Monday, May 21, 2007
Something's Missing
1 Cor 15:55 -
At the time I expressed disappointment in the interpretive materials. The new trend makes it appear that the seige and battle was a wasted effort and vain.
One must wonder if mere historical accuracy is the driving force behind the reinterpretation. There have been few new facts or writing found in decades, it is really all about interpretation. Why the efforts to make men that fought and died so valiantly look such? This question is particularly important in light of the current efforts to cast the military efforts in Iraq in a similar light.
Could the answer lie in the decreasing presence of faith in our public life? Without faith, without Christ, does not the preservation of life become the paramount value? Is it not faith and the promise of more than I have here, now, that renders some things WORTH dying for?
Consider the two verses that follow the one quoted above
No doubt, some will agree and say that is a reason to do away with religion. I have precisely the opposite reaction. If there is nothing worth dying for then there is nothing worth living for either.
Related Tags: death, religion, military, service, heroism, gallantry
"O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?"Those words rang through my head when I visited the Alamo about a month ago where all the defenders died, buying time for Sam Houston to raise an amry with which Texas independence was one.
At the time I expressed disappointment in the interpretive materials. The new trend makes it appear that the seige and battle was a wasted effort and vain.
One must wonder if mere historical accuracy is the driving force behind the reinterpretation. There have been few new facts or writing found in decades, it is really all about interpretation. Why the efforts to make men that fought and died so valiantly look such? This question is particularly important in light of the current efforts to cast the military efforts in Iraq in a similar light.
Could the answer lie in the decreasing presence of faith in our public life? Without faith, without Christ, does not the preservation of life become the paramount value? Is it not faith and the promise of more than I have here, now, that renders some things WORTH dying for?
Consider the two verses that follow the one quoted above
1 Cor 15:56-57 - The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law; but thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.I read Imperial Grunts a while back. In it, Kaplan discusses the tremendous levels of religiousity in the military. Seems almost a necessity to military service, for only faith in God makes death other than the ultimate loss.
No doubt, some will agree and say that is a reason to do away with religion. I have precisely the opposite reaction. If there is nothing worth dying for then there is nothing worth living for either.
Related Tags: death, religion, military, service, heroism, gallantry
