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News :: Peace |
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Anti-War Demonstrators Peacefully Confront Members of St. John’s Lutheran Church Over Iraq War During ‘Christian Season of Peace On Earth’ |
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by Kimberlie Kranich
Email: kakranich (nospam) yahoo.com (unverified!) |
27 Nov 2005
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Champaign, IL. Eight members of the Champaign-Urbana based Anti-War, Anti-Racism Effort (AWARE) stood Sunday morning on the sidewalk at the entrance of St. John’s Lutheran Church in Champaign with signs that included the messages “Will Christians Stand For Peace?” “Choose Life, End War,” “Is Torture A Christian Value?” and “Missouri Synod Lutherans For Life Say No to War,” while attempting to distribute literature and a letter to church leaders asking them to take a stand against the war in Iraq and bring US troops home. About half a dozen members of St. John’s Lutheran church spoke to AWARE members. Others smiled and took their literature, some shook their heads and refused their literature and still others avoided making eye contact. This is the first in a series of planned Sunday church actions by AWARE between now and Christmas. |
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“We felt compelled because of our religious tradition to be able to stand in front of St. John’s to express our belief about the morality of this war and hopefully engage members of this church in that dialogue,” said AWARE member Durl Kruse.
AWARE member Karen Medina, who is an Ecumenical Franciscan, talked with a World War II veteran. She said the veteran told her that when the troops came back he didn’t want them to be treated the way they were treated after Vietnam. He was against the war and for the troops coming home but not without the people being behind it.
“We actually support our troops,” Ms. Medina said. “We don’t like what they are being asked to do. So it’s not the troops themselves that we’re against, it’s our leaders that asked them to be there and the reasons we asked them to be there.”
Another male member of the church approached the AWARE group and asked what they were doing. The group explained then asked if he would take a prepared letter to the pastor. The church member, who wished to remain anonymous, declined. “I just wanted to find out what they were doing,” he said. “I really don’t care for any of this kind of stuff. I think these people are misguided and have no clue of what’s going on. But I see they’re on public property, so (laughter)…”
A man who identified himself as a church elder but declined to give his name, also approached the group, asked what they were doing and accepted the group’s offer to deliver a prepared letter to the church’s pastors.
When asked if he would take the group’s literature for the congregation, the elder said that he would have to preview it and make sure it is “in accordance with what we would say. We can’t do anything political and take any true stance one way or the other.”
The AWARE letter states, in part:
“Dear Pastors Elliott,Wright and Members of St. John’s Lutheran Church,
Today we stand outside your church not in disrespect but rather as an invitation to you and your members to join us in demanding our government end this immoral and illegal war in Iraq. We ask that our troops be removed from Iraq as immediately as practical and safe. In the spirit of this Christmas season, what better time for Christians and people of conscience to proclaim and act upon Christ’s message of ‘Peace on Earth and Goodwill Toward Others’ than by calling for the end of the US military occupation of Iraq.”
AWARE did not attempt to contact members of St. John’s Lutheran church before today’s action.
The Kruses of Urbana, who both grew up in the Lutheran Church Missouri Synod, contacted Pastor Mark Elliott of St. John’s Lutheran Church in August 2004 to talk with him about the war.
“We asked him about his feelings about the war and if it might be an issue to be discussed in the church,” Mrs. Kruse said. “He said No and that he would probably consider himself a Republican. He supported George Bush. He was in favor of the war and he said the war fulfilled the just war theory which he discussed with us. He said that our views were heretical and that we wouldn’t fit in in this church and that we were naïve in our beliefs that the church should speak out about the war in Iraq. So one of the reasons I’m out here today is not so much that I’ve left the church but the church has left me.”
Mrs. Kruse said after her meeting with Pastor Elliott she wrote him a letter. “I told him that it was sad that people who really cared about other people and had concerns about world events were not welcome and our views were not considered appropriate for the Lutheran Church Missouri Synod,” Mrs. Kruse said. According to her, Pastor Elliott never responded to her letter.
Pastor Mark Elliott did not return phone messages left for him at the church and his residence before this article was published.
AWARE member Carl Estabrook said he participated in today’s action to “mobilize some people from this particular church and other churches around town to think about the circumstances of the war and why they might want to be opposed to it and work against it.”
Ms. Medina added: “What I’d really like to do is have the churches set up a study group where they’re actually conversing about these things because I think talking about it and studying about it will actually produce possible solutions and ways to do the right things. And I believe that churches are afraid of doing that right now because they are afraid of turning people off. They are afraid of people stopping coming to church. So right now what they are saying is if the war in Iraq is an important issue, then go somewhere else where other people talk about it.”
The sign that prompted the most spirited discussion was “Choose Life, End War.”
St. John’s Lutheran Church member Steve Ruhlig and AWARE member Durl Kruse had a lengthy talk. I spoke to each separately after their discussion.
“I believe that it’s a just war as St. Augustine posited and I also am supportive of them having a right to express the views,” Mr. Ruhlig said. “But what I think is inconsistent is if you have a sign that says “Choose Life,” which is offensive to a person who is pro-life and this church is pro-life and that’s what I’m pointing out. If he wants to win the hearts and minds of the people of this congregation, how is it appropriate to be offensive in that case? I’m not suggesting he doesn’t have the right. I’m saying be savvy. Be politically smart about it. That is a clearly inflammatory statement and it raises the question, ‘Is he really here to change our hearts and minds’ or is he here for some other reason to illicit a response that isn’t in relation to the Iraq war and that’s what I was challenging him about.”
Mr. Kruse responded: “I think it’s important that if the churches feel strongly in a consistent ethic of life and they’re against abortion, they also ought to be as active and aggressive about being against a war of choice and a pre-emptive war. And I don’t believe the just war theory justifies from a Christian standpoint, our occupation of Iraq. So, I do not see personally an inconsistency from my view in terms of seeing life affirming values whether it be against the war or against abortion but I also believe in pro-choice because I believe in law and a separation of church and state.”
Mr. Ruhlig continued: “I don’t feel that there’s a need for political comment to be reflected in our church body. What we do is respect the word of God and that’s what drives the content of what occurs here. So to have a secular influence to come in and speak to our church I don’t know that this is the place for it. We’re not here as a political organization. We’re here to share the forgiveness of Jesus Christ with the world. It’s not appropriate for us to take every secular issue that comes along. If somebody picketed next week, would it be appropriate for us to dialogue with them? No. No, I don’t see that as consistent. I participate in civic expression of my politics as well. But should I introduce that into my church? I don’t think so. I don’t think that’s the appropriate place for it.”
Pastor James Wright, also of St. John’s Lutheran Church, was unaware of AWARE’s presence outside his church. I called him at his home, reported on the morning’s events and asked him if his church would sit down with members from AWARE to discuss the Iraq war.
“We don’t invite any political action groups to come to our church and speak,” Pastor Wright said. “I wouldn’t make an exception for this group. We teach what the Bible says about our behavior and we leave voting up to people. We might inform our congregation about issues such as personal morality and things of that nature. I have not addressed the war and I don’t believe anyone else has. We pray for our leaders whatever party they represent. We pray for them as the scriptures instruct us.”
The Kruses, who attended the November 20 church service at St. John’s Lutheran Church, believe that St. John’s does take political stances. Mrs. Kruse referred me to the church’s website, www.stjohn-lcms.org. Its on-line bulletin from November 20 includes a hand-out on a “Marriage Protection Referendum.” According to the church’s website:
“Today someone will be in the overflow after each service with a Petition regarding the Marriage Protection Referendum. The purpose of this Petition is to get it on the November 2006 ballot so that each individual will be allowed to vote on this subject instead of being at the mercy of judges to determine what marriage is. The Referendum reads as follows:
“Shall the Illinois General Assembly submit an amendment to Article IX of the Illinois State Constitution to the voters of the State of Illinois at large at the next General Election stating as follows:
‘To secure and preserve the benefit of marriage for our society and for future generations of children, a marriage between a man and a woman is the only legal union that shall be valid or recognized in this State’.” Five Hundred Thousand (500,000) signatures are needed in order for this to be on the November ballot in 2006. You must be a registered voter in the State of Illinois to sign this Petition. Please exercise your freedom by stopping by the table in the overflow and signing this Petition.”
Mr. Kruse said AWARE will visit a different church each Sunday between Thanksgiving and Christmas “during the Christian season of peace on earth.”
Next week the group will be outside the entrance of the First Christian Church at 3601 S. Staley Road in Champaign from 9:45am – 10:45am. According to Mr. Kruse, the First Christian Church is a large fundamentalist church attended by US Congressman Tim Johnson. |
This work is in the public domain |
