Arabic original, written in 2015, here. May Fr Georges' memory be eternal!!!
Holy Wars... Ridiculous!
"My kingdom is not of this world" and not "My kingdom is not in this
world" was Christ's response to Pilate when he interrogated Him before
handing Him over to be crucified. Christ denied that His kingdom was
"of" this world-- that is, in the image of this world, in the image of
the kingdoms of this world.
Christ did not despair, despite His objectivity, of man's ability to
attain perfection. He did not want to completely close the door in man's
face. Rather, He wanted him to try to establish a kingdom that would be
up to the standards of the Gospel. The "Christian state" in its various
forms and identities has failed, from its establishment under
Constantine the Great down to our present day. This state failed because
it was "of this world"and was unable to be different from what
prevailed among the nations. Indeed, with their brutal practices and the
atrocities that they committed, Christian kingdoms have perhaps
provided the ugliest examples among nations.
Christ realized this before it happened. He realized that nations are
not built on sincere intentions, on righteousness and piety, or on lofty
teachings. A state in this world means a state of this world. He did
not have the slightest doubt that when Christians obtained power, they
would be like all people who obtain power. They would be scornful,
exploitative, despising the vulnerable. The logic of the state is not
the logic of the Gospel. The Gospel calls for tolerance, forgiveness,
love, and giving freely. The state calls for punishment, prison, law and
taxes...
Christ realized this when He disdained and mocked political authority.
On the day when He was crowned as a king, the day of His entrance into
Jerusalem, unlike the custom of ancient or modern kings, He rode a
donkey. He rode a donkey after having previously fled from the crowd
when they wanted to make Him king. His closest disciples, like that
crowd, did not understand Christ's logic, since they asked Him who among
them would sit at His right and His left in His glory and almost
quarreled over this question. They asked for an authority for themselves
that they did not receive from Him.
Christ realized this, and nevertheless He called on Christians to be
committed to the affairs of the world and of people, to defend values
and virtues and proclaim the truth. Christianity, contrary to what some
may imagine, is a religion that is not only concerned with spiritual
matters but also strives for a better world where peace, justice, love
and mercy reign... This requires struggle against evil and sin. Even
though historical experience is discouraging in terms of the possibility
of this promised, ideal kingdom, its realization is not impossible,
even if it is difficult. A church historian once said that Christian
emperors ruled more harshly than pagan emperors because a pagan emperor
considered himself to be a god among many gods, while a Christian
emperor considered himself to be the one God's sole representative on
earth.
Christ did not establish a kingdom "of" this world that launches holy
wars led by His successors, heirs or followers. There have existed what
some consider "Christian" empires, but even apart from their assaults on
non-Christians, they committed massacres against Christians opposed to
them and their policies. The [Holy] Roman Empire launched Crusades that
targeted Eastern Christians alongside Muslims. The Byzantine Empire
persecuted Syriacs, Copts and even Chalcedonian Orthodox (during the
reign of Heraclius), just as the Byzantines and Bulgars slaughtered each
other while both were unquestionably Orthodox and Protestants and
Catholics slaughtered each other in Europe... and in the modern era---
and here we have no desire to open old wounds-- we can point to the
Christians in Lebanon fighting and slaughtering each other in the name
of Christianity...
In reality, today there is no "Christian" state and no "Christian"
president or leader in the image and likeness of Christ on the face of
the earth. Therefore the wars of this state and this ruler are not in
any way "holy". People are free, in matters of politics, to support this
or that state in their wars, but not in the name of Christianity or in
the name of the Church and not under the pretext of protecting the
existence of Christians or under the pretext of defending minorities.
The logic of the Church must be other than the logic of this world.
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