I wrote the following post one week ago in response to the attack on Israelis and the resulting aerial bombardment on Gaza; tensions have escalated since then, and an Israeli ground assault on Gaza seems imminent.

I wrote then, and I write now, from several convictions, not least this one: bad politics, bad religion, and mass indifference or mass fervor make a potent cocktail that often inebriates the unwary and leads to destruction. It is the story of the cross. Brute Roman political power plus self-serving Jewish political interests plus the fervor of some and the indifference of the masses nailed our Lord Jesus to the cross. Yes, this was a providential act of God, but it transpired through the secondary causes of politics, religion, and mob behavior, and those who perpetrated it are not without guilt, except possibly through the dying prayer of Christ for their forgiveness.

I cannot speak to the politics of the present conflict; as a priest, I have no particular political acumen just because one of the parties to the conflict is Israel. But, I can speak to the religious aspect of the conflict, though I fear what I say may surprise and disappoint some. In posting this, I speak as a priest to the members and regular attenders of Apostles, but not on behalf of the clergy of Apostles. As a clerical staff, we have not had the opportunity to meet together for prayer and study and discussion since the initial attack. So, what follows is my own, and it should be understood in that light.

I write to question some false assumptions that I hear and see in the broader public conversation, especially among those with a particular evangelistic theology.

FALSE ASSUMPTION ONE: The state of Israel is the covenant people of God. No: the state of Israel is just that, a political state, one of many among the kingdoms of this fallen world. And all the kingdoms of this world, all political states, are under the sway and power of dark forces; in fact, “the whole world lies in the power of the evil one” (1 John 5:19, ESV). The primary proclamation of the Gospel is simply that God, in Christ Jesus, has fulfilled all of the covenantal promises that God made to Abraham and the Patriarchs. There are no promises remaining to the Jews apart from Jesus Christ. And, there are no promises to the secular state of Israel. St. Paul does envision a future time when, in the mystery of God, the blindness of the Jews will be lifted; but that will be — please God — a time for many Jews to acknowledge Jesus as Messiah. In his Providence, God may yet use the political state of Israel to play a part in the redemption of the world, but that is true of every political state including these United States. But, remember that God used Assyria and Babylonia for his purposes and then judged them when they went beyond the mandate he had given. There are no moral blank checks in the will of God.

FALSE ASSUMPTION TWO: The Church has a religious obligation to support Israel unquestioningly. No: the Church has an obligation to pray for and work for truth and righteousness and peace for all people; in Christ “there is neither Jew nor Greek” — read this as “neither Israeli nor Palestinian” — for all are one in Christ Jesus (Gal 3:28, ESV); otherwise, all are enemies of Christ and the cross. We proclaim a Gospel that ends ethnic and political distinctions by drawing people of every family, language, people, and nation into the one Body of Christ. If you are still concerned about this, please remember that God did not support either the Kingdom of Israel or the Kingdom of Judah uncritically. He stood athwart their religious and political aspirations and ways when they stood athwart his will; hence, the prophets, the destruction of Israel, and the exile of Judah.

The Israeli-Palestinian conflict is far too complex for me to presume to understand or to guide others through; I suspect it is intractable apart from the cross of Christ which is the very grace and mercy of God. But, I can and do caution against unexamined theological assumptions. They are not helpful to anyone. Also, remember that there is an Anglican presence both in Israel and in Gaza, as is appropriate. Please remember that there are both Palestinian Christians and Jewish Christians in our parishes, as is appropriate. We must pray with and for each group for peace and justice and reconciliation between these peoples:

Eternal God, in whose perfect kingdom no sword is drawn but the sword of righteousness, no strength known but the strength of love: So mightily spread abroad your Spirit, that all peoples may be gathered under the banner of the Prince of Peace; to whom be dominion and glory, now and for ever. Amen (BCP 2019, 27. For the Peace of the World, p. 654).

Following is the original post from one week ago.

FOOLISH LIPS

11 A fool gives full vent to his spirit,
but a wise man quietly holds it back (Proverbs 29:11, ESV).

Perhaps what follows ranks me among the fools, but I feel compelled to speak. That is rarely a good sign.

Great evil was perpetrated recently against Israel, actions for which there is no justification, though, in an interview with NPR this morning, Palestinian scholar and politician Hanan Ashrawi traced its roots to ongoing Israeli occupation and brutality against the Palestinian people. Each group has its story of pain and loss, and each is complicit in the ongoing conflict. Each is a pawn in a larger spiritual battle of which both peoples seem largely unaware.

There has been an appropriate outpouring of sympathy for Israel since the attack. Our President has committed on our behalf that we will stand with Israel. That stance is political and strategic, but it also has religious overtones in the popular imagination, and those resonances can beguile and lead astray. It seems to me important to remember that:

1. The political state of Israel is not the elect of God, not the everlasting house of David that God promised through Nathan. That dynasty has been realized not in David Ben Gurion or Golda Meir or Benjamin Netanyahu, but in Jesus, son of David and Son of God.
2. Whatever God has in store for Israel will be accomplished by the Prince of Peace and not by the political engines of war.
3. The political and human right to exist as a nation and to redress grievous wrongs does not present Israel or any nation a blank moral check of vengeance.
4. To stand with and for Israel may require speaking a prophetic word contrary to prevailing attitudes. When the leaders of Judah and Israel failed to live as God’s holy people, as a kingdom of priests, God himself raised up prophets to accuse and convict them, to call them to repent and return. To stand with Israel unquestioningly, to stand with Israel right or wrong, is to expurgate the Scriptures of both history and prophecy.

I write this largely because there are Palestinian Christians who have been suffering for years and who will suffer greatly in the coming Israeli offensive. I write this largely because there are Palestinian Christians in our parishes and churches who tell their family stories of pain and loss with tears in their eyes if we care to listen. How do they hear our uncritical support for the state of Israel?

I write this largely because there is no solution to this ongoing conflict except through Jesus Christ. Political solutions have not worked. Military action has been of no avail. Terrorism — of which each side accuses the other — has only escalated conflict.

Forgive my foolishness. This is a complex — perhaps intractable — situation and I have no political expertise. I have only prayer: that God’s justice will restore and reconcile, that the peace won by the Lamb of God will prevail, and that one day Israelis and Palestinians will bow the knee together before God as his holy people to sing his praises with one voice.