I'm pro-life, literally.

So I just finished reading Irresistible Revolution by Shane Claiborne. The book is absolutely phenomenal and I recommend to, well, everyone. His book was a wonderful reminder that all Christians, especially myself, need to hear: our allegiance is to a King and His kingdom. Not to a political party, the government, a nation or a specific ideology. Christians should stand apart from partisan politics. That would truly be a testament to the radical teachings of Christ which stand in stark contrast to the world in which we live. Shane's book is about much, much more than politics. But his views on politics are very fascinating and thought provoking. Before I became a Christian, I always found it odd that Christians were "pro-war" (I really dislike that term, but I couldn't think of anything else). Jesus promoted nonviolence, peace and turning the other cheek. I mean, for goodness sake, God in human flesh let the Jews nail him to a cross despite his blatant innocence. Furthermore, Jesus did this to restore peace between God and His children. Can you get anymore peaceful than that? I don't think so. 

Initially as a Christian, I just assumed that I was supposed to be a Republican. I adhered to all things Republican, espoused all things conservative and despised all things liberal. But I soon experienced a cognitive dissonance of sorts, in the sense that I felt like Jesus just wouldn't support some aspects of Republicanism. The Jesus I had come to know was peaceful and loving at all costs. He gave HIS LIFE for peace. The Republican party is hardly peaceful. Our government is not peaceful. Our world is not peaceful. But my heart belongs to the Prince of Peace. I have no doubt that Jesus would disagree with the Republican party in terms of issues such as poverty, healthcare, capital punishment, caring for the earth, and war. But I don't think He would necessarily agree with the Democratic party either. During Jesus' time He never ascribed to the ideologies that surrounded Him, He forged a new path that preached justice, inclusion, peace and equality. I saw a bumper sticker the other day that made me think "Pro-life and Pro-war? I'm Anti-Hypocrite, thanks". I've come to discover that being pro-life means far more than being against abortion. The term pro-life should be taken as literal as possible; being pro-life means you are for all life. I believe that all life is valuable and that no life is beyond redemption because Christ's sacrifice was sufficient for everything. Terrorists, zygotes, embryos, fetuses, convicted felons, rich, poor, heroine addicts, tax collectors, politicians, ragamuffins, whatever, it doesn't matter. We're all the same in God's eyes. We're all equally wretched and treasured. Its such a confusingly beautiful paradox. And our God is so great that He can make sense of such a paradox. 

Pardon my tangent. Moving on. Shane Claiborne made a trip to Iraq in 2003 when the "War on Terror" was raging. He issued a purpose statement for his trip and its absolutely beautiful. It definitely makes you think. I want people to read it. Its worth your time, I promise.

"I'm going to Iraq because I believe in a God of scandalous grace. If I believed terrorists were beyond redemption, I would need to rip out half of my New Testament Scriptures, for they were written by a converted terrorist. I have pledged allegiance to a King who loved evildoers so much he died for them (and of course, the people of Iraq are no more evil or more holy than the people of the US), teaching us that there is something worth dying for but nothing worth killing for. While terrorists were nailing him to the cross, my Jesus pleaded that they be shown mercy, for they knew not what they were doing. We are all wretched, and we are all beautiful. No one is beyond redemption. May we see in the hands of the oppressors our own hands, and in the faces of the oppressed our own faces. We are made of the same dust, and we cry the same salty tears. 

I am going to Iraq in the footsteps of an executed and risen God. I follow Jesus who rode into Jerusalem on the back of a donkey at Passover, knowing full well what he was walking into. This Jesus of the margins suffered an imperial execution by an oppressive regime of wealthy and pious elites. And now he dares me and woos me to come and follow, to take up my cross, to lose my life to find it, with the promises that life is more powerful than death and that it is more courageous to love our enemies than to kill them. 

I am going to Iraq to stop terrorism. There are Muslim and Christian extremists who kill in the name of their gods. Their leaders are millionaires who live in comfort while their citizens die neglected in the streets. I believe in another kingdom that belongs to the poor and to the peacemakers. I believe in a safe world, and I know this world will never be safe as long as we try to use violence to drive out violence. Violence only begets the very thing it seeks to destroy. My King warned his followers, "If we pick up the sword, we will die by the sword". How true this has proved to be throughout history. We armed Saddam in the conflict against Iran, and we armed Bin Laden in the struggle against the Soviet Union. Timothy McVeigh, the most terrifying domestic terrorist in US history, was trained in the Gulf War, where he said he turned into an animal.

I am going to Iraq to stand in the way of the war. Thousands of soldiers have gone to Iraq, willing to kill people they do not know because of a political allegiance. I go willing to die for people I do not know because of a spiritual allegiance. The soldiers have incredible courage, courage enough to die for something they believe in. I pray that Christians would have that same courage. The command of the soldiers is handed down, through rank after rank, from a human commander-in-chief clinging to the myth of redemptive violence. My mandate is straight from the mouth of my heavenly King, through the lips of the Prince of Peace-to love my enemies- and yet still I falter. May we cling to the truth that every human is created in the image of God. Do we believe that children in Iraq are just as precious as the children of New York? A love for our own people is not a bad thing, but why should love stop at the border? We, the people of rebirth, have an allegiance that runs much deeper than nationalism.

I am going to Iraq as a missionary. In an age of omnipresent war, it is my hope that Christian peacemaking becomes the new face of global missions. May we stand by those who face the impending wrath of empire and whisper, "God loves you, I love you, and if my country bombs your country, I will be right here with you." Otherwise, our gospel has little integrity. As one of the saints said, "If they come for the innocent and do not pass over our bodies, then cursed be our religion". May our lives interrupt terrorism and war, in small ways, in large ways, in moments of crisis, and in everyday rhythms. These are extreme times. And I go to Iraq as an extremist for love.

'And now, compelled by the Spirit, I am going to Jerusalem, not knowing what will happen to me there. I only know that in every city the Holy Spirit warns me that prison and hardships are facing me. However, I consider my life worth nothing to me; my only aim is to finish the race and complete the task the Lord Jesus has given me-the task of testifying to the good news of God's grace' (Acts 20:22-24)". 

I want to be an extremist for love. 

Grace and PEACE,

Hillary