation are proven to be potential means for giving closure tocommunities who have been affected gravely by violence. Taking the first steps in that direction requires healing the social, political, and psychological wounds inflicted by war upon the community. Iraq, a nation with a strong historical background, is greatly afflicted by the powerful political and military adventures first by Iran and more prominently by the United States. Worldwide efforts are taken to rebuild the Iraqi society. However, from a biblical view, this situation is prophetically significant one as it fulfills the end-time prophecy about the rise of Antichrist and war. Bringing justice and reconciliation to the land is already happening and so a theological analysis of it could provide more insights to the issues surrounding the country’s state of affairs. The discussion provides a biblical analysis on what the Bible says about the justice, truth, and reconciliation in Iraq. A clear interpretation of the situation is provided by relating it with the book of John, chapter 16. Iraq is one of the most mentioned nations in the Bible, next to Israel. Interestingly, it was the home of the Babylonian Empire, the Assyrian Empire, and later day Mesopotamia. Iraqi people were the descendants of native people who lived in the region since time immemorial, including the Babylonians, Syrians, Arcadians, and the Sumerian people. According to the Bible prophecies, God would bring ‘foreigners’ from every side to be risen against Babylon, which is probably the modern Iraq. In addition, there has been increasing evidence regarding the biblical prophecy of Antichrist being fulfilled in Iraq and nearby territories. This is because as per the Bible, the Antichrist would emerge from the lands between Assyria and Babylon, which is actually now a part of Iraq. The verses says that “when He has come, He will convict the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment: of sin, because they do not believe in Me; of righteousness,” (John 16:8-10). So, the judgment that God delivers for Iraq is that “He” would remove any egotistical leader of nations from his throne and bring peace to “His” people through reconciliation. Historically, the then Iraq was ruled by the Turkish-speaking Ottoman Empire for centuries until it was taken over by the Great Britain. After the independent ‘Iraq’ was created by British, the country underwent various political changes over the years, until the authoritative government of Saddam Hussein took over. He was also removed by the U.S. led coalition, as his ruthless government suppressed many sections of Iraqi people. However, on the contrary, the removal of Iraqi leaders like Saddam has not led to peace and stability with Iraqis being affected during the War and also in the post-war period. Though, the U. S. occupation of Iraq deteriorated the nation, it was rationalized as a justifiable cause to end the military regime of Hussein. The Bush administration launched attacks on Iraq to preempt the supposed development of Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD). Although, the inspection team could not find WMDs, the U. S. went ahead with its invasion plans for dubious reasons. So certain sections viewed the U. S. unilateral actions in Iraq as a war against a Muslim nation or non-Christians. However, the U. S. unofficially counters the above critical perspective by stating that they have the authority of the God to punish wrongdoers. As John 16 says, “the time is coming that whoever kills you will think that he offers God service” This implies that the war by America on Iraq cannot be judged with the Word of God. In the biblical sense, it can be interpreted that by the name of offering God service, America is killing innocent people of Iraq, which is not a justified act in the eyes of God. “Statistics tell us more than 100,000 Iraqi citizens also have been killed and nearly 3 million have been displaced” (Wiseman, 2013). Killing or war is incompatible with the teachings of Christ and therefore any nation that indulges in war or violent activity cannot serve the word of God. The Bible implies clearly on making peace with people, and not indulges in war with them. As Christians, it is important to love the enemies, seek justice from God alone, and serve as reconcilers of any conflict. According to the scriptures, the Lord is sovereign; He rules over all the nations; He sets up and removes rulers; and He determines the longevity of nations and their territories (). Similarly, the justice delivered by God cannot be reasoned with the moral judgments from human standpoint. Moreover, the Bible says all Christians to obey authorities and pray “for kings and all who are in authority, that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and reverence.” (1 Tim. 2:1-2). This suggests that the War on Terror by the U. S. against Iraq is in complete contrary to the Bible. “God can, and will, deliver judgments, both temporal and eternal, against the wicked, in consistent with his own program of operation. But man is not privy to the intricacies of his movements” (Jackson). The other key perspective is that, the Bible stresses on the importance of knowing the truth. “You shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.” (John 8:32). The primary reason for the war against Iraq by the Bush administration was to find the truth about the Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD). The U. S. officials along with the UN officials were engaged in finding evidences of those WMDs and also to find any connections between the Iraqi leadership and the banned terrorist group, the Al Qaeda. However, when they were not able to find it, they suppressed that truth and launched the invasion against Iraq. Moreover, the Bush administration negatively impacted Iraq and its people in the name of God and freedom. This kind of truth is not what the Bible talks about, as biblical justice and truth can only be acquired through the right means. When it is sought through wrong means, it creates more injustice in the world. “However, when He, the Spirit of truth, has come, He will guide you into all truth; for He will not speak on His own authority” (John 16:13). According to this verse, the spirit of God’s truth can be found and understood through right means and not by suppression of truth. So, U. S. invasion of Iraq on the pretext of finding non-existent WMDs is suppression of truth. It is important for God’s people to commit to peacemaking reconciliation and to create the kingdom that God envisions. Americans’ reconciliation with the Iraqis has to be done by evicting themselves out of the country and giving the power back to the locals. In addition, the government would help Iraq fight against the insurgents and Islamic militants. Biblical justice refers not just the “destruction of an oppressor and elevation of the oppressed, but instead justice is only achieved in beautiful fullness when the oppressed has been elevated back to their rightful place, and when those who were guilty of the oppressing have experienced repentance, healing, and restoration as well” (Corey, 2015). Currently, Iraq has expressed significant support for truth commissions and reconciliation efforts to emphasize their rights. However, “the possibility of truth commissions and national practices of reconciliation depends not solely on what religious is involved – i.e, Christianity, Islam, Judaism, etc., -- but on the political theology and differentiation practiced by the local religious actor.” (Phipott, 2007). References: Corey, Benajmin. “The 4 Most Important Things To Remember About Seeking Biblical Justice.” Patheos.com, 21 Jan. 2015. Web. 5 Mar 2015. Jackson, Wayne. “What About the Iraq “War” Controversy?” Christian Courier, 1998- 2015, Web. 5 Mar 2015. Philpott, Daniel. “Religion, Reconciliation, and Transitional Justice: The State of the Field.” University of Notre Dame, 17 October 2007. Web. 5 Mar 2015. The Holy Bible, New King James Version, Thomas Nelson Publishers, 2005. Wiseman, Karyn. L. “The Bible and the Iraq War 10 Years Later.” The Huffington Post, 19 May 2013. Web. 5 Mar 2015. Read More