A Church for the Outcasts

I am writing this article on Christmas Day from the family violence shelter where I work . When I’ve told people I would be working the morning of Christmas Day, many have made comments about how unfortunate that is. And while it is true that it would be nice to spend actual Christmas morning with my own family, I also do not have many regrets about working today. As I pass by our clients this morning and wish them a Merry Christmas, I am reminded that it is so easy for our society to neglect those on the margins.

I was recently discussing with one of my colleagues how we don’t get many requests at Family Abuse Center for presentations during December. I joked it was because no one wanted to think about depressing things like domestic violence and abuse during this time of year that is filled with lights, carols, and cookies. But, I believe there is some truth to that comment. And perhaps we should do more reflection on these topics, especially at this time of year.

The truth is not everyone can celebrate the holidays with their families, and some don’t even have families to celebrate with. The mothers and women at our shelter here won’t be spending their Christmas with parents, siblings, or other relatives. Some of them don’t even have any real family to speak of.

And yet, I am observing something beautiful this morning. Although placed in less than ideal circumstances, these women and children are becoming family to each other. They are joking and laughing with each other. Kids are playing with new toys thanks to the generosity of countless community members who donated gifts this year. We even busted out Legos and games for the adult clients to play with.

And I’m reminded that this perhaps is a better reflection of Christmas than all the lights, sights, and smells. Christmas is not about spending time with family, per se. It’s about a King who called us all together as family. It’s not about gifts or shiny trinkets, it’s about a Savior who was born for the lowly, poor, and broken.

As we begin this new year, I pray that the church would remember this truth. As she marches out from Christmas, may her feet find themselves situated in the footsteps of a Lord who remembered the outcasts of this world. May she love the loveless and downtrodden. And may Christians not just do these things when it is convenient for us, but also when it costs us something. May we have the mind of Christ every day of the year. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.

The Coming Moral Test

The next few days and weeks will be a test for Americans, and particularly for those Americans who claim to follow Jesus. On Tuesday morning, the Senate Intelligence Committee released a 525 page summary of a much longer report on the abuses and interrogations of prisoners by the CIA. In short, the report illuminates the horrendous interrogation methods employed by the CIA. Furthermore, the report claims that the CIA misrepresented its actions and failed to glean any useful information from torturing its prisoners. You can read the executive summary here.

Even before the report was released there has been intense debate over the tactics and the release of the report. Three key areas of debate include whether releasing the report will endanger American lives overseas, whether or not the "enhanced interrogation techniques" should be considered "torture" and violated human rights treaties, and whether or not the "techniques" yielded any useful or accurate information in the war on terror.

The main "techniques" used in "enhanced interrogation" were water-boarding (near drownings), keeping prisoners naked and wet in cold cells for hours at a time, sleep deprivation (up to 180 hours), forcing prisoners to stand for hours on end, shaking prisoners violently, "wallings" (throwing them into a wall), and various slaps. The report also outlines how prisoners were threatened with a power drill,  sexually threatened with a broomstick, had their families threatened, forced to sit in ice baths, or forced to experience "rectal rehydration." Some results of these actions, according to the report, included convulsions, hallucinations, vomiting, and even death.

What grieves me as a Christian is how we as a nation seem so reluctant to admit that these types of actions are wrong. In all of the debate and discussion today, there was really no question that these events and interrogations took place. That much is certain. Rather, the debate heard on the airwaves and internet was over whether or not these actions were "legal" and whether or not they produced useful information that saved lives. For those of us who are Christians, this should deeply worry us, particularly if we claim to have any moral authority at all.

At the point where there is no longer a question over whether these interrogations took place or not, we should not even be asking whether they produced useful information in fighting terrorism. That is an irrelevant point. The ends cannot justify the means. To try and minimize the evil of what took place by saying that we gleaned information that saved lives is to walk down an immoral path blinded by pragmatism. Once we open that box, we invite in all kinds of other evils. As the people of God, we must firmly stand behind the Biblical (and, in this case, Constitutional) affirmation that all human life is valuable and carries at least a glimmer of the image of God. Therefore, all such cruelty done to others, even to our enemies in the name of "national security" is unethical and immoral.

Some might say that this is a necessary compromise in times of war (like killing innocent civilians in drone strikes), but to admit it is "compromise" or a "necessary evil" is still to admit that the action is evil and falls short of the vision for the Kingdom of God.

And so I hope that in the coming days Christians in America will rise up, denounce the torture, and say "never again!" But honestly, I'm not holding my breath. I'm not expecting that response because I also know that most American Christians are also blinded by American culture. I know that many American Christians obey the narratives and values of the empire of the USA rather than the Good News and ethics of the Kingdom of God ,to which they should be swearing their primary allegiance.

And since this is true, most American Christians will continue to value American lives as more important than the lives of others around the world. We will resist releasing all the details of the report because it might endanger "American lives." We will find nonsensical ways to justify the abuse and torture because destroying the lives of those prisoners doesn't really matter as long as we can maybe save some American lives. We will not only reject the claim of the Founding Fathers that "all men are created equal" and are "endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights," but we will also reject our Scriptures and our Savior which declare that God created humanity in His image and call us to "love our enemy."

Are we really so morally blind and bankrupt as to dance around the truth of what actually happened?

Yes, a moral test is coming, but I fear the American church will fail. Kyrie Eleison.