Falwell Defamed Christianity and Endangered Americans
By David R. Currie

Sunday evening, October 24, Jerry Falwell was on CNN. I watched a news report and heard him say that we must hunt terrorists down and “kill them in the name of the Lord.” I was dumbfounded. I could not believe what I was hearing from a Christian minister.

Terrorists attacked our country, and I believe terrorists should be hunted by the United States government and its allies and killed if necessary. I fully support the “war on terror” that is now being fought.

But Jerry Falwell is absolutely wrong in his theology and his politics to claim such actions should be done “in the name of Lord,” that is, Jesus Christ.

His remarks defame Christianity, my faith and the faith of most Americans. His words also endanger America and Americans abroad, including Christian missionaries.

Falwell’s remarks imply that the war on terror is a war between Christians and Muslims. This is a horrible thought and totally untrue. As a conservative “born again” Christian, I believe in the Lordship of Jesus Christ. I believe in sharing the Gospel of Jesus Christ with every person. I also understand that we live in a dangerous and pluralistic world and that religion should never be used in a divisive manner or in an evil manner. The God I worship, Jesus Christ, is no more supportive of the United States than any other country. His goals are bigger than that. He desires that every single person have a personal relationship with Him, the living God.

The Bible says, “God is love.” The message of Christianity is not war, hatred, or murder. It is love, unconditional love. That is the nature of God. The war on terror is not a war between Christians and Muslims. It is a war between those who want peace in the world and those who want to destroy peace. To imply God has a side, other than peace, is poor theology.

It defames Christianity to imply God and the United States of America have some kind of special relationship. It defames the sacrificial death of Christ on the cross for every person, regardless of race, nationality, sex or religion. It defames Christianity to use the name of God as a motivation to kill others. It defames Christianity to imply Christians (who are only saved because they admit their sinfulness and need of a savior) are morally superior to persons of other faiths.

Jerry Falwell’s remarks also endanger Americans and Christians at home and abroad. His remarks implying that this is a war between Christians and Muslims invite persons of other faiths to look at all Christians with suspicion. While certainly some terrorists are radical Muslims, he should not forget that Timothy McVeigh, who bombed the federal building in Oklahoma City, claimed to be a fundamentalist Christian. The history of Christianity is not pure by any means. Christians have done horrible atrocities in the past in the name of the Lord. Fundamentalism is evil and sick, regardless of which religion the fundamentalist embraces.

To say that terrorists should be “killed in the name of the Lord,” implies that Americans are all of the same faith and encourages radical persons of other faiths to attack America because we are Christians who believe in killing others of different faiths.

The fact is that most of us value the First Amendment to the Constitution and believe in absolute religious freedom for all Americans and in the separation of church and state. We respect the fact that there has never been a war fought on American soil over religion because America has religious liberty. We respect persons of all faiths and their constitutional right to practice that faith without government interference. We believe government should treat the faith of all persons equally and condemn violent fundamentalism as an expression of any faith commitment.

American Christians need to stand up to Jerry Falwell and others who are working to destroy the First Amendment and defame Christianity. We need to witness for Christ by our respect of others, by the admission of our inability to know the absolute mind of God, and by refusing to allow God to be used for partisan political purposes.

David R. Currie is executive director of Texas Baptists Committed and consultant for the Mainstream Baptist Network.