Are Evangelicals Stuck in the Political Swamp?

The sordid histories of both institutional Christianity and Islam are replete with political and military enmeshment. Our Christian forbears left us the legacy of the Crusades, the Spanish Inquisition and the Wars of Religion—sterling examples of what happens when sincere obedience to Jesus is subverted by a political/military/economic agenda, endorsed by clergy…

Would St. Francis Willingly be Captured by ISIS?

During the 5th Crusade St. Francis undertook what most considered a senseless and foolhardy mission: convert the most powerful Muslim in the world. So radical was the Sultan he had promised a Byzantine gold piece for anyone who brought the head of a Christian.  He was “treacherous, brainless and false hearted,” but where others saw the face of evil, Francis saw a man without the Savior and compassion welled up inside of him.

As Francis and his trusted friend Illumimato walked onto the battlefield, they were caught, beaten and brought to the Sultan who was happy because he thought they wanted to become Muslims.  “On the contrary,” said Francis, “We have a message that you should surrender your soul to God.” Thus he proclaimed the Triune God and Jesus Christ the Savior of all. The Sultan did not convert for it was he who retook Jerusalem. By God’s grace St. Francis was not killed but that possibility did not deter him.

In these perilous times, when radical Islam is carrying out horrific acts of violence, Christians must reach out to Muslims with courage and compassion. We must understand their concerns and engage with them in witness. Most Muslims wake up with no church, no Bible, and no one to tell them about the Way, the Truth and the Life.  Five times a day from countless minarets in their midst, they hear God is great, but who will tell them God is love?

False Messiah Beheaded in Mecca 37 Years Ago

It happened during the annual pilgrimage, as tens of thousands milled around the black-robed Ka’aba.  Arms had been secretly smuggled underneath the Ka’aba, mostly in coffins (relatives believe in this way deceased loved ones receive a special blessing before burial).  It took two weeks to bring things under control.  In the blood bath, hundreds were killed, scores wounded and the insurgents (including the fake Mehdi) quickly beheaded. Communications with the outside world had been cut, but somehow the millenarian leader of Iran, Ayatollah Khomeini, announced (via radio) that it was the work of Americans and Jews.  Muslims believed him…

Biblical Perspective on Israel and Palestine

Western support for the state of Israel has often been unquestioning; and Christians (especially evangelical Christians, and especially in the USA) have played a highly significant role in strengthening this instinctive sympathy for Israel. This support for Israel, however, combined with all the different policies of Western powers linked with it in recent years (including the war in Iraq) is probably at the top of the list of grievances that have fueled the anger of Arabs and Muslims in recent years. I might even go as far as to suggest that if the West after 1967 had dealt with the Israeli-Palestinian conflict in a more even-handed way and pressed both sides hard and consistently towards a peaceful resolution on the basis of international law, 9/11 might never have happened.