In Matthew 7:12, Jesus says,
So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets.This may be a familiar verse to you--it's known as the Golden Rule.
As a Christian the more I learn about how America, the birthplace of democracy, is executing the war in Iraq, the more concerned I get about where our country is heading. I'm not so naive as to believe that the Golden Rule makes good politics, but for Christians, good politics should be secondary to "doing the right thing" or by answering the question, "What would Jesus do?"
I don't claim to have any divine insight into the mind of God, but I do read my Bible enough to state confidently that He would not jail a man's wife and use her as leverage to apprehend a suspect. And He certainly wouldn't do this to the young mother of a nursing baby.
Imagine if the police in your town were trying to find a robbery suspect, and failing to locate him, they instead chose to arrest and jail the suspect's wife. The town would be up in arms! Hell, the country would be up in arms. It would never happen in America one would hope, and yet it was reported today that our own U.S. Army is doing this very thing in Iraq.
This article reminded me of one I read less than two years ago detailing detention of children in Iraq. One particular story is frightening--the abuse of a 16 year-old boy in front of his father in order to get the father to "break". Guilty or not, I'd do and say anything to prevent the abuse of my daughters.
I believe America needs to take a long hard look at itself and ask if the means justify the end? I would hope and pray that Christians would be at the forefront leading this discussion, but the realist/cynic in me believes that most Christians have a misplaced faith in our leaders to "do the right thing". My question to them is, "What would Jesus do?"
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