SD-12: Again, I may comment less on the sura "Battle Gains" than on how I come to such writing from a Christian perspective
This sura is set to respond to what the Muslims are to do when battle is won - what do you do with the 'stuff.' In the Hebrew Scriptures this is done within the story telling of the defeat of the Canaanites. In those stories, there was to be no booty kept by the people. It was not theirs to keep. God was victorious not the warriors. Well this is quite the same here in the Qur'an. But as I've noted previously, we do not hear the story of the battle or a story of a misdeed. We simply are given the prohibitions.
As I was reading I wanted to come up with a comparable story about warfare and how one is to fight and then deal with the end of a battle. We have no story like ones in the Qur'an or the Hebrew Scriptures. Our 'Christian' battles were fought after our 'book' was closed or close to being closed. WE took on the ethic of empire. It isn't until much later do we hear of the just war argument. If there is war - this is what must be in place. I won't state those items here - but they were set up to make sure war did not brutalize non-combatant. Well, under those rules, no Christian can be involved in any of the wars in which we find ourselves.
At the same time, the fighting in the Qur'an had to do with defending the young faith from attacks by 'polytheist' who were our to kill the Muslims. The same can be seen in the stories of the Jews.
Christians do not go to war against other religions - unless of course you look at the Crusades and the wars during the Holy Roman Empire. In those wars, there was an Empire Religion that was Christianity. But, I would insist, these were not Christian wars.
Finally, I must say that even in our country, the themes and sounds of Christianity are used to rally the 'troops' to pick up arms and fight. They must be defeated so that the life we have (which so many say is a Christian life) will not be threatened by anyone.
On this day after the 9-11 anniversary, I would refer back to an excellent sermon I heard yesterday. It was all about forgiveness. That is our way of waging war - if you can even call it that. We forgive - even when there is good reason to demand retribution. We forgive - foolishly. We are to be a part of the resistance to our warring madness. This is not a easy way. This is not self-preserving. It is to be the end of warring madness in which one side must prove to the world that we are right and the other is wrong. We are to forgive so that the future does not continue to spin the same old stories that make war necessary.
Connection: If all we do is forgive - where would we be? I cannot even begin to speculate - it is too foreign - alien. And yet, that is what the Apostle Paul would remind us - we are aliens in this place. We are not of this world. This is not talking about another place. It is talking about a life that is now available - but one that is absurd. Absurdity Lutheran Church - how would that play on the sign board?
Blessed are you, God of Mercy, for it is within your gracious Reign that we are given the power to forgive and begin again as though we are a part of your living Word in the world today. Amen.
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