What Would Jesus Do? No Wait — Who Would Jesus Drone?

Hey Mister President — Who Would Jesus Drone?

By Web Minister Paul J. Bern

(James chapter 2, verses 14–22)

Today I feel compelled to speak out against the drone incident in the Strait of Hormuz in the Persian Gulf this past week. The torrent of lies being told to concerned Americans by the CIA and the US military, with the eager cooperation of our “free press”, causes me to wonder whether the letters CIA stand for Complete Idiots Agency (among other things I won’t print here). But all joking aside, I want to write truthfully today about God and what he might do under similar circumstances. After all, I am a Social Christian (not socialist, since there is a big difference) and an antiwar crusader because my conscience compels me to be such. It’s in my nature to be conscientious.

Indeed, being an authentic Christian inevitably means many positive things. Among others, it means being baptized, partaking of the Lord’s supper, and belonging to a community marked by the confession that Jesus Christ is the risen Lord and our blessed Savior. Likewise, being a Social Christian means blowing the whistle on the violence carried out through all the clandestine wars carried out by those powers and principalities that overwhelmingly seek their own lordship over God’s good creation — powers and principalities like America and her mighty war machine. Being an authentic Christian means to stand for social and economic justice and against inequality as Jesus did. It means faith and our works are interwoven.

The apostle James wrote eloquently on this very topic when he said, “14) What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if someone claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save them? 15) Suppose a brother or a sister is without clothes and daily food. 16) If one of you says to them, ‘Go in peace; keep warm and well fed,’ but does nothing about their physical needs, what good is it? 17) In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead. 18) But someone will say, ‘You have faith; I have deeds.’ Show me your faith without deeds, and I will show you my faith by my deeds. 19) You believe that there is one God. Good! Even the demons believe that — and shudder. 20) You foolish person, do…