Praise the Lord and Pass the Ammunition

by Diana Butler Bass 10-02-2009

This week, a friend sent me a link to a video from Southwestern Baptist Seminary in Fort Worth, Texas titled “Taking the Hill.” I thought it might be a political video encouraging conservative Christians to go to Washington to lobby against health care or some such thing. Actually, it was much worse. “Taking the Hill” is a bizarre call to evangelize depicting Christians as “soldiers” in a war for souls under their “real” commander-in-chief, Jesus. It reveals almost pornographic-religious obsession with guns and violence that should be deeply disturbing for any faith community.

The “Taking the Hill” campaign was launched last month at the seminary. According the September 17 edition of The Baptist Press, President Paige Patterson kicked off the project:

FORT WORTH, Texas (BP)–Dressed in camouflage and stationed as the gunner in a Chenowth Desert Fast Attack Vehicle, Paige Patterson stormed onto the chapel stage.   After firing a round of blanks from a .50-caliber Browning machine gun, Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary’s president took his place behind the pulpit and initiated operation “Taking the Hill.”

… Patterson lifted his Bible, pointing out that God has armed believers with His Word, along with prayer and proclamation. Then, reading 2 Corinthians 5, he urged believers to testify to the Gospel of Christ, reminding them of Paul’s motivation: the “terror of the Lord,” the righteous judge of all men and women, and the “love of Christ,” who died to save all who believe.

… Lifting his left hand, Patterson saw that it was covered with blood — the blood of a woman who died without hearing the Gospel although she lived less than a mile from the seminary. His right hand was covered with the blood of a man who took his own life because Patterson did not witness to him at God’s prompting.

I know that it is a free country, and that we have both religious freedom and certain rights to own guns. But when these two rights interweave — as they are doing — it is dangerous to both church and state. Any church that advances such a crusading and violent vision is far from its founder’s vision, “Blessed are the peacemakers, for theirs is the Kingdom of God.” And the state that fails to understand that people with guns who believe that God has armed them are dangerous isn’t serving the good of a peaceable society.

Although weapons and religion may have been natural partners in the Middle Ages or on the American frontier, isn’t it time to recognize that we live in the twenty-first century? Guns and grace don’t go together. Shouldn’t true religion — genuinely transformative faith — call God’s people away from violence and toward passionate peacemaking?

Diana Butler Bass is pretty much a postmodern progressive. In addition to blogging here, she also blogs at Progressive Revival and is the author of the new book, A People’s History of Christianity: The Other Side of the Story.

Categories: Theology, Violence and Nonviolence

canucklehead

Perhaps Paige is preparing to celebrate the 90th anniversary of fundamentalist pastor J. Frank Norris's (First Baptist - Fort Worth) shooting that man in his office. In self defense, of course.

SisterMarie

Canucklehead, I think you may be onto something there. Life would be so much simpler if we were to follow Brother Pat's advice. Sometimes it might require human intervention to "take out" the object of our intent; at other times (as in the case of the Dover school board), we may have to depend on divine intervention. If only Moses had some automatic rifles, he and the Israelites could have faced those Egyptians down at the Red Sea.

ptrowe

I find it disturbing because it is not hard at all to close your eyes and imagining Osama Bin Laden or Ayman Al Zawhiri making pretty much the same speech. Enthusiam is great but there are better ways to spread the Word. Jesus Himself told his followers to put down their swords.

Hannity2

Thanks for the link Diane. I can't wait to send “Taking the Hill." to my pastor and hopefully get my own church involved. How often have I read on Sojo that you must take things in "context"??? And now when there is something that is obviously a metaphor, you rip the guy.

The apostle Paul used the same metaphor when talking about spiritual WARFARE. Praise God for a church that is so concerned with reaching the lost. Consumed with those around them who are dying and going to hell. And ready to battle Satan who hates them and wants to devour them. It IS warfare. And it's not about guns and violence. Its about prayer, fasting, the word and the Gospel.

How can someone who calls themself a Christian focus on the metaphor and not the fact that this group is on fire to spread the Gospel???

Setting aside the politics of this blog...left or right...heathcare or not. Can those who name the name of Jesus not agree that the spreading of the GOSPEL is THE calling of all of us???

Ephesians 6:
* 10.
* Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power.

* 11.
* Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes.

* 12.
* For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.

* 13.
* Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand.

* 14.
* Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place,

* 15.
* and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace.

* 16.
* In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one.

* 17.
* Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.

* 18.
* And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints.

* 19.
* Pray also for me, that whenever I open my mouth, words may be given me so that I will fearlessly make known the mystery of the gospel,

* 20.
* for which I am an ambassador in chains. Pray that I may declare it fearlessly, as I should.

NMRod

There's more than meets the eye of a simple innocent metaphor for salvation going on here; Paige's theological conservatism is more the mirror for his own personal predilections. One could say that his religion is conservative (in the narrow sense of preserving traditional prejudices of last century's Southern Baptist cultural practice) because his own personal politics are regionally conservative.

Paige's own personal site revels in his big-game hunting - high-calibre bagging of leopard, lion and buffalo on safari in Africa and he's given numerous public presentations on this avocation. No doubt the firearms, domination, violence metaphor is therefore high in his psychology.

He's not your "lion-lays-down-with-the-lamb" millenialist, for certain.

As well, Paige is famous for dismissing all the female professors at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminar, since he believes the highest calling of a woman, in his own words, must be to be a mother and grandmother - he will not suffer any woman to teach any man - about anything. This policy achieved some notoriety with the dismissal of Hebrew professor Sheri Klouda when she sued for wrongful termination - a termination upheld by a Texas court as well within the province of a religious organisation which holds such beliefs.

What we can say is that this is not like Paul turning swords into ploughshares by the analogy in Ephesians, but really quite the opposite - relating the Gospel to incite warfare due to a fixation upon violence, usually the purview of male dominance fantasies.

Paige has been criticized for shielding male professors who had engaged in practices of sexual predation against female staff members under their authority, and hence his.

I do not believe Paige believes, like most Southern Baptist theologians, that there is anything wrong with hating and killing those designated by political authorities as enemies, including torturing or killing prisoners, as long as it is ordered by a United States President. These gentleman are really chaplains to the nation, using religion to keep the morale of the population in support of military objectives - whatever the real intentions that motivate those policies.

Towards this end, they seek by juxtaposing violent graphic images of soldiers wielding weaponry with the name of Jesus, in order to dull the conscience of a nation somewhat respectful of Christian traditions.

We are left with an Orwellian misuse of language and ideas in which "war is peace," "hate is love" and "love your enemy" means "kill your enemy."

Evangelism as military recruitment?

SisterMarie

Perhaps they think that the "Left Behind" series is more than just fiction?

calledme

Did you notice that even when Paul talks in the terms of warfare, he never mentions sharpening his own sword, or attacking at dawn? It's one thing to use metaphor that has us taking on God's power, as God plans it, and let Him use us to carry his work, and another altogether to hear it as a call for us to pick up our own power, with our own plans, and head out to the battlefield to kill the heathens. There aren't any of those battles in the NT, far as I can tell. And when Paul writes of "warfare for Christ," he's usually doing it while, right before, or right after, being a prisoner.

Christ won by dying. That's the example he sets for us.

cwat52

It's true..in this day in age how can grace and gun's coincide, especially in a Christian movement. How can we share, expose, practice, and teach the love of Christ with violent movements such as this.
I guess part of me understands that we are warriors for the Lord - God's army. But this is not a military of aggressive attack and violent movement, it is an army of unconditional love and scandalous grace (how ironic).

PDBurns

Diane, I respect that you are uncomfortable with using military vehicles and weapons as a metaphor for spreading the gospel. I have often questioned motivations or methods when others are witnessing in a way that is uncomfortable for me. However when I read Philippians 1:15-18 I hear Paul being incredibly optimistic. The text reads: It is true that some preach Christ out of envy and rivalry, but others out of goodwill. The latter do so in love, knowing that I am put here for the defense of the gospel. The former preach Christ out of selfish ambition, not sincerely, supposing that they can stir up trouble for me while I am in chains. But what does it matter? The important thing is that in every way, whether from false motives or true, Christ is preached. And because of this I rejoice. It seems that the Gospel is bigger than any one method or ministry, and if it can even rise above selfishness, competition and envy it certainly can rise above military metaphors. After reading Paul I cannot stand back and judge their methods and motives. I must simply pray that all of Christ is being preached.

PASTOR JEFF

A president of a seminary engaging in these theatrics. How must his professors respond? What must his wife and children think? Put away your sword, Peter.

Lord_Voldemort

Much as I support second amendment rights, and a strong defense, I have to admit this is just a wee bit over-the-top.

LV

Knightscrossing

This is not even funny and all Christians should be appalled.

halflight

By all means. And while we're at it, Let's clean up all those smutty references in Song of Songs. We can't trust people to recognize metaphors, and who knows, some of those seminary students may get confused and start killing their neighbors, rather than knocking on doors and handing out religious tracts.

This is the kind of simplistic character assassination disguised as "analysis" I expect from the MSNBC crowd, not from Sojourners.

canucklehead

If some Muslim group had pulled a stunt like this, your American media would be all over them and you know it. This was a foolish publicity pitch and Paige should be ashamed of himself.

squeaky

At first I was appalled. And I mostly agree with the sentiments expressed by the author and the responders.

But then it occurred to me that this is metaphor. I have often criticized Biblical interpretations for being taken literally when they have been intended as metaphor. Now the shoe is on the other foot--perhaps I don't like the metaphor, but it would be a mistake to think this church means to literally convert people at the point of a gun. They are talking not about physical battle, but spiritual battle.

That said, do I think this was a wise use of metaphor? Not at all. Especially within a culture that is filled with guns and violence, and especially when people often don't understand metaphor and might take this literally. That, and the metaphor itself, especially in the way it was presented, glorifies violence and warfare, and appeals to the baser aspects of our humanity.

It is ironic that such metaphor is used to promote Christ's Gospel of peace. Even more ironic is that such metaphor is found in Scripture, (eg Ephesians, or the Word of God being referred to as a Sword).

letjusticerolldown

Ditto. I attempted to make similar point.

I think the heart of the Biblical metaphor is to battle--not warfare as such. We are contending for something and against something. This is not simply a passive existence. It is not solely a matter of "being." There is something at stake of great value.

Peacemaking is not passive. Non-violent action is not passive. Prayer is often not passive. Love is not passive. Expressing and working out and manifesting the Gospel is not passive.

Naming and opposing evil is not passive. We are deluded if we think there is not a life and death struggle being waged all around us and in us.

Dr. King lived in a troubled time--yet he had great gifts and great opportunities and choices. The waters in which he lived were not overwhelming. And he chose to step into the conflict--and a strategy of non-violence exposed the true nature of the conflict. And for that, there was a price to be paid---his life.

This is not a picnic.

The lies that pervade our culture are evil and deadly. We wink and nod. If we confronted--we would be surprised at the vicious power that would come back at us.

squeaky

Agreed. To add: We confront hate and evil with peace and love. Confrontation is not passive, but it isn't aggressive, either, as exemplified in King who never used violence.

We strive with those in this world, but it is a spiritual battle, not one with flesh and blood. And I sometimes wonder if we really took Paul's words seriously if we would see the Kingdom advance more rapidly. If we contended in the heavenly realms with prayer, and really believed it changed things (even if what it changes is us, and our attitudes and approaches to the world), how might that change the world? How might that change that neighbor we don't like--or better yet, how might that change our attitude towards that neighbor?

Anothernonymous

Amen. And BTW, this is exactly the meaning that "jihad" has in traditional Muslim thought.

tmamone

Reminds of that church who invited its congregation to bring their guns in for a special gun day, or whatever it was. I don't believe in overturning the Second Amendment (even though I, personally, am not a fan of guns), but the Bible doesn't put much emphasis on weapon ownership, so why are some churches getting so involved with gun rights?