"American Christians, Jews, Muslims And the Middle East "

Genesis 17: 1-8

Second Sunday in Lent + March 4, 2012

Reverend Dr. David C. Brown
Pilgrim Congregational United Church of Christ
400 Glenwood Drive, Chattanooga, TN 37404

For some time I have become more and more concerned about the assault on liberal faith and values in our country. Indeed, I believe that what I have cherished as America itself is being undermined and destroyed by politicians, preachers, and pundits who call themselves “conservatives,” but who, in fact, are little more than anarchists hoping to bring down not just those whom they oppose but America itself. Believe me, I am not speaking about the honest disagreement that should always be part of the democratic process. Disagreeing with opponents is one thing; attempting to destroy them is something else. Vicious name-calling, racial epithets, and deliberate lies seem to be the order of the day. Language which used to be considered completely out-of-bounds is now spewed across the media and only feeble protests are raised against it. The President is mocked and defamed as are others who dare to oppose those who slander them. Civility of speech has all but been lost as public discourse descends into the gutter.

Perhaps you agree with me; perhaps you don’t. That is both your right and duty as a liberal Christian and American citizen. Believe me when I say that I know I don’t have all wisdom. You should disagree with me when you believe I am wrong. That is what we stand for as a liberal church. Look again at our mission statement at the head of every Sunday bulletin:

“Our mission is to provide the Chattanooga community with a liberal Christian tradition by maintaining a caring, inclusive, and open-minded church where individuals may search for a vision of God and relate the Christian faith to the modern world.”

I am committed to that vision and I hope and believe that you are, too. An important way we express that commitment is to look together at the great issues of faith and life in our world today. The task of a preacher in a liberal church is to lift up the challenges we face. Your task as a member is to think for yourself whether you agree or disagree with what I or any other preacher may say. That is a right which conservative churches and religious groups do not give their members. There is only one truth and it is what the leader says it is. That is not the way it is here. We have a precious heritage of freedom. God help us if we don’t preserve and defend it.

It is in that spirit that I and our other Lenten preachers this year offer our messages on “Concerns for Contemporary Christians.” There are, obviously, far more concerns that we could possibly address in a few Sundays. What I hope is that we can lift up a different vision other than that thrown at us constantly by the radical right. We should be prepared to challenge these voices of discord.

Today I want us to look at one of the most vexing questions Americans face today: how should our nation relate to Israel and the Middle East? There is a story I was told on one of my four visits to Israel which I think captures the problem.

A camel and a scorpion were standing on the bank of the Jordan River. Both wanted to cross to the other side but only the camel could swim; the scorpion could not. “Please let me get safely across the river by riding on your head,” begged the scorpion. “You have to be joking,” replied the camel. “You’ll sting me and I’ll drown.” “That would be crazy,” responded the scorpion. “If I sting you, we’ll both die.” “Alright,” said the camel, “Get up on my head.” Off they went across the river. But half-way across, the scorpion gave the camel a terrible sting. As they both sank beneath the water, the camel asked: “Why did you do it? Now we’ll both die.” “Well,” said the scorpion. “This is the Middle East.”

That story catches the frustration many feel in trying to understand the continuing mess that is the Middle East. No matter what positive steps have been taken over the years, they all end up being destroyed. I believe this strongly: no one country or group bears all the responsibility for the failure to bring peace to the Middle East. As far as Israel, the Palestinians, and Israel’s other neighbors are concerned, it seems like some ghastly barn dance: one step forward and one step back again and again. When the leaders and people of one side seek peace and reconciliation, the other side opposes it. Then the roles are reversed and the dance of death and destruction goes on. What is the answer? I don’t have one but there are some principles I believe ought to guide us as Americans and as people of faith.

First – and this is crucial; Israel has the right to live in peace and security. That is not negotiable.

Second – the Palestinians have the right to establish their own nation and a decent life for their people. That must happen soon.

Third – the United States should do whatever it can to ensure peace in the Middle East. We should not be threatening war. We should be an honest broker that all sides can trust. That won’t be easy given our overwhelming support of Israel but we must try. And we must be patient.

Fourth – American Christians, Jews and Muslims need to enter into sincere dialogue with one another. We need to understand the commitments and concerns each faith group has about the Middle East. None of us should use our faith traditions as a way of gaining political advantage in this dialogue. Christians must re-think notions of messianism. Jews must rethink a belief that Israel should always be supported without question. American Muslims must ponder the values of a pluralistic society and communicate that to their fellow Muslims in the Middle East. Each group should try to live up to the best of its faith traditions, all of which believe in peace and justice for all peoples, not just for some.

Will all or any of this be possible? I honestly don’t know, but I do believe that if nothing is done to change the current situation the result will be tragedy for all of us.

Whenever I have been in Israel someone always reminds me that all of us – Jews, Christians and Muslims – are Abraham’s children. We people of faith believe that in some mysterious way we are all brothers and sisters, Jews, Christians, Muslims, Palestinians, and Arabs – all of us. Isn’t it time we started acting like it?