War and hell are inextricably interlinked in Christian history and theology. Below are some thoughts about both, with relation to a movie and a book.
I. The Christian and War: Reflections on “Saving Private Ryan”
“War is hell”, observed Civil War General William Tecumseh Sherman. And Steven Spielberg dipped us right into its fiery midst in his 1998 summer release.
War is indeed hell. Yet, in the long history of the Christian Church, apart from the earliest era, every war engaged in throughout Christendom has been supported by the Church on both sides of the conflict. How in the name of Jesus can this be?
What, for starters, of Christ’s express words?: “Love your enemies (Matt. 5, Luke 6).” Further, how can Christians do an end run around Jesus’ explicit teaching by reverting to Old Testament endorsement of war when Jesus flatly said?: “So in everything [except war?], do to others [except your enemies? - see Matt. 5:43ff] what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets (Matt 7:12).”; and “... ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor [except your enemies?] as yourself.’ All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments (Matt 22:37-40).”
In response and as a follow-up to Ron Dart's article on the Emerging Church, I would like to add the perspective of someone who rubs shoulders with, and is occasionally labelled as, "emerging church." First, thanks to Ron for your excellent article on the "emerging church" movement. I'd like to respond by nuancing some of their ecclesial trajectory and the challenges they face.
As a champion of the historic church, you tend naturally to assess the emerging church as it evolves relative to the stability of the great streams of Christian faith (Eastern Orthodox, Roman Catholic, and Anglican). You correctly note that much of the emerging church movement continues to be a further fragmentation in the long history of schism wrought by the sixteenth century reformers. The splintering ad nauseum is absolutely a sign and symptom of rotten concrete in the foundations (termites in the hull, no doubt). And so, to an observer such as yourself who deems the great ships of faith to be more reliable in the face of history's spiritual storms, the tiny independent churches that continue to multiply must appear very fragile and hardly sea-worthy.