World News Through the Third Lens

MARINES LINK UP IN AFGHAN BATTLE (Alfred de Montesquiou, The Associated Press as reported in the Norwich Bulletin, 2/17/10): Marjah, Afghanistan - Marines moving by land from the north linked up Tuesday with U.S. units that have faced nearly constant Taliban attack in the four days since they were dropped by helicopter into this insurgent stronghold in southern Afghanistan. [After giving some details of the use of non-lethal smoke rounds for fear of civilian casualties, naming the two Marine Companies involved, the article closed with these words] A Taliban spokesman, however, claimed that insurgents retain control of the town and that coalition forces who "descended from helicopters in limited areas of Marjah" were now "under siege."

A BIBLICAL (THIRD LENS) PERSPECTIVE: First, because this is in effect an op-ed piece, this report, as the phrase goes, "makes me sick." The picture in the upper left is of my grandson, Andrew, and was taken on the day before his graduation from Marine Basic Training at Parris Island in 2007. He is now training with his reserve unit at Camp Pendleton, CA and in about 3 weeks will be deployed to Afghanistan. I love this young man to pieces, and I am proud of him and his comrades for service to God and country. I could go on (and have in other writings) about the deterioration of "American Values" that our men and women in uniform are being asked to defend, but I won't in this piece. For now I just want to remind those reading this piece that Jesus has said to us: "Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called the sons of God." (Matthew 5:9) Notice that Jesus said "peacemakers," not "peacekeepers." When it was God's intent for the Israelites to come into the land He had promised them, His command was: "...when the Lord your God has delivered them over to you and you have defeated them, then you must destroy them totally. Make no treaty with them and show them no mercy." (Deuteronomy 7:2) Not since WWII have we treated the enemy as an enemy that must be defeated. History records how well the peace treaties worked when the Allied Forces made peace through victory. Look at what has happened since - from Korea to Vietnam to the Iraq and Afghanistan. One of the political hot potatoes is "when are the troops coming home?" If we have a right to be there in the first place, the answer to that question should be, "Not until we win and peace is made."

I probably have strayed more in this piece than in any I have written thus far. I don't pretend to have all the answers and I don't pretend to be a military genius. However, it doesn't seem to be a coincidence that as morality and righteousness has spiraled downward in our country, the number of unresolved military conflicts (wars and rumors of war) we have been drawn into. Even the reports of action on the battlefield brought to us by our press has given the enemy the last word!! Please pray for our leaders (1 Timothy 2:1-2) and pray for our military.