Will our Election Change Anything in Gaza or the West Bank?

I have yet to offer my thoughts on the election. Instead, last week, I began to offer some thoughts on the present war on Gaza and the fate of the Palestinians. (part 1; part 2).

NB: I have expressed in the past that Israel’s assault on Gaza is not good for Israel. I am convinced that it will lead to the demise of Israel in the near future. How near? Time will tell.

In my last two posts, I noted that there have been many instances of injustice in which those who suffered responded with violence. I noted that even though I do not believe that Christians should ever respond violently (I do think that there may be a role for self-defense—though I also believe that many use this to justify excessive force), I wonder what I would do if my wife and children were attacked.

What would you do?

Oh, Those Younger Siblings

If you have grown up with siblings, you have likely experienced a time when the younger sibling “tattled” on the older sibling, “Mom, Tommy hit me.”

Of course, this means that Tommy is in trouble (all of us younger siblings know how the game works, and we are quite effective at manipulating Mom).

Mom then summons Tommy for his punishment. She first asks Tommy to explain himself. Tommy describes how the younger sibling (not me but other younger siblings) consistently bothers him, so he cannot complete his homework assignments. In his confession, Tommy acknowledges that he indeed hit his younger sibling, but only after he repeatedly warned them to leave him alone.

At this point, Mom decides that Tommy still deserves to be punished. However, she significantly reduces the punishment she intends to dish out.

What Does Justice Look Like?

I raise these points because understanding the larger situation is critical in demanding justice.

Though necessary, merely addressing the most recent events does not resolve the problem. We may well justify a response to violence that itself only serves to perpetuate the cycle of violence. Furthermore, such responses, as with Israel’s assault on Gaza, fail to account for the factors that led to the violent incursion of Oct 7, 2023.

Did Nat Turner deserve to be punished (see my previous post)? Sure, but unless the injustices inherent in the system of chattel slavery are addressed, there will most certainly be another uprising.

Did Charlie (see my previous post), the young man who, while trying to stop the violent abuse against his mother, killed his stepfather, deserve to go to prison? Sure, but unless Charlie receives the counsel and support he needs, he may well resort to violence as a means of dealing with his trauma.

If, in my hypothetical scenario in which our own children were arrested, beaten, and tortured, we responded in terror, would we be justified? Would we deserve to be punished?

It is human nature to view our actions as just—even violent ones. Thus, while most view Nat Turner’s rebellion with a measure of sympathy, I suspect that if we were members of white families in Virginia in the 1830’s, we also would have justified the lynching of Nat Turner and the more than 100 negro enslaved persons.

Ending The War on Gaza

It should be apparent that the hypothetical scenario in my last post corresponds to the lived experiences of most Palestinians. My point is that if we were in the position of Palestinian families, we would likely have responded with violence as well.

NB: I must say that the more I have become aware of the plight of Palestinians, the more I am amazed that they have not been more violent. Now, in saying this, I do not intend to condone any acts of violence.

This knife, of course, cuts both ways. After all, it is commonly asserted that Israel has been an oppressive occupier of the Palestinians because Israel itself is acting out of self-defense. The Palestinians, it is argued, are not willing to live peacefully with Israel.

NB: This is often asserted in order to justify the ethnic cleansing of the Palestinians. They must go because they are unwilling to live in peace with Israel. This, however, is far from the truth.

It is my contention, however, that we should ask why Israel has to be concerned about Palestinian terror attacks against it. Is it possible that the Palestinians are not willing to live in peace with the Israelis—which it may be argued is not entirely true—because Israel has continued to seize Palestinian land and to maintain an oppressive and unjust occupation?

Does not the knife continue to cut both ways?

Is it possible to push this conflict back to the beginning? Where do we start?

For Palestinians, the starting point traces back to the incursion of Jewish persons into their land.

For Israelis, there may be multiple starting points, including the last several thousand years of antisemitism.

As a result, the present actions of Israel towards the Palestinians are thought to be necessary in order to ensure that further acts of violence against them are stifled.

But isn’t this used as a justification (sure, this is overly simplistic, but that doesn’t mean it is untrue) for acts of terror against Israel?

NB: Once again, it is necessary to note that this does not justify the acts of terror any more than Nat Turner’s rebellion or Charlie’s murdering of his stepfather were justified.

Where do we go from here? Will Trump Change Anything?

Whether or not it is possible to trace the present crisis between the Israelis and the Palestinians back to some starting point may be debated. Regardless, there is a present crisis to address. And it will not suffice to demand that the Palestinians be forcibly removed from their lands and wiped off the map. As I have often said, violence begets violence (Matt 26:52).

Where do we go from here?

It is time for the Church to be the Church. In this instance, this means that we must demand a just resolution and an end to the violence. We can no longer accept simplistic rhetoric that justifies violence. As God’s people, we must advocate for peace and justice for everyone. We must hesitate to endorse the violence of one side against the other.

I.e., we cannot accept the dehumanizing rhetoric that all ______ (fill in the blank: Palestinians, people of color, Russians, etc.) are _________ (fill in the blank: antisemitic terrorists who are bent on the destruction of Israel, inferior humans that are justifiably enslaved, communists intent on world domination).

The conditions that led to Nat Turner’s rebellion need to be addressed to ensure that there will never be another Nat Turner rebellion. If we want to ensure that the Charlies of the world do not resort to violence, we must find justice for them before they enact justice on their own. If we want to see the violence in Israel-Palestine end, we must demand a cease-fire and that a just peace ensues.

As for the election of Trump, I don’t see how this will aid either of these. He, too, is beholden to the forces of violence.

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