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July 30, 2008
John Kerry: 'Love One Another or Die'
In conference opener, Massachusetts Senator tells Christian and Muslim leaders they are on 'the right side of the debate.'
Filed: 7:05 AM, July 30, 2008
Senator John Kerry kicked off the "Loving God and Neighbor in Word and Deed" conference (also known as the "Common Word" conference) Monday night with a largely unsurprising, but welcome speech. He was, after all, preaching to the choir: Christian and Muslim leaders from around the world who want to find a way to live together peacefully.
Kerry began by telling his roughly 150 listeners that the meeting they were attending at Yale University "can help change the world," while warning that pessimism about future relationships between the Muslim world and the West hands demagogues who play to pessimism about the inevitable violent clash of cultures and religions. "You have placed yourselves among those who are on the right side of the debate," he told them. "We must love one another or die."
Kerry, who is a direct descendant of Puritan governor John Winthrop, famous for his "city on a hill" sermon, recounted for the benefit of the global audience the way in which early American history was shaped by a series of bitter religious splits. But the fruit of that early experience of division was a commitment to welcoming all faiths, he said.
Kerry balanced his assertion that "we all worship the One God, the same God" with a plea that religious differences not be played down among the Abrahamic faiths. We don't need to succumb to "mush" in order to find tolerance. Nor do we need to remove the influence of faith from our public life, he said. "If we aren't shaped by our faith, we don't have faith."
Our goal should be a politics that seeks the global common good, Kerry said, not just the politics that cares for the people of one nation. He cited Vatican II documents to support this planetary notion of common good politics.
The audience gave Kerry a courteous welcome, but none of his comments drew applause until he called for the US to put Middle East peace back on the mainstream foreign policy agenda, and to do it in a way that would deal with "everyone's grievances."
Most quotable line of the evening: "Faith may be worth dying for, but it cannot be worth killing for."
Kerry has gone back to Washington, but the choir has stayed behind to hear each other sing. The panel discussions today will be less inspirational and motivational and will deal with substantive issues. The dozen or so Muslim and Christian panelists Tuesday include evangelical leaders such as Miroslav Volf (Yale), Peter Kuzmic (Croatia), Tukunboh Adeyemo (Kenya), Martin Accad (Lebanon).
Comments
I believe people like Kerry are trying to sort out their spiritual affairs while under the microscope. It's got to be hard but at least he's trying.
Posted By: Rob mills | July 30, 2008 3:28 PM
What Kerry is saying is that we as Christians and Muslims share a great deal, not only on the surface but deep in our faith. The Bible calls us to be, as Paul was, ambassadors of Christ. This word, ambassador, is important since it goes to the very heart of how we share our faith. What I mean is this. Rev. Ian Paisley is a good minister and a great man of God, but would he make a great ambassador to the Vatican? No, because the differences he sees are greater to him than the ideas that they share. Ian Paisley cannot see the forest for the trees. To begin dialogue is to look at the very things we share before we undertake the thngs on which we differ.
Posted By: Chuck | July 30, 2008 4:41 PM
Actually, we do NOT all worship the same God.
Muslims worship Mohammad and Christians worship Jesus.
Why is that so difficult for some people to grasp?
Not all gods are equal or the same.
Allah is Allah and Jesus is Jesus.
Posted By: fleur | July 30, 2008 5:57 PM
How could Christianity and Islam be called "Abrahamic faiths" when neither one nor the other knows God in a firsthand way Abraham did (John 8:56)? There is a great inequality between "Loving God and Neighbor" in Word and Deed! Only if both sides drop all human preconceptions of God will they stand a chance of discovering their common heritage in "the tree of life" in great and mighty ways none know anything about at present!
Posted By: Ephrem Hagos | July 31, 2008 2:52 AM
Kerry is acting in the spirit of Antichrist, who will (through his
False Prophet) meld all of the religions of the world into one.
But they will all be watered down, apostate, forms of what they
are now. Although Kerry is right not to call for "mush," that's
what they will be. And Kerry's other points are valid (dying for,
not killing for, one's faith, etc.), but in the end he is, unwittingly, doing the work of the Antichrist, and not of Christ.
Posted By: John G. | July 31, 2008 10:38 AM
Chuck is wrong. Muslims don't worship Muhammad. He is a claimed prophet, not their god. Their god is Allah. He is right on 0ne point- biblical Christians & Muslims do not worship the same God. Christians have as the one true God a triune God of Father, Son/Jesus & the Holy Spirit- 3 Persons, but 1 God. They worship all 3 Persons as one God, not just Jesus. Kerry said we don't have to blur the differences, but he surely misses the differences that demonstrate the 2 religions do not worship the same god/God. I didn't expect more of liberal John Kerry, unfortunately. I live in Massachusetts. I sure hope the GOP candidate defeats him this Fall.
Posted By: Harry R | August 1, 2008 3:28 PM
Well, right off the bat, Kerry doesn't get it. Islam doesn't okay abortion or homosexuality. Neither does Christianity but todays'
Christianity doesn't fight for its' beliefs. The U.S. is no longer a Christian nation. It is a humanist, socialist nation not bound by any religion but secularism. What other religion except humanism thinks it is okay to kill the innocent unborn but not someone who has killed and okay for man to man and woman to woman marriages and even teaches this as normal in the schools (against parents wishes) and thinks marriage between man & woman is old crap (kick the man out and raise children by one parent or in a homosexual marriage). There is no way Islam and humanism can live together. One or the other will have to win out. Since humanism is a cold uncaring religion I'll bet Islam wins out. As for Christians, well if we can't stand up for what's right and stop abortion, homosexual marriages, the horrific treatment of Christians and women in Islam countries, well we don't deserve to exist and when Islam gets done with us, we won't. Kerry certainly doesn't get the reality of this.
Posted By: Anna | August 2, 2008 9:21 PM
Kerry balanced his assertion that “we all worship the One God, the same God”
John Kerry follows Satan. He's sadly decieved if he thinks Islamics have the same God as do true Christians and Jews.
Posted By: David | August 9, 2008 2:54 PM
Greetings in Jesus name,Thank you for the wonderful of God of uplifting His Kingdom. Through your web site i was inspired and i request that you share your church teachings to our ministryu fellowships. This is for the glory of our Lord.I pray God to open Heavenly windows for you to visit us here in kenya and share the massage that God will lead you. Prayer request to you for the orphans under our care for their urgent need. please pray with us as we get tough times some times.
Blessings.
Pastor Bush Pingo
Posted By: BUsh Pingo | September 2, 2008 7:42 AM