It is an unfortunate fact that could all very well end up disgruntled septuagenarians. We might end up angry at the world, angry at ourselves, outraged at our own lack of ingenuity, creativity, inspiration, and daring. We may look back on our seven decades on Earth and think, “I fucked it up.” We could realize that most of the choices we made were royal mistakes, decisions made without prescience, without passion, and without purpose. We will then have to live the rest of our days with the acknowledgment that we wasted our lives.
Each of us has only one life to live; we are bound by the constraints of time. Time is our scarcest, most precious resource. Pithy adages tell us that time is a terrible thing to waste, and to seize the day (carpe diem!), reminding of the fleeting nature of time. Trite and cliché though they may be, they are truisms too often neglected in higher education, and so on into life. Not until my senior year at my liberal arts college was I pressed to consider that I may be wasting time, frittering it away with trivialities and concerns of no real significance. It was a painful idea to test.
But test it I did, or at least, I have tried. As time ticks away - I graduate in six months – I’ve undertaken the project of critiquing the years I have spent at college. Thus far, the process has been enriching, but tinged with regret. At times, I have been mindful in my decision making and conscientious in my use of time. Other times, I have either lazily wasted away hours or I have been in an all-out war against the clock. How I could have better spent my four years at school? What questions could I, should I, have asked? What efforts could I have made to improve, in so many academic and extracurricular areas? What would I do differently if I could begin again? I am more thoughtful, more deliberate, and more discriminating than I was at eighteen, but I am just as apt to make detrimental mistakes as ever. How am I now to best plan for my future? What sins of omission and commission can I prevent for myself, and for anyone else who cares to listen to the musings of a college senior?
When I was a first-year student, I idolized the seniors. They seemed so worldly, so self-assured, so adult. Now I stand in their shoes, and as ever, I realize how severely I misinterpreted things. The proverbial grass is always greener…and smarter, more confident, more knowledgeable, more responsible, and on and on. I cannot claim to be qualitatively different or better now than a year, two years, or three years ago. However, I believe I can accurately claim to have learned some things these past few years. If any underclassmen have stumbled upon my soliloquy, I hope that they do not view this as an accusatory sermon. I write as an injunction of myself, hoping that my readers might glean some wisdom from the lessons I am learning.
I have composed a list of thou-shall’s and thou-shalt-not’s, both addressed to my present and future self, and with an audience of liberal arts undergraduate students in mind. Regardless of where a student chooses to matriculate, he or she may harbor some aspiration to a liberal education, so a definition of such an education begs mention. In my humble estimation, liberal education is complex, and not all institutions that proclaim to offer a liberal arts education have a clear definition, shared by faculty, administration, and students, as to what a liberal education is and what it entails.
I propose that a liberal education is not limited to four collegiate years; neither is it only attainable at “liberal arts” schools. Liberal education is a lifelong arduous academic and personal process, an engagement of the whole being in the development of identity and self-hood through the rigorous study of the breadth and depth of human ideas. It is not complete if limited by a predilection toward a particular culture, location, religion, philosophy, or epoch. A student limited by his or her, or his or her professors’, biases toward experiential particularities (i.e., the Western world, Western literary tradition, European history, Christianity, etc.) will have considerable difficulty attaining a liberal education, as I have defined it. A student negligent and wasteful of time will likewise face obstacles on the path to becoming liberally educated. A liberal education requires that those who desire it recognize the value of time, and the value of events and relationships that occur within its constraints.
And so, I give a time-focused “ten commandments” for liberal arts learners. It is a list of things I wish I had been told prior to beginning my liberal education process, a list which I hope can engender in readers a sense of the responsibility and duty that are incumbent upon those who aspire to be liberally educated. [It asks that individuals question themselves and their worlds. Time is best spent in such endeavors].
1. Liberal education is not truly liberal unless it eliminates the human tendency to hate and mistrust. If an individual is able, at the end of his formal education, to reason his way to hatred of another individual or collective, then he is guilty of having misdirected his efforts and he has not been liberally educate. Liberal education debases any justification for hatred, it renders mistrust unjustifiable. It would behoove the liberal arts student to enter her education with a critical eye on her own biases. It is a waste of time to spend the collegiate years rationalizing one’s bigotry. Liberal education is only liberal if it breaks dismantles the penchant to prejudge.
2. Time is often best spent in a state of discomfort. Out of discomfort arises a need to search, to question, and to learn. More often than not, liberal education should make its students uncomfortable.
3. Similarly, liberal education, if thorough, should make one feel marginalized. An understanding of the spectrum of human experience is unattainable unless one learns what it means to feel outcast, ostracized, and forgotten. A liberal arts learner must try to discover what it is to be marginalized. He cannot presume to call himself liberally educated if he has not.
4. Moments of clarity and confidence should be followed by periods of self-doubt. Time is well-spent by the individual who faces a torrent of questions, a deluge of ideas that necessitate self-analyzation. The one who extends her academic queries into all areas of her personal, relational, and spiritual life is engaged in a genuine process of liberal education.
5. A liberally educated student engages in a unique process such as few people will ever think to commence. It is oftentimes a harrowing path, the obstacles of which, when surpassed, are able to make one feel proud. Time is misused if spent wallowing in self-importance. The liberal arts student must realize that he is, in fact, small. He is one human being with many rights as any other. To avoid developing a big head, it is important that circumstances sometimes make him feel insignificant and inadequate. Time is best spent in humility.
6. In humility, one develops an appreciation for her ignorance. The liberal arts learner experiences an indirect relationship between the amount of time she has devoted to study, and the amount of things she feels she knows. Rigorous study teaches humans of their own ignorance. A humble acceptance that one may not know everything is crucial for respectful engagement, especially with those with whom one may thoroughly disagree.
7. Learners must be willing to be hurt, and must develop strong self-reliance in order to ‘pick up the pieces.’ A liberal arts student doesn’t run from trials, but should go sprinting headlong into new, different, and difficult situations. Profound learning happens through suffering.
8. As with an understanding of one’s own ignorance, liberal education can sometimes lead to self-dislike. Students mustn’t be afraid of this, but should also determine when such dislike is appropriate. When one realizes one’s own lack of compassion, lack of honesty, lack of motivation, lack of discipline, it is justifiable that one will experience a phase of self-hatred. This is good, for self-hatred is the closest thing to self-love. If one doesn’t, at times, dislike oneself, then she probably doesn’t like herself much, either. Scrutiny indicates a deep caring for one’s self and one’s soul.
9. A liberal arts learner should yearn for situations, places, and peoples who are wholly outside the realm of what is comfortable, safe, and secure. Radical self-development can occur in places and conceptual frameworks least like home. A student should occasionally force himself away from home.
10. One engaged in a process of liberal education must never remain in a state of “arrival.” If one feels he has “arrived,” and never decides to leave, the dynamic wondering that fundamentally characterizes liberal education ceases. True liberal education is as active of an endeavor as can be found. To passively sit on one’s laurels, clinging strongly to ideas without thought of transformation, is antithetical to the liberal arts ideal.
Liberal education is a process without an end. To engage in it, one must have courage, discipline, fortitude, and a deep care for oneself, one’s family and friends, and for those he or she has yet to or may never meet. It is an individual commitment: to be responsible, to be watchful, to be disciplined, to be gently forceful. No institution can provide a liberal education; no one person or entity can presume to develop another’s soul. Liberal education is a deeply personal, transformative experience not contained to four collegiate years. A liberal arts learner never stops learning, never stops seeking, and never stops questioning.
“Dost thou love life? Then do not squander time, for that the stuff life is made of.” –Benjamin Franklin
Liberal education engenders love of life, and implores people not to squander their time. My collegiate experience has taught me how my time will be best used. I shall spend my days in curiosity.
Wednesday, December 3, 2008
Sunday, November 30, 2008
The Newspaper version of "What's in a name?"
What’s in a name?:
The Dangers of Historical Irresponsibility
Shortly after September 11, 2001, President called the impending war on terror a “crusade”. Across the world, people reacted to his poor choice of words. The Christian Science Monitor reported on Sept. 19, 2001: "President Bush's reference to a "crusade" against terrorism, which passed almost unnoticed by Americans, rang alarm bells in Europe. It raised fears that the terrorist attacks could spark a 'clash of civilizations' between Christians and Muslims, sowing fresh winds of hatred and mistrust."
“Crusade” is significant: it recalls the historic crusades initiated by Pope Urban II in 1096, and to many non-Christians it represents the worst of Western and Christian colonialism and expansionism. The term “crusade” separates the world into one group who thinks itself superior, and all the rest who fall short.
It is problematic for interfaith relations, and presents an obstacle to genuine dialogue about faith. The word is not only offensive to the Muslim community. History reminds us that Pope Urban called the Crusades in effort to unite the warring princes of Europe and to end the division of the Church; he chose to make war the vehicle for unification. As the crusaders marched to the holy land, red crosses of Christ emblazoned on their chests, they destroyed Jewish communities and massacred thousands of Jews. Muslims in Jerusalem were brutally slaughtered. Greek Catholics and the eastern Christians in Constantinople were tortured and killed on account of their different interpretation of the Nicene Creed and theology of the Holy Spirit. The Crusades were an unprecedented unleashing of ethnic and religious hatred, all in the name of Jesus.
I caution Christians against labeling themselves “crusaders”. I caution the international organization Campus Crusade for Christ against the use of the term in its name. The crusading concept is dangerous, as it holds one group to be superior to others and one way of experiencing the divine to be true and all others to be false. It impedes attempts to create relationships based on respect of diverse traditions, ways of living, and ways of encountering the holy. Alliteration is nice, but relationships built on mutual understanding and love of neighbor – absent desires to change or convert that neighbor – are far better.
The Dangers of Historical Irresponsibility
Shortly after September 11, 2001, President called the impending war on terror a “crusade”. Across the world, people reacted to his poor choice of words. The Christian Science Monitor reported on Sept. 19, 2001: "President Bush's reference to a "crusade" against terrorism, which passed almost unnoticed by Americans, rang alarm bells in Europe. It raised fears that the terrorist attacks could spark a 'clash of civilizations' between Christians and Muslims, sowing fresh winds of hatred and mistrust."
“Crusade” is significant: it recalls the historic crusades initiated by Pope Urban II in 1096, and to many non-Christians it represents the worst of Western and Christian colonialism and expansionism. The term “crusade” separates the world into one group who thinks itself superior, and all the rest who fall short.
It is problematic for interfaith relations, and presents an obstacle to genuine dialogue about faith. The word is not only offensive to the Muslim community. History reminds us that Pope Urban called the Crusades in effort to unite the warring princes of Europe and to end the division of the Church; he chose to make war the vehicle for unification. As the crusaders marched to the holy land, red crosses of Christ emblazoned on their chests, they destroyed Jewish communities and massacred thousands of Jews. Muslims in Jerusalem were brutally slaughtered. Greek Catholics and the eastern Christians in Constantinople were tortured and killed on account of their different interpretation of the Nicene Creed and theology of the Holy Spirit. The Crusades were an unprecedented unleashing of ethnic and religious hatred, all in the name of Jesus.
I caution Christians against labeling themselves “crusaders”. I caution the international organization Campus Crusade for Christ against the use of the term in its name. The crusading concept is dangerous, as it holds one group to be superior to others and one way of experiencing the divine to be true and all others to be false. It impedes attempts to create relationships based on respect of diverse traditions, ways of living, and ways of encountering the holy. Alliteration is nice, but relationships built on mutual understanding and love of neighbor – absent desires to change or convert that neighbor – are far better.
Friday, October 10, 2008
What's in a name? The Dangers of Historical Irresponsibility
I am currently doing an Independent Study in Jewish-Christian Relations with Dr. Paul Jones at Transylvania University. The sole purpose of the IS is to improve my writing. Every week, I turn in a piece of prose, and Dr. Jones and I tear it apart. This week I wrote on the word "crusade". I welcome any comments anyone may have; I need all the help I can get.
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A Contemporary Appearance of an Old Fear
Shortly after September 11, 2001, President Bush gave a speech that alarmed people across the globe. In a moment of gross historical insensitivity or ignorance, he referred to the impending war on terror as a "crusade.” The Associated Press and the Christian Science Monitor reported on the global reaction to Bush's poorly worded call to arms:
'His use of the word "crusade," said Soheib Bensheikh, Grand Mufti of the mosque in Marseille, France, "was most unfortunate.” "It recalled the barbarous and unjust military operations against the Muslim world," by Christian knights, who launched repeated attempts to capture Jerusalem over the course of several hundred years.' (Europe cringes at Bush 'crusade' against terrorists; by Peter Ford; Christian Science Monitor; 9/19/01)
"U.S. leaders should be especially leery of anything that hints at a holy war, many said, because it plays into the hands of Osama bin Laden, who has said he wants the world to plunge into a war, or jihad, between Islam and Christianity. 'It's what the terrorists use to recruit people -- saying that Christians are on a crusade against Islam,' said Yvonne Haddad, a professor of the history of Islam at Georgetown University in Washington. 'It's as bad to their ears as it is when we hear 'jihad.'" (Bush's use of word 'crusade' a red flag: Muslims link it with invasion by Europeans; by Sally Buzbee; Associated Press; 9/18/01)
"President Bush's reference to a "crusade" against terrorism, which passed almost unnoticed by Americans, rang alarm bells in Europe. It raised fears that the terrorist attacks could spark a 'clash of civilizations' between Christians and Muslims, sowing fresh winds of hatred and mistrust." (Christian Science Monitor 9/19/01)
"...to many Muslims, the Crusades represent the worst of Western expansionism and colonialism, said James Lindsey, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution." (Associated Press 9/18/01)
"It is their support [that of moderate Muslims] for Washington's war that could be undermined by the sort of language on the president's lips, warns Hussein Amin, a former Egyptian ambassador who now lectures on international affairs. 'The whole tone is that of one civilization against another,' he finds. 'It is a superior way of speaking and I fear the consequences - the world being divided into two between those who think themselves superior' and the rest." (Christian Science Monitor 9/19/01)
In the aftermath of the President's speech, the press found that the word crusade could sow "fresh winds of hatred and mistrust" in Arab-American and Muslims-Christian relations; that the use of the word indicates a "'superior way of speaking and ... the consequences... [of] the world being divided into two between those who think themselves superior' and the rest" are to be feared; and that "to many Muslims, the Crusades represent the worst of Western expansionism and colonialism."
Benign words do not receive such lengthy treatment in press releases. Benign words are not given consideration. The word “crusade” is more than a combination of letters; it is a word laden with significance. The Oxford American Desk Dictionary and Thesaurus, as well as most online dictionaries, define "crusade" in several ways - but the first listing in any entry points to its history: "any of several medieval military expeditions made by Europeans to recover the Holy Land from the Muslims" (Oxford).
The Crusades were initiated in 1096 after Pope Urban II called all Christians to a reconquest of Jerusalem, to retake it for Christianity after it had been held for years by Muslims. "God wills it!" was his cry. "A hundred thousand people dropped everything to... 'take the cross' (Carroll, 239)" and march on Jerusalem. However, the Crusades were far more than any simplified dictionary definition would lead one to believe. Beyond what the Crusades were, it also must be noted why the Crusades occurred at all. James Carroll writes that "the pope's impulse was to unite the warring princes and the divided Church" (241). He did this by calling them to band together "against a common enemy outside Christendom" (241). The drive to unify the Church was realized not by uniting Christians in common love of neighbor, or help of the poor, or Christ-like compassion, but in bloody brutality against outsiders. Carroll notes with sorrow that the unification of Christendom was both the cause and result of an unprecedented unleashing of horrific "ethnic and religious hatred,” and to the massacre of tens of thousands of dissenting Christians, Muslims, and Jews.
While the most basic definition mentions Muslims as the prime target of crusading fervor, the Crusaders impacted the lives of far more people. A firm theology of anti-Jewish, anti-eastern-Christian, and anti-Muslim hatred fueled the crusading impulse. In Mainz Anonymous, a surviving chronicle of a German Jewish community's experience of 1096, the author writes his understanding of the Christian crusading mindset: “We take our souls in our hands' in order to kill and subjugate all those kingdoms that do not believe in the Crucified. How much more so (should we kill and subjugate) the Jews, who killed and crucified him (Jesus) (Carroll 238).
Western European Christianity was unified by that mindset. Murder was sanctioned and sacralized. "To rescue 'captive Jerusalem' was to rescue a kidnapped Jesus" (253) who was being blasphemed by non-believers. Theological and religious outsiders were victimized; communities were exterminated. In Trier, Germany, crusaders attacked the Jews, destroyed the Torah scrolls, and forced baptisms upon unwilling and terrified people. As the Crusaders marched toward Jerusalem, they repeated the Trier incident in numerous Jewish communities. Europe's first large-scale pogroms against Jews occurred during the Crusades. Christians were also targeted; both Greek Catholics and the eastern Christians of Constantinople were tortured and killed on account of a different reading of the Nicene Creed and theological interpretation of the Holy Spirit (241). Similar destruction befell the Muslims in Palestine.
The history of the Crusades is a tale of bloodshed and death. It is the knowledge of this history that rang alarm bells of fear and suspicion among Europeans and Muslims when President George W. Bush employed the word. And it is with knowledge of this history that I make the following statement: that the decision to use the word "Crusade" in the title of the organization 'Campus Crusade for Christ International' was an act of gross insensitivity, a decision highlighting great disregard for or ignorance of both history and non-Christians. Further, the use of the word crusade blackens what many see as caring motives behind the group's proselytism. As a Christian, I have great difficulty looking on the evangelism of Campus Crusade for Christ International and thinking pleasant and delighted thoughts. Instead, I see the word "crusade" and fear that the original crusading motive may come again to fruition - not in bloody war, but in cultural and religious annihilation.
Crusading for Christ is, in essence, finding fault and error in other religious expressions. The project of evangelizing is to save the unsaved, to win souls for Christ -- to convert individuals to Christianity. This necessarily finds other forms of religious expression to be, at best, disingenuous, incorrect, and improper ways to behave in relation to God. At worst, proselytism sees members of other faith traditions as on not only the wrong path, but on a path that can only lead directly to hell. Thus, the call is to Crusade for Christ to save individual lives and souls from what is believed to be a disastrous end. The business of saving souls, however, is also the business of finding all other cultures and religions categorically wrong and illegitimate. It is a program whose logical end would be the annihilation of all non-Christian cultures; the cultural and religious genocide of those considered to be "outsiders.” Under modern proselytism, lives are not lost, but priceless ways of life are. Just as the Crusaders of the first millennium found non-Christians unfit for life due to their lack of belief in the Crucified, second millennium Crusaders find non-Christians categorically wrong in their ways of living. Proselytism does not seek to end lives, but to end ways of living that are deemed incorrect, or "on the wrong path."
Is this the image that a Christian organization would want? Is the historical irresponsibility of using the word "Crusade" to be condoned with a simple brushing aside of gravity of the matter? In a world divided by misunderstanding and suspicion, is it wise for Christians to be ignorant of the history of their faith and the history of the followers of Christ? No, no, and no. Because of such ignorance on the part of my co-religionists, I am embarrassed to identify myself as a Christian. It is for such boldness and blatant disregard for those with whom we share both the world and God Almighty that I am outraged. This is not what Jesus of Nazareth could have envisioned. In no place in the canonical Gospels are we called to Crusade - bloody or ideological. In no place does Jesus call us to remove from human beings their cultural and religious identities - to erase their sense of being because we think it to be wrong.
"Crusade" must be seen for what it is. When President Bush used the word, he invoked memories of horrific destruction and extermination in the name of the Cross. Campus Crusade for Christ International does the same in its self-identification. Is this what Jesus would have wanted of His followers?
-------------
A Contemporary Appearance of an Old Fear
Shortly after September 11, 2001, President Bush gave a speech that alarmed people across the globe. In a moment of gross historical insensitivity or ignorance, he referred to the impending war on terror as a "crusade.” The Associated Press and the Christian Science Monitor reported on the global reaction to Bush's poorly worded call to arms:
'His use of the word "crusade," said Soheib Bensheikh, Grand Mufti of the mosque in Marseille, France, "was most unfortunate.” "It recalled the barbarous and unjust military operations against the Muslim world," by Christian knights, who launched repeated attempts to capture Jerusalem over the course of several hundred years.' (Europe cringes at Bush 'crusade' against terrorists; by Peter Ford; Christian Science Monitor; 9/19/01)
"U.S. leaders should be especially leery of anything that hints at a holy war, many said, because it plays into the hands of Osama bin Laden, who has said he wants the world to plunge into a war, or jihad, between Islam and Christianity. 'It's what the terrorists use to recruit people -- saying that Christians are on a crusade against Islam,' said Yvonne Haddad, a professor of the history of Islam at Georgetown University in Washington. 'It's as bad to their ears as it is when we hear 'jihad.'" (Bush's use of word 'crusade' a red flag: Muslims link it with invasion by Europeans; by Sally Buzbee; Associated Press; 9/18/01)
"President Bush's reference to a "crusade" against terrorism, which passed almost unnoticed by Americans, rang alarm bells in Europe. It raised fears that the terrorist attacks could spark a 'clash of civilizations' between Christians and Muslims, sowing fresh winds of hatred and mistrust." (Christian Science Monitor 9/19/01)
"...to many Muslims, the Crusades represent the worst of Western expansionism and colonialism, said James Lindsey, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution." (Associated Press 9/18/01)
"It is their support [that of moderate Muslims] for Washington's war that could be undermined by the sort of language on the president's lips, warns Hussein Amin, a former Egyptian ambassador who now lectures on international affairs. 'The whole tone is that of one civilization against another,' he finds. 'It is a superior way of speaking and I fear the consequences - the world being divided into two between those who think themselves superior' and the rest." (Christian Science Monitor 9/19/01)
In the aftermath of the President's speech, the press found that the word crusade could sow "fresh winds of hatred and mistrust" in Arab-American and Muslims-Christian relations; that the use of the word indicates a "'superior way of speaking and ... the consequences... [of] the world being divided into two between those who think themselves superior' and the rest" are to be feared; and that "to many Muslims, the Crusades represent the worst of Western expansionism and colonialism."
Benign words do not receive such lengthy treatment in press releases. Benign words are not given consideration. The word “crusade” is more than a combination of letters; it is a word laden with significance. The Oxford American Desk Dictionary and Thesaurus, as well as most online dictionaries, define "crusade" in several ways - but the first listing in any entry points to its history: "any of several medieval military expeditions made by Europeans to recover the Holy Land from the Muslims" (Oxford).
The Crusades were initiated in 1096 after Pope Urban II called all Christians to a reconquest of Jerusalem, to retake it for Christianity after it had been held for years by Muslims. "God wills it!" was his cry. "A hundred thousand people dropped everything to... 'take the cross' (Carroll, 239)" and march on Jerusalem. However, the Crusades were far more than any simplified dictionary definition would lead one to believe. Beyond what the Crusades were, it also must be noted why the Crusades occurred at all. James Carroll writes that "the pope's impulse was to unite the warring princes and the divided Church" (241). He did this by calling them to band together "against a common enemy outside Christendom" (241). The drive to unify the Church was realized not by uniting Christians in common love of neighbor, or help of the poor, or Christ-like compassion, but in bloody brutality against outsiders. Carroll notes with sorrow that the unification of Christendom was both the cause and result of an unprecedented unleashing of horrific "ethnic and religious hatred,” and to the massacre of tens of thousands of dissenting Christians, Muslims, and Jews.
While the most basic definition mentions Muslims as the prime target of crusading fervor, the Crusaders impacted the lives of far more people. A firm theology of anti-Jewish, anti-eastern-Christian, and anti-Muslim hatred fueled the crusading impulse. In Mainz Anonymous, a surviving chronicle of a German Jewish community's experience of 1096, the author writes his understanding of the Christian crusading mindset: “We take our souls in our hands' in order to kill and subjugate all those kingdoms that do not believe in the Crucified. How much more so (should we kill and subjugate) the Jews, who killed and crucified him (Jesus) (Carroll 238).
Western European Christianity was unified by that mindset. Murder was sanctioned and sacralized. "To rescue 'captive Jerusalem' was to rescue a kidnapped Jesus" (253) who was being blasphemed by non-believers. Theological and religious outsiders were victimized; communities were exterminated. In Trier, Germany, crusaders attacked the Jews, destroyed the Torah scrolls, and forced baptisms upon unwilling and terrified people. As the Crusaders marched toward Jerusalem, they repeated the Trier incident in numerous Jewish communities. Europe's first large-scale pogroms against Jews occurred during the Crusades. Christians were also targeted; both Greek Catholics and the eastern Christians of Constantinople were tortured and killed on account of a different reading of the Nicene Creed and theological interpretation of the Holy Spirit (241). Similar destruction befell the Muslims in Palestine.
The history of the Crusades is a tale of bloodshed and death. It is the knowledge of this history that rang alarm bells of fear and suspicion among Europeans and Muslims when President George W. Bush employed the word. And it is with knowledge of this history that I make the following statement: that the decision to use the word "Crusade" in the title of the organization 'Campus Crusade for Christ International' was an act of gross insensitivity, a decision highlighting great disregard for or ignorance of both history and non-Christians. Further, the use of the word crusade blackens what many see as caring motives behind the group's proselytism. As a Christian, I have great difficulty looking on the evangelism of Campus Crusade for Christ International and thinking pleasant and delighted thoughts. Instead, I see the word "crusade" and fear that the original crusading motive may come again to fruition - not in bloody war, but in cultural and religious annihilation.
Crusading for Christ is, in essence, finding fault and error in other religious expressions. The project of evangelizing is to save the unsaved, to win souls for Christ -- to convert individuals to Christianity. This necessarily finds other forms of religious expression to be, at best, disingenuous, incorrect, and improper ways to behave in relation to God. At worst, proselytism sees members of other faith traditions as on not only the wrong path, but on a path that can only lead directly to hell. Thus, the call is to Crusade for Christ to save individual lives and souls from what is believed to be a disastrous end. The business of saving souls, however, is also the business of finding all other cultures and religions categorically wrong and illegitimate. It is a program whose logical end would be the annihilation of all non-Christian cultures; the cultural and religious genocide of those considered to be "outsiders.” Under modern proselytism, lives are not lost, but priceless ways of life are. Just as the Crusaders of the first millennium found non-Christians unfit for life due to their lack of belief in the Crucified, second millennium Crusaders find non-Christians categorically wrong in their ways of living. Proselytism does not seek to end lives, but to end ways of living that are deemed incorrect, or "on the wrong path."
Is this the image that a Christian organization would want? Is the historical irresponsibility of using the word "Crusade" to be condoned with a simple brushing aside of gravity of the matter? In a world divided by misunderstanding and suspicion, is it wise for Christians to be ignorant of the history of their faith and the history of the followers of Christ? No, no, and no. Because of such ignorance on the part of my co-religionists, I am embarrassed to identify myself as a Christian. It is for such boldness and blatant disregard for those with whom we share both the world and God Almighty that I am outraged. This is not what Jesus of Nazareth could have envisioned. In no place in the canonical Gospels are we called to Crusade - bloody or ideological. In no place does Jesus call us to remove from human beings their cultural and religious identities - to erase their sense of being because we think it to be wrong.
"Crusade" must be seen for what it is. When President Bush used the word, he invoked memories of horrific destruction and extermination in the name of the Cross. Campus Crusade for Christ International does the same in its self-identification. Is this what Jesus would have wanted of His followers?
Tuesday, May 13, 2008
Second to last night in Cairo
“I let Kathryn take a fat kid picture today. And in my head I was like, ‘That’s a fat kid picture. I’m not gonna tell her.’”
- Allison Ray
“And in the first century, the Jews and the Jesus followers were all in this one group. And the Jews were like, ‘Your messiah sucks. He died. That doesn’t work.’ And the Jesus followers developed into a distinct group and the Romans got that they were different, and the Romans were all angry, and the Jews were all angry, and the Jesus followers were all like, ‘SHIT!’”
-also Allison Ray, in a brief summary of first-century Roman Jerusalem
Went to see the Great Pyramids today, and the Sphinx, and lots of impressive old statues.
Two days ago, I woke up at 1:00am to hike up Mount Sinai. Three hours, and over a mile and a half of intense uphill climbing. The sunrise was beautiful, but obstructed by a little cloud cover. The hike down took about two hours. Then we went to visit St. Katherine’s Monastery and met a cool American monk named Father Justin, and were given special access to the Monastery’s private library. This monastery has the second largest collection of manuscripts and icons in the world – second only to the Vatican.
Father Justin spoke to us for about 20 minutes, and at the end of his talk, I walked away from the group, stared at a bookcase full of some of the oldest known printed books, and cried. I still don’t know why.
I didn’t eat until 1:00pm (after about seven hours of hiking, walking, and jogging, by the end of it all), and didn’t sleep until 1:30, with the help of sleeping pills.
Tomorrow’s the last day. The trip has been such a whirlwind, I don’t think it’s intensity will hit me until much later, when I break down into emotional overload and realize what it is I’ve seen, what it is I’ve said, and who it is I’ve met.
Nearly onwards to Morocco.
Thursday, May 8, 2008
Qumran and Beth Shean pictures
I think I neglected to mention a visit to Qumran, a site in the desert near the Dead Sea. It is the site where the Dead Sea Scrolls were discovered on accident by a local shepherd; that discovery led to the excavation of a first century BCE-first century CE settlement that was most likely inhabited by an ascetic and separatist group of Jews known as the Essenes. They're cool, and John the Baptist could have either spent time with them, or at least have known of their teachings. The discovery of Qumran and the Dead Sea Scrolls revolutionized study of the Second Temple Period (20BCE-70CE), of New Testament texts, of the development of the Hebrew canon, and of the development of Judaism during that period (and thus its effects of the Judaisms to come).
It's important.
And above is a picture of from the top row of seats in the theatre in Beth Shean/Scythopolis. This site topped almost every site I saw in Turkey and Greece. The preservation of the Roman period buildings here was remarkable, and standing on the top of the tell (the hill in the background left of the photo), you can almost see the grandeur of Rome come to life. The might and genius of the Roman empire hits you upside the head. (Josh Wenta and I had similar feelings and words to describe it).
Oh, and that wooden stage in the foreground of the picture---- I danced on it. It was requested, I obliged. I never pass up an opportunity to be one of the only people to do a jig in a Roman theatre.
Jerusalem, Days 1-3
This will be a sadly short post, entirely inadequate to describe the past few days. It's late, it's been a long day, and tomorrow will be longer still. A short post will suffice for now.
In Jerusalem we've explored the excavations of the Temple Mount (Robinson's Arch, the Western Wall tunnels), ascended the Mount (al-Aqsa Mosque and the breathtaking blue and gold Dome of the Rock), visited numerous churches (the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem [the oldest church structure in the world; constructed in the 320's by Constantine per request of his mother], the Church of Pater Noster [where Christ is said to have taught his disciples the Lord's Prayer], the Church in the Garden of Gethsemane, the Church of San Pietro Gallicanti [I got the name a little wrong, I know, but this is the church where Peter is said to have denied Christ three times], and a Church [name I cannot remember] where Christ mounted the donkey on 'Palm Sunday' and rode into Jerusalem.
We visited today the Shrine of the Book (a museum housing the Dead Sea Scrolls and other important scrolls and codices--- probably the most enthralling site for me, thus far), and cross several checkpoints on our trip into the West Bank to visit the aforementioned Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem, which is in the Palestinian Territory.
I've seen lots of guns and lots of soldiers. A soldier boarded our bus today on our first checkpoint stop. I haven't yet been scared or found this out of place. Some of my friends are incredibly disturbed and anxious when guns are around, but I haven't been. I can't figure out why.
I had a three hour conversation with Dr. Russell last night about traditionalist Christian traditions, gods, Vatican II, conceptions of the holy, cultural clashes, John Paul II and Benedict XVI, abrasive and ignorant Americans, Morocco and Tunisia, theodicy and not liking God, fearing God, believing in all the potentialities and possibilities that exist. The discussion began after he and I explored St. George's Cathedral at dusk while the organist worked on tuning the organ. I cried in the church, the first time I had really shed some significant tears. (The Sea of Galilee, comparably, was more like a lone tear rolling down my cheek). I was emotional at various points throughout our conversation, at more or less appropriate times. I apologized for my melodrama, but the timbre of the conversation was so intense and heightened -- on another plane -- that the apology was unnecessary.
I had a likewise intense conversation with David Clifford tonight about Poland. He and Dr. Jones and I are doing a short 'presentation'/preparation for the group before we set off for the Yad Vashem Holocaust Museum. We spent three hours pouring over ideas as to what to say, and went off on numerous tangents about death camps, theodicy (a recurrent theme in my conversations, apparently; which is strange, because this doesn't figure nearly as prominently in my thought processes), horses with blinders, naivete, and silence. Towards the end of our planning, Dr. Russell joined us for a recitation of our planned presentation, and for a crash course in the history between the years of the First and Second Jewish Revolts against Rome (66-73CE, approximately, and the later 132-135CE). I have a long reading list and a new academic pursuit for the summer.
Developments: I want to learn Hebrew, I might take Greek, I'm worried about taking Arabic, I am fascinated by Jewish history and can't seem to shake it (that's not new), I love the Middle East, I feel drawn to studying ancient, old, and dusty or destroyed things.
And I miss Irish dancing, even though I attempted it in the lobby tonight. Made it through my slip jig and treble jig, and could do no more, as I had gained an Arabic-speaking audience, and who can pass up a chance to learn some more Arabic?
Love.
In Jerusalem we've explored the excavations of the Temple Mount (Robinson's Arch, the Western Wall tunnels), ascended the Mount (al-Aqsa Mosque and the breathtaking blue and gold Dome of the Rock), visited numerous churches (the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem [the oldest church structure in the world; constructed in the 320's by Constantine per request of his mother], the Church of Pater Noster [where Christ is said to have taught his disciples the Lord's Prayer], the Church in the Garden of Gethsemane, the Church of San Pietro Gallicanti [I got the name a little wrong, I know, but this is the church where Peter is said to have denied Christ three times], and a Church [name I cannot remember] where Christ mounted the donkey on 'Palm Sunday' and rode into Jerusalem.
We visited today the Shrine of the Book (a museum housing the Dead Sea Scrolls and other important scrolls and codices--- probably the most enthralling site for me, thus far), and cross several checkpoints on our trip into the West Bank to visit the aforementioned Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem, which is in the Palestinian Territory.
I've seen lots of guns and lots of soldiers. A soldier boarded our bus today on our first checkpoint stop. I haven't yet been scared or found this out of place. Some of my friends are incredibly disturbed and anxious when guns are around, but I haven't been. I can't figure out why.
I had a three hour conversation with Dr. Russell last night about traditionalist Christian traditions, gods, Vatican II, conceptions of the holy, cultural clashes, John Paul II and Benedict XVI, abrasive and ignorant Americans, Morocco and Tunisia, theodicy and not liking God, fearing God, believing in all the potentialities and possibilities that exist. The discussion began after he and I explored St. George's Cathedral at dusk while the organist worked on tuning the organ. I cried in the church, the first time I had really shed some significant tears. (The Sea of Galilee, comparably, was more like a lone tear rolling down my cheek). I was emotional at various points throughout our conversation, at more or less appropriate times. I apologized for my melodrama, but the timbre of the conversation was so intense and heightened -- on another plane -- that the apology was unnecessary.
I had a likewise intense conversation with David Clifford tonight about Poland. He and Dr. Jones and I are doing a short 'presentation'/preparation for the group before we set off for the Yad Vashem Holocaust Museum. We spent three hours pouring over ideas as to what to say, and went off on numerous tangents about death camps, theodicy (a recurrent theme in my conversations, apparently; which is strange, because this doesn't figure nearly as prominently in my thought processes), horses with blinders, naivete, and silence. Towards the end of our planning, Dr. Russell joined us for a recitation of our planned presentation, and for a crash course in the history between the years of the First and Second Jewish Revolts against Rome (66-73CE, approximately, and the later 132-135CE). I have a long reading list and a new academic pursuit for the summer.
Developments: I want to learn Hebrew, I might take Greek, I'm worried about taking Arabic, I am fascinated by Jewish history and can't seem to shake it (that's not new), I love the Middle East, I feel drawn to studying ancient, old, and dusty or destroyed things.
And I miss Irish dancing, even though I attempted it in the lobby tonight. Made it through my slip jig and treble jig, and could do no more, as I had gained an Arabic-speaking audience, and who can pass up a chance to learn some more Arabic?
Love.
Sunday, May 4, 2008
Tiberias, Night 2
I'm exhausted, along with everyone else on the trip. We did a lot today, in the hot sun.
8:30 am: boat ride across the Sea of Galilee from Tiberias. Dr. Jones, in lieu of a worship service, decided to 'open up' and tell us how it is that he can exist as a religious person and a scholar of religion. It was much enjoyed and appreciated by religion majors and those who have had several religion classes and traveled with Paul, but fell on deaf ears for some of the freshman. Most of us, I think, acknowledged the importance of the words and the fact that he chose to say them. Some freshman unfortunately snoozed off. Oh well. Shane, Logan, David, Andrew Bramblett, myself and several others sat raptly, and emotionally. A few of us cried. After he finished his talk, he requested that we all join hands in a circle and stand in silence.
The circle broke up a few minutes later after "Shalom, salaam, peace", and then our well-intentioned tour boat drivers turned on "Lord, I lift your name on high" and other various praise songs. We all groaned. The music was inappropriate, abrasive, and incongruent with a boat ride across Galilee. Oh well. They meant well. (They had also meant well when they played the Star Spangled Banner upon our entry to the boat. We all had to stand with our hands over our hearts, trying to display the same decorum of the Israeli flag-raiser himself. hmmm......)
We landed near the Kinneseret/Gennosaur Kibbutz with the American flag flying and gospel music blaring. Hallelujah, praise Jesus.
10:00am We visited the "Jesus Boat" museum near the Kinneseret Kibbutz. The boat has been dated to the first century CE, and was discovered in the mud on the shore of Galilee during a drought. After twelve years of meticulous preservation, ít has its own museum, documentary, gift shop, and food vendor. It was really cool. There's no way to know if Jesus ever rode in this boat, so the "Jesus boat" title is more of a tourist gimmick than anything else, but it was still fascinating to learn about the preservation process for such ancient pieces of water-logged wood. Cool.
11:30am This trip is break-neck paced, so we unfortunately didn't get to spend too much time at Capernaum. The site was fascinating, though, with well preserved first and second century homes, and a fourth century white marble synagogue (possibly built on top of an earlier black basalt synagogue that could have stood when Jesus lived, and thus been a synagogue he would have entered while in Capernaum). The best part of the site is a modern octagonal church built on top of and surrounding a 1st century home, which is enclosed by a fourth-century "house church", and fifth century Byzantine church. Because of an inscription found within the house, and the church building tradition that centered on that exact site, scholars can agree that the house was probably the home of the disciple Peter. The "on this rock I will build my church" Peter. It was awesome. We only stayed at the site for about 45 minutes, but David Clifford and I at least wished we could stay much longer.
We took a quick detour to the hotel after Capernaum and picked up Josh Wenta and Kathryn Welch, who had been sick and throwing up earlier. (I think since we entered the Lexington Airport we've had about eight people sick. I don't know if it's contagious or just mass hysteria, but it's spreading).
3:30 We visited the site of Sepphoris, or Zippori. The city was major and large, nearby to the small and backwater Nazareth. Only about 200 people lived in Nazareth in Jesus' time, according to some scholars, so some have proposed that Joseph would have done most of his carpentry work in Sepphoris, and would probably have taken Jesus along to work with him. The city was pretty massive for its day. The homes we saw were huge and extravagant, covered in intricate mosaics and marble. The city also had a large theater, many synagogues, and in the later Christian (Byzantine) years many churches.
I could definitely type and talk more, but my time at the internet cafe is running out and I need to run back to the hotel.
Much love. I'm gonna hopefully get more dancing done before I crash for the night. 6:00am wakeup call tomorrow. Ack.
8:30 am: boat ride across the Sea of Galilee from Tiberias. Dr. Jones, in lieu of a worship service, decided to 'open up' and tell us how it is that he can exist as a religious person and a scholar of religion. It was much enjoyed and appreciated by religion majors and those who have had several religion classes and traveled with Paul, but fell on deaf ears for some of the freshman. Most of us, I think, acknowledged the importance of the words and the fact that he chose to say them. Some freshman unfortunately snoozed off. Oh well. Shane, Logan, David, Andrew Bramblett, myself and several others sat raptly, and emotionally. A few of us cried. After he finished his talk, he requested that we all join hands in a circle and stand in silence.
The circle broke up a few minutes later after "Shalom, salaam, peace", and then our well-intentioned tour boat drivers turned on "Lord, I lift your name on high" and other various praise songs. We all groaned. The music was inappropriate, abrasive, and incongruent with a boat ride across Galilee. Oh well. They meant well. (They had also meant well when they played the Star Spangled Banner upon our entry to the boat. We all had to stand with our hands over our hearts, trying to display the same decorum of the Israeli flag-raiser himself. hmmm......)
We landed near the Kinneseret/Gennosaur Kibbutz with the American flag flying and gospel music blaring. Hallelujah, praise Jesus.
10:00am We visited the "Jesus Boat" museum near the Kinneseret Kibbutz. The boat has been dated to the first century CE, and was discovered in the mud on the shore of Galilee during a drought. After twelve years of meticulous preservation, ít has its own museum, documentary, gift shop, and food vendor. It was really cool. There's no way to know if Jesus ever rode in this boat, so the "Jesus boat" title is more of a tourist gimmick than anything else, but it was still fascinating to learn about the preservation process for such ancient pieces of water-logged wood. Cool.
11:30am This trip is break-neck paced, so we unfortunately didn't get to spend too much time at Capernaum. The site was fascinating, though, with well preserved first and second century homes, and a fourth century white marble synagogue (possibly built on top of an earlier black basalt synagogue that could have stood when Jesus lived, and thus been a synagogue he would have entered while in Capernaum). The best part of the site is a modern octagonal church built on top of and surrounding a 1st century home, which is enclosed by a fourth-century "house church", and fifth century Byzantine church. Because of an inscription found within the house, and the church building tradition that centered on that exact site, scholars can agree that the house was probably the home of the disciple Peter. The "on this rock I will build my church" Peter. It was awesome. We only stayed at the site for about 45 minutes, but David Clifford and I at least wished we could stay much longer.
We took a quick detour to the hotel after Capernaum and picked up Josh Wenta and Kathryn Welch, who had been sick and throwing up earlier. (I think since we entered the Lexington Airport we've had about eight people sick. I don't know if it's contagious or just mass hysteria, but it's spreading).
3:30 We visited the site of Sepphoris, or Zippori. The city was major and large, nearby to the small and backwater Nazareth. Only about 200 people lived in Nazareth in Jesus' time, according to some scholars, so some have proposed that Joseph would have done most of his carpentry work in Sepphoris, and would probably have taken Jesus along to work with him. The city was pretty massive for its day. The homes we saw were huge and extravagant, covered in intricate mosaics and marble. The city also had a large theater, many synagogues, and in the later Christian (Byzantine) years many churches.
I could definitely type and talk more, but my time at the internet cafe is running out and I need to run back to the hotel.
Much love. I'm gonna hopefully get more dancing done before I crash for the night. 6:00am wakeup call tomorrow. Ack.
Saturday, May 3, 2008
Tiberias, Israel
Globe-trotting again. We just got in from a day at Caesarea Maritima, Megiddo (from which we saw Mount Carmel, Mount Moreh, Mount Gilboa, and the Samaritan hills), and Nazareth. I had a great meal at the hotel (all the hummus I could stand), and then practiced dance for a while near the elevators on my floor. Two little Israeli boys sat on chairs and watched me dance for about 10 minutes. They kept trying to talk to me and couldn't understand why I didn't speak Hebrew. They giggled a lot.
Best parts of the trip: being able to read Arabic signs. I can't understand all of it, but I can read it. And at the Basilica of the Assumption in Nazareth (grotto church where the angel supposedly appeared to Mary, competing with another site at the Greek Orthodox Church of the Assumption) I could understand a good bit of the Arabic translation on the informational sign near the entrance. Pretty cool. I'm having trouble speaking, because the colloquial is so different, but I can communicate like a 1st grader now, as opposed to a kindergartner.
Wish I knew Hebrew, love the Arabic. And the historical/archaeological sites are incredible. Tomorrow we start on a boat across the Sea of Galilee, and end up in Capernaum, and Sepphoris, a town neighboring Nazareth where Joseph and Jesus probably worked as carpenters.
Tonight several of us are going to pour through the books of Kings and Chronicles to figure out exactly what is said to have happened in the sites we visited. So much to learn.
Having a great time. Love and miss you all.
Best parts of the trip: being able to read Arabic signs. I can't understand all of it, but I can read it. And at the Basilica of the Assumption in Nazareth (grotto church where the angel supposedly appeared to Mary, competing with another site at the Greek Orthodox Church of the Assumption) I could understand a good bit of the Arabic translation on the informational sign near the entrance. Pretty cool. I'm having trouble speaking, because the colloquial is so different, but I can communicate like a 1st grader now, as opposed to a kindergartner.
Wish I knew Hebrew, love the Arabic. And the historical/archaeological sites are incredible. Tomorrow we start on a boat across the Sea of Galilee, and end up in Capernaum, and Sepphoris, a town neighboring Nazareth where Joseph and Jesus probably worked as carpenters.
Tonight several of us are going to pour through the books of Kings and Chronicles to figure out exactly what is said to have happened in the sites we visited. So much to learn.
Having a great time. Love and miss you all.
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