This is the fourth message in our October series, The Battles Men Fight. Because of the Hamas attack on Israel two weeks ago, I’ve changed the topic of today’s episode to address a battle that all Christians are called to fight—the battle to shape our culture’s worldview to conform to biblical truth, instead of letting false worldviews blind our culture to reality, because we are silent. This episode examines how Hamas’ worldview is very different from that of the western world and why it led to the inhuman massacre that we have all witnessed.
Ideas have consequences. BAD ideas have VICTIMS. On October 7, in a highly coordinated attack on Israel, the Islamic terrorist group Hamas fired thousands of rockets, overwhelming the nation’s Iron Dome defense system, and sent hundreds of heavily armed militants, breaching the border. In this barbaric assault, civilians, including women and children, were targeted, in neighborhoods, at bus stops, and at public events. At least 1400 Israelis were killed making it the worst day of slaughter of Jews since the Holocaust. When you compare the 1400 death toll to its small population, this horrific day was ten times worse for Israel than 9/11 was for America. Videos poured in from the attack documenting the atrocities. The site of the largest slaughter was a music festival, where some 5,000 people gathered for what was billed as “a journey of unity and love.” Nearly 300 were killed, and women were raped next to the bodies of their friends. Hamas didn’t just commit atrocities: they filmed and broadcast them.
As the world tried to make sense of such incomprehensible evil, I was struck by John Stonestreets’ Breakpoint commentary at the Colson Center:
“The despicable and horrendous attacks by Hamas against civilians last week, including beheading children and kidnapping the elderly, seems a throwback to some distant, barbaric past of human history. We may have thought the world had long ago outgrown such barbarity, but it hasn’t. In fact, as shocking as it is, the kinds of atrocities carried out by the Hamas terrorists are the norms of warfare throughout most of human history. Modern notions of just war, proportionality, and distinguishing between civilians and combatants are exceptions to the kinds of warfare conducted by the Assyrians and Babylonians, the Vikings, the Mongols, and the Aztecs. Similar barbarity continues today such as the Rwandan genocide, the actions of terror groups like Boko Haram, and in African civil wars. Such brutality should sicken us, but it is far more common in human history, even modern history, than we want to admit.”
However, if such barbarity is so horrifyingly and historically “normal,” where did the world get the idea that such inhuman acts are so wrong? Why did most of the world shudder in disbelief and revulsion at what Hamas did?
The answer is the impact of the Christian worldview in the west and through the west’s influence throughout most of the world. Although some ancient arguments were made against murdering civilians because they were more useful as working slaves and sex slaves, the Christians’ ethical arguments about the conduct of war, in contrast, saw the protection of non-combatants as a matter of moral principle. That principle was grounded in a view of human value unique and distinct to Christianity, that every human being is made in the image and likeness of God. The story of the way that Christian Just War theory changed the world’s culture is a story our kids need to know about. Here is the story:
Just War Theory. In the 13th century, theologian Thomas Aquinas synthesized biblical teachings on peace and war, proposing what was called Just War Theory. His thinking had a lasting impact on later generations and was part of an emerging consensus in Medieval Europe on just war. It was developed further by scholars into international law. Just war ideas, which were well established by the 19th century, found their practical application in the Hague Peace Conferences and in the founding of the League of Nations in 1920. They became the basis of the humane treatment of civilians and prisoners required by the Geneva Conventions.
The Geneva Conventions (April 21-August 12, 1949) are international humanitarian laws that establish international legal standards for humanitarian treatment in war. Rooted in the Christian concepts of the dignity of every human, and biblical thought about just warfare, the purpose of these four conventions was to establish protections afforded to non-combatants in wartime, including civilians under military occupations and prisoners of war. As you hear this description of what is morally right in warfare, note its contrast to what Humas did.
“Noncombatant” includes all civilians, soldiers who have surrendered, wounded soldiers who have ceased fighting, and captured combatants. Noncombatants may not be harmed in any way.
- Specifically, those captured must be “treated humanely, without any adverse distinction founded on race, color, religion or faith, sex.”
- The killing of all civilians is prohibited.
- Beating, rape, cruel treatment of any soldier or civilian is prohibited.
- Mutilation, torture, outrages upon dignity…humiliating and degrading treatment are forbidden.
- Taking civilian hostages of any kind is forbidden.
In a culture where many take shots at Christianity, our children need to know that every one of the above articles of required conduct for treating other humans humanely in war is the result of the biblical worldview that every human is made in the image of God, having inestimable worth and dignity. It is THOSE CULTURES impacted by this worldview that adopted the Geneva Conventions like the United States and Israel, which abide by these moral principles. So long as these core ethical ideas of the Judeo-Christian tradition hold sway, they act as a check on the worst impulses of our fallen nature, impulses that quickly surface in time of war. Of course, war crimes still occur by Western actors. But because of the influence of the biblical worldview, such barbarities are crimes for which soldiers will be tried in a court of law, and if guilty, severely punished. What a contrast to what we saw Hamas doing.
On October 7th, our children and the rest of the world saw the inhuman barbarity that can happen in places where this Christian ethic is missing, as it is in large parts of the Middle East. This is especially true of Islamic nations. Islam rejects as idolatry the idea that humans are made in the image of God. The Hadiths, a source of Islamic authority second only to the Quran, calls for the extermination of the Jews, a fact explicitly noted in the Hamas charter. Without grounding for the value and dignity of every human of every tongue and tribe and nation, false ideologues and religions justify hatred of those outside their tribe.
QUICK HISTORY OF THE MIDDLE EAST CONFLICT
To understand the moral claims made by the actors in the Middle East we need a quick history lesson. Before WWI, Palestine was part of the Turkish Ottoman Empire. During WWI, Britain passed the Balfour Declaration, in 1917, announcing its support for the establishment of a "national home for the Jewish people in Palestine.” Remember the Jews were dispersed across the world after 70 AD when Jerusalem was pillaged by the Romans and the temple destroyed. Palestine in 1917 was an Ottoman region with a small minority of Jewish population. British politicians adopted the Balfour Declaration partly to garner the support of Jews for their war effort against the Turks.
The declaration called for “safeguarding the civil and religious rights for the Palestinian Arabs” who composed the vast majority of the local population. (But the British government acknowledged twenty years later that the local population's views should have been taken into account and in 2017 that the declaration should have called for the protection of the Palestinian Arabs' political rights.) The local Christian and Muslim community of Palestine, which constituted almost 90% of the population, strongly opposed this declaration. During WWI, Britain’s army drove the Ottoman Turks out of the Middle East. The Britts then broke their word to non-Ottoman Arabs, and in 1920, through the League of Nations, set up a geopolitical entity called Mandatory Palestine. Meanwhile, in Europe the Jewish Zionist movement called for Jews to migrate to Palestine to repatriate Israel. As might be expected, Arab nationalists opposed this effort, asserting Arab rights over the former Ottoman territories and seeking to prevent Jewish migration. As a result, Arab–Jewish tensions grew over the next 25 years in the Britt’s Mandatory Palestine.
The influence of Zionism grew and in November of 1947, The United Nations approved a plan for 1) an independent Arab State, 2) an independent Jewish State, and 3) the city of Jerusalem to be under an international trusteeship system. The UN’s vote caused joy in the Jewish community and anger in the Arab community. Violence broke out between the sides, escalating into civil war. The Arab League members, Egypt, Transjordan, Syria, Lebanon and Iraq refused to accept the UN partition plan and proclaimed the right of self-determination for the Arabs across the whole of Palestine. The Arab states marched their forces into what had, until the previous day, been the British Mandate for Palestine, starting the first Arab–Israeli War. After an initial loss of territory by the Jewish state, the tide turned in the Israelis' favor and they pushed the Arab armies back beyond the borders of the proposed Arab state.
I present this history to prevent Christians from mindlessly assuming that Palestinian citizens have no case to oppose Israel. Their land was taken from them and given to others through the influence of Zionists upon the United Nations. There are two sides to this conflict and Britain has admitted it was unjust in giving Palestinians (many of whom are Christians) no say in the two-state plan. My point is that there IS political justification for Palestinians to oppose Israel. However, there IS NO MORAL JUSTIFICATION for the actions Hamas took. None.
4 OBSERVATIONS LINKING HAMAS BEHAVIOR TO THEIR WORLDVIEW
1. Unspeakable savagery committed against women, children and the elderly can be expected when the biblical worldview is missing. Hamas demonstrated this truth. But the horrific brutalities we witnessed are no different than those that took place from April through June 1994 when more than 800,000 Rwandans were brutally slaughtered by fellow citizens in a state-led genocide targeting the Tutsi ethnic group in Africa. About 75% of the Tutsi population died in the mass slaughter. What we have the opportunity to teach our kids and grandkids is how important it is for Christians to speak truth into their culture. The Hamas brutality springs directly from its worldview. My prayer is that the massacre perpetrated upon Israel’s people by Hamas will motivate every Christian to see what happens when Christians don’t function as salt and light in the culture.
2. Hamas’ immoral disregard for the value of and dignity of human life proves there is NO moral equivalency between their actions and Israel’s. There is NO MORAL JUSTIFICATION for Hamas’ barbarity. You will hear many pro-Palestinians try to argue moral equivalency. After all, Israel took their land. But the Biblical worldview cannot support that argument. Perhaps warfare (I’m not smart enough to know) could be justified. But biblically, there is NO MORAL EQUIVALENCY here for the barbaric slaughter of civilians, rape, mutilation, civilian hostage taking, or firing of missiles at civilian targets. There is no justification for such horrific acts. Only a godless worldview could see equivalency.
3. Hamas’ disregard for the value and dignity of human beings is demonstrated in their use of Palestinian civilians as human shields in Gaza. Hamas’ utter disregard for human life is manifest in the well-established fact that it launches its missiles from hospitals and schools, using civilians as human shields. Such cruel attempts to cause the Israeli army to kill civilians through collateral damage while destroying Hamas’ rocket-launching capability are despicable. The savagery of this disrespect for life is unfathomable. In Gaza, Hamas has set up blockades to prevent Palestinians from leaving Gaza before the Israeli invasion. They want Palestinians Arabs and Christians to die so Hamas can use their deaths for propaganda purposes.
In sharp contrast, the IDF is bound by the Geneva conventions. They will do all they can to prevent civilian casualties. Israel is dropping leaflets from the air, telling people to leave Gaza. Israeli soldiers will die because Israel tries so hard to eliminate civilian casualties. This is NOT because they are Christians or worship Yahweh; Israel is one of the most secular countries in the world. They will protect civilians because their public and personal morality has been shaped by the spread of the biblical worldview that values human life throughout western culture.
4. Hamas’ ideology urges them to HATE Jews. Outside of a few reformers, Islam rejects as idolatry the idea that humans are made in the image of God. The Hadiths, a source of Islamic authority second only to the Quran, calls for the destruction of the Jews. The words are, You will fight against the Jews and you will kill them until even a stone would say: Come here, Muslim, there is a Jew (hiding himself behind me); kill him. A global caliphate (kingdom where Sharia Law is imposed) has been the acknowledged aim of Muslim terrorist groups for the last twenty years. The Hamas charter specifically identifies the goal of establishing a national caliphate in Palestine which requires the destruction and removal of the nation of Israel. The extermination of the Jewish race is expressly called for in the Hamas charter. This is the destructive worldview that led to the massacre the world witnessed on October 7.
It is worth noting that the racial hatred of Hamas is quite parallel to critical race theory being promoted today through social media. Hamas’ ideology is that Israel is the OPPRESSOR; therefore, every action against them is morally justified. This is the same argument that Mao Zedong used with his teenage Red Guard justifying the slaughter of the rich OPPRESSIVE landowners. It is the same argument promoted by Black Lives Matter. Burning and looting businesses in city neighborhoods is morally justified because the rich (white) business owners are the OPPRESSOR CLASS. Because cisgender, white women are part of the OPPRESSOR CLASS, they have no moral right to privacy or safety in locker rooms when men claiming to identify as trans women invade their private spaces. The Hamas’ version of critical race theory needs to be identified for what it is, so that the rising generation learns to recognize this destructive ideology which tries to justify doing evil in the name of justice.
ONE MORE WORLDVIEW OBSERVATION ABOUT THE WAR IN ISRAEL
It is widely believed today that one of the barriers to world peace is religion. After all, most religions make exclusive truth claims, which lead to the fanatical intolerance that you see between Islamic extremists and Zionist extremists. I have heard the war between Hamas and Israel described in these terms. Such claims are misguided, however:
- Israel is not a religious country at all. In fact, it is one of the least religious, most secular nations in the world. But its worldview has been shaped by western thinking about protecting civilians rooted in Christianity’s high view of the value of human life.
- The great twentieth century experiment of eliminating religion so that world peace could be experienced ended in utter failure. Mao, Stalin, Lenin, and Polpot outlawed religion but under their iron-fisted rule, 85 million humans were slaughtered. As one author wrote, The 20th century gave rise to one of the greatest and most distressing paradoxes of human history; that the greatest intolerance and violence of that century were practiced by those who believed religion caused intolerance and violence. (McGrath, The Twilight of Atheism).
- It is not religion that causes intolerance; it is what the religion teaches about those outside its tribe. Hamas’ worldview is that every Jew should be exterminated along with any who assist them (like Americans). Christianity’s worldview could not contrast more. The early Christians mixed people from different races and classes in ways that seemed scandalous to those around them. The Graeco-Roman world tended to despise the poor, but Christians gave generously not only to their own poor but to those of other faiths. In broader society women had very low status, being subjected to high levels of female infanticide, forced marriages, and lack of economic equality. Christianity afforded women much greater security and equality than had previously existed in the ancient classical world. During the terrible urban plagues of the first two centuries, Christians cared for the sick and dying in the city, often at the cost of their lives. As Tim Keller points out, "Christians have within their belief system the strongest possible resources for practicing sacrificial service, generosity, and peace-making. At the very heart of their view of reality was a man who died for his enemies, praying for their forgiveness. Reflection on this could only lead to a radically different way of dealing with those who were different from them" (The Reason for God).
It meant that when they followed the WORLDVIEW, which they professed to believe, they could not act in violence or oppression towards their opponents. Ideas have consequences. GOOD ideas have BENEFICIARIES.
For Further Prayerful Thought:
- Contrast the worldviews of the Hamas terrorists with the worldview of those who experienced abject revulsion at what they did.
- What observations stood out to you about the link between Hamas’ worldview and their behavior October 7th?
- How does the Hamas Israel war illustrate the truth that ideas have consequences—bad ideas have victims and good ideas have beneficiaries?
- How would you answer the statement—the constant war between Islamic terrorists and Israel just proves the intolerance of religion is the reason we can’t have peace in the world?
