Fr. John, I know the history and I know that there is real suffering of all Christians under the nation of Israel, a nation carved out by both terrorist force and political force. Israel doesn’t like Christians much, not even the Zionists ones. Got that.

What I object to is Met. Philip’s rhetoric such as the sermon he gave in a largely Palestinian parish several years ago (reported to me by someone who was there) that “There is no such thing as a Palestinian terrorist” and his Byzantine dhimmi language in praise of both Assad’s in Syria and the ‘greatest rulers…” and other words to that effect.

You don’t think that at least some of the suffering is due to the Israreli perception that the Palestinians as a group want to utterly destroy them, their way of life and kill them and their families? Don’t you think they feel that the Palestinian situation has been greatly exacerbated by the Islamic countries that surround them use the Palestinians as canon fodder? Does any Christian Palestinian group exist that, in Arabic, denouces the Islamic hatred of Jews (which pre-dates the estabilishment of Israel), works for peaceful solutions and confronts both the Israelis and the Muslims with the Gospel in word deed and the content of their lives? Since I am sure the American press would ignore such an organization if it existed, I’ll ask you, is there such an organization? If not, why has Metropolitan Philip attempted to create one or has he just played the politics of the region based upon his own ethnic bias?

Although the language used is more sophisticated the overwhelming message I have received from those who have made presentations at my parish on the subject is: “Jews bad, Arabs good, Jews need to go.” That is simply buying into the political turmoil and violence of the region and will bring no peace. If the Israelis were driven out, do yout thing for one minute that the Muslim majority wouldn’t start erradicating or supressing their Christian Palestinian ‘brothers’?

My parish supports Met. Sava in Syria because he is working apolitically. The founders of our temple largely came from the Diocese of Houran, and Met. Sava is working to build up the Body of Christ and serving both Christians and Muslims. His work is being destroyed by both sides in the Syrian civil war and is illegal under Syrian law (though seldom enforced before).

Father Morris:

In the 2008 “Vote the Bible” series, it’s the content of Pastor Hagee’s message that is the crux of what I am addressing. I should be hearing Biblical fervent preaching from the pulpit on Sundays in the tradition of the Orthodox Faith addressing crucial moral political issues, yet I don’t. When 45% of the Orthodox faithful believe that abortion is all right, along with gay marriage, there is a problem. When a website like AOI has to be created in order to wake up “the best kept secret” because it is not informing its people to take a stand on righteousness in the public square, then there is a problem.

Tomas:

How about I send you Pastor Hagee’s 2008 “Vote the Bible” series? It’s a three-part c.d. lecture. Along with it are scripture passages, which serve as the foundation of his teachings. Once again, I strongly believe the Orthodox hierarchy, clergy, and laity are misled strongly in the voting booth because they don’t know and/or read their Holy Scriptures; don’t speak up and often enough about the moral/political issues from the pulpit; and are just plain cowardly for fear of losing donations and possible tax-exempt status. If Saint Patrick of Ireland could bring the heathens to Christ and explain the Trinity by the use of a simple shamrock/cloverleaf, then the Holy Word of God can wake up the many sleeping Christians of this country to voting properly.

What is the subtext here, Father? Similar to the charges of voting fraud, I suspect. That blacks take advantage of white guilt to ‘get away with’ being openly partisan… and we all know which party they support now. Please, Father.

Metropolitan Philip is right on the Palestinian issue. Talk with a Palestinian Orthodox Christian about what their life is like under Israeli domination and you will change your mind. Zionism is one of the greatest injustices of modern history. It denies the human rights of the indigenous people of Palestine to national self-determination. Instead, foreign born Jews came to Palestine and used money and brutal force to seize control of the land and to establish a Jewish state which by definition defines non-Jews as second class citizens. The Zionist authorities continually harass the native Palestinian Orthodox, seize their lands, and deny them basic human rights. In America, we have been fed pro-Zionist propaganda for decades. What was done by the Nazis to the Jews was one of the most terrible crimes of history, but it is an injustice to make the Palestinian people who had nothing to do with them pay the price of the Nazi atrocities against the Jews by losing their homeland to the refugees from Hitler’s tyranny.

“There is no freedom apart from God, only enslavement to sin and the devil.” Yes, and the freedom to reject Him is terrible – as in terrifying.

“The U.S. Constitution was designed for a Christian people” Yes. And therein lies its strength, as well as its weakness.

….and Chrisitan Palestinians all too often become anti-semetic (or should I say anti-Jew since Arabs and Jews are both semitic in origin) and embrace the terrorist paradigm. Lest we forget, Jesus forgave them (all of us) from the Cross; Paul was even wiling to give up his own salvation if it would save the Jews. We Orthodox are in a unique position in the Chrisitan world to appeal to observant Jews unless we lapse into un-Biblical hatred of them as we have often done in our history. It is a line that Met. Philip (IMO) tip-toes along and leans over all too often. Lord have mercy.

As an Orthodox Christian I would not take John Hagee’s guidance on any spiritual or political matter. He is a Christian Zionist who supports depriving Palestinian Orthodox Christians of their human rights to support Zionism. So-called Christian Zionism is a major heresy that denies that Christ is the fulfillment of the Law and the Prophets and the Church the true Israel.

Alyosha writes: “Vote the Bible”

Can you please expand on this? What parts of the Bible should be codified in law … and to what extent? Although I would certainly like to see greater moral sensibilities in our populace (which would more likely happen if our priests and pastors hadn’t become so tepid regarding moral issues over the last few decades), I’m wary of taking political advice from an evangelical pastor who called my denomination the “Whore of Babylon”.

“Freedom apart from God is a terribel thing indeed!” There is no freedom apart from God, only enslavement to sin and the devil.

The U.S. Constitution was designed for a Christian people (at least a nominally Chrisitan people). It works fine in a Chrisitan context even a watered down Christian context.

Michael,

Excellent points. But we may be conflating two separate, but related, matters. One is freedom of speech (in this case religious speech). The other is the free exercise of religion.

Repugnant though it is, as a matter of law I don’t really care if the freedom of speech allows radical Islamists (to use but one example) to preach their venom as long as the law limits the free exercise of their religion (for instance, the actual free exercise of Sharia law). And even though the constitution expressly prohibits Congress from creating these limits, the general principal remains the same when left to the discretion of the states.

As you said, there are no easy answers. The more I meditate on this subject the more evident is the Orthodox Christian conviction that no philosophy of man (be it political or otherwise) can endure the test of time and the sinfulness of man. No matter how ‘rational’ it cannot ultimately remain consistent without destroying itself in the process.

Freedom apart from God is a terrible thing indeed!

Brian, I understand your concerns but the primary concern of George Mason and others who drafted the Bill of Rights was to keep the central government out of the control business. The states and the people decided those issues. The 14th amendment extended such provisions to the states. That leaves the people. Unfortunately, we, the people are notorious for not really liking feedom unless it is our own.

There is no neat solution. It would be nice is all religions were afforded the same freedoms and protections, but that is not the case. As noted above the IRS does nothing against black churches who routinely and openly support specific political parties and candidates while tending to go after white, evangelical protestant churches.

However, without strong protections situations as in Canada where the government has told Catholic schools they cannot teach that abortion is wrong (among other things) will develop.

In any case the Church is tasked with being prophetic. St. John Chrysostom certainly did not shy away from hot button policital issues and that got him exiled.

In our country moral and cultural issues are polticial. We cannot simply retire from the field of battle.