Saturday, September 8, 2007

War Supporting Scripture

Stephen Mansfield, in his 2005 book on The Faith of the American Soldier, describes the experience of Russell Ripptoe, a U.S. soldier in Afghanistan and Iraq: “He saw men die for the first time. It changed him. He pressed into his Christian roots, prayed often with his chaplain, and found a new passion for the Bible. Somewhere along the way, someone gave him something that looked like his dog tags. It was called a Shield of Strength. On one side there was a picture of the American flag with the words ‘One Nation Under God,’ and on the other were the modified words of Joshua 1:9: ‘I will be strong and courageous. I will not be terrified, or discouraged; for the Lord my God is with me wherever I go.’ Russell carried the Shield of Strength with him and soon learned that thousands of his fellow soldiers did likewise. It was an inspiration to confidence in God, a seal of martial unity through faith.” (pp. 43-44)

The passage from Joshua 1:9 is in the context of God’s instructions to Joshua to “proceed to cross the Jordan. . . into the land that I am giving to them, to the Israelites. Every place that the sole of your foot will tread upon I have given to you. . . No one shall be able to stand against you all the days of your life. As I was with Moses, so I will be with you; I will not fail you or forsake you. Be strong and courageous; for you shall put this people in possession of the land that I swore to their ancestors to give them.” Joshua gave instructions for invading the land and the people answered, “Whoever rebels against your orders and disobeys your words, whatever you command, shall be put to death. Only be strong and courageous.” (quotes from Joshua chapter one.)

Here we see that thousands of U.S. soldiers in Iraq are today wearing a war-supporting portion of scripture around their necks.

This one example is part of a larger system of beliefs that supports groups and nations in their war-making. I think that most war-making in the 21st century will be framed in religious language. A great deal of self-serving idolatry will be presented as authentic religious faith. D. Koehn

Friday, September 7, 2007

Gods of War: Introduction

This is the first post for the new block, "Gods of War." The focus of this blog will be the relationship between religion and war. I have been reading and thinking in this field for over three years and I am currently starting a Ph.D. program to help focus and structure my research. I hope this will be a format for friends to keep up with my current work and thinking. Other readers and voices are also welcome.