Perspectives
by ED CHERRYHOLMES
There is a moving scene in the classic movie, “Sergeant York,” where Alvin York, played by Gary Cooper, has to deal with being a conscientious objector during World War I. He struggles with trying to be a good soldier on the one hand and following his new found faith against killing on the other hand. He finally finds help with the Bible verse, “Render unto Caesar the things that are Caesar’s and unto God the things that are God’s.” (Matthew 22:21)
Within the last week, Osama bin Laden, the chief terrorist in the world has been killed by the special forces of U.S. Navy SEALs. There was a lot of joy and celebration over bin Laden’s death. This is understandable in light of the fact that he was the one who orchestrated the 9-11 attack where nearly 4,000 were murdered. He is also responsible for countless other deaths around the world.
In the movie, York becomes a hero by single handedly killing or capturing more than 130 Germans. Indeed war presents a challenge to keep things in perspective. For a decade the United States has been at war. There is no joy in war and killing, but it seems to me we have little choice when we are attacked and would be killed in mass if our enemies had their way.
If a rabid dog came at us to bite us, we wouldn’t hesitate to protect ourselves or our families. We must be ever vigilant against nations or terrorist groups that work for our destruction. Bin Laden is gone, but his spirit of hate is still strong. We cannot change those who would hate us, but we can refuse to allow ourselves to hate. Hate can harden our lives or make us keep score with human lives. Though we must be at war we must live for peace, as eager for agreement as for victory. Hopefully, the way of the future will be better and we can find a time when we can truly render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s and to God the things that are God’s.
