The grand finale of the Gaza Ceasefire Pilgrimage organized by Kairos with participation from many mainline denominations was a press conference to explain what the real problem is and how to solve it.
Bishop Andrew Asbil was there representing the Anglican Church of Canada. You can watch the video below. The five ladies in the centre did all the talking while the bookend men kept silent; they did fidget a bit. I should have said there appeared to be two men and five women but these days, one never knows for sure.
I can summarise the video by saying it is 31 minutes and 24 seconds of pernicious lies, nonsense, and Jew-hatred garnished with a light sprinkling of inane ecclesiastical pieties.
Everything is Israel’s fault. The rape, murder, torture and kidnapping of Jews by Hamas on October the 7th was Israel’s fault: when contextualized these were the acts of resistance by a “militarily occupied people”. A variation of the just war theory: just gender-based violence.
One brave soul in the audience did point out that while everything is being asked of Israel, nothing is being asked of Hamas even though they had been firing missiles at Israel for decades. There was no coherent answer only a lament that Gaza has inadequate leaders – and that is Israel’s fault.
There may well have been lies, nonsense, and inane ecclesiastical
pieties, but opposition to specific actions by Israel does not
necessarily constitute “Jew hatred”. Anymore than questioning
aspects of the ideology of Zionism is “antisemitism”. [ On that note,
in his reaction to a charge of war crimes by the International Court
of Justice, Netanyahu referred to “pouring gasoline on the fires of
antisemitism raging around the world”. ],
Until people can be be educated about, and disentangle the meanings
of, Zionism, the modern State of Israel, Judaism, Torah, the Shoah
(“Holocaust”), and (diverse types of) antisemitism, there will
be rhetorical excesses as frequent as IDF bombs destroying civilian
structures in Gaza and Hamas/Hezbollah rockets aimed indiscriminately
into Israel.
“IDF bombs destroying civilian structures in Gaza”. War tends to work that way.
Hamas must be destroyed. Palestinians elected Hamas, Hamas are Palestinians AFAIK, and Palestinians exert no pressure on Hamas to return hostages and surrender. Hamas are embedded deeply within the populace, so Hamas and “civilian structures” are of a piece. It’s not like Israel can meet them on a battlefield somewhere.
Why is it you never hear the phrase “Palestinian Hamas”, or, “Muslim Hamas”? Narrative, my friend, narrative.
Some Christians firmly believe that Jesus will return in the year 2030. Perhaps, the conflict in the Middle East will be resolved then.
These occasional postings are treasured. The humour in this one was duly savoured, so much so, I shared it with a friend.
For these Church Leaders to alternate between pro-Hamas ‘Kairos’, unfounded Charges of “genocide”, and alignment with the jihadi ‘Axis of Resistance’ and complicit silence without once naming the Axis of Terrorism at its root as the key sponsor of Terror worldwide, also found in The Book of The Prophet Daniel, ch. 10, has Canadian history repeating itself before, during, and now, the countdown to the Shoah: either the silence of the Churches, or the banality of evil.
Genesis 4:8 tells us that Cain killed his own brother Abel. If people are walking in Cain’s way, if people have rejected the way of salvation provided for them through the blood of Jesus, then killing will not stop in many places on earth.
Perhaps the church leaders should offer to take the place of the hostages held by Hamas.