(1) Introduction
I like this blog and its approach. I have thought about it a lot since it was brought to my attention. Furthermore, there is a very well written article in the ‘Tablet’, this week that is also on this theme. This explains how, in the past, the Americans have acted against their enemies, usually by capturing them and taking them alive.
I am not an intellectual, nor necessarily good with arguments, but here some simple extra thoughts in my head.
- As a child I was taught that ‘two wrongs don’t make a right’, and it seems to apply in this case of ‘summary execution’ which is comparable to the American ‘cowboy’ films when the local townspeople tie up the sheriff and take the law into their own hands. That seems to be what happened to Osama Bin Laden as is implied in the blog below; it is also analogous to the actions of the Klu Klux Clan in USA. Sadly, such things could also happen in the UK!
- The words of Jesus are very strong: “Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, if a person strikes you on one cheek offer him the other”, etc. etc. That is nothing like the motives behind revenge killing.
- I am well aware that criminals ought to face justice – justice according to the law. Today I was with somebody who has served a short prison sentence, and being a man of honour, this man said – I deserved to be punished for what I did. Osama should have been punished. How? I do not know, and I agree that it would have been a very tricky situation had he remained alive. However…… there are all these questions in peoples’ heads about what happened.
- I have asked several people today about this: most of them knew who I am, and so they see me as a Catholic priest, but one conversation was striking. The lady had no idea who I was, and we talked about this matter: I was not wearing clericals. She said clearly: “If we summarily kill Osama Bin Laden, then we are only acting in the way he acted towards us”.
Father Jonathan
(2) The Blog
Now that all the excitement at the death of Osama Bin Laden has died down just a little, I have to ask the question as to whether it can ever be morally right to take pleasure at the death of another human being. When the news of his ‘killing’ hit the news in the early part May, I actually raised the subject with a friend, and posed the question as to the moral righteousness of communities, peoples, even nations taking part in what can only be described as a furore of rejoicing in the downfall – the death – of a man. Osama was No. 1 on the international ‘wanted’ list, a hated terrorist, thought by millions of people to be the brains behind – perhaps even involved directly in the planning – of the most despicable and diabolical attack on the American people, when hi-jacked planes were flown into New York’s Twin Towers.
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There is little doubt that he was full of hate for the West and all its ideologies – that he had threatened to use his power in an effort to destroy the Western powers in some kind of retaliation for the way in which they had treated Islam – and that he was behind the formation of the terrorist group called al-Qaeda.
As to his death itself, the news items since broadcast seem to be pointing to the fact that Osama was not armed when located at his villa refuge in Pakistan, and although it is said he resisted the American Forces’ attempts to arrest him, I wonder if this act, in itself, sounds much more like an execution than a lawful killing. I am not sure that we will ever know the full truth.
Having gone thus far, I can now hear the vociferous voices raised against me and these few comments above. I can almost feel the outrage than many will be shouting – feeling – at my unwarranted – and unwanted – interference. I can hear the question being asked: “How can you be so stupid – you were not involved in the incidence of the horror and the aftermath of New York’s 9/11 – so shut up and let us get on with wiping Osama from the face of the earth, and from all living memory.” I can hear those who were involved, and related to, those where were murdered and maimed in the London Bombings, in July 2005, asking the question: “Where were you when this mass murder occurred?” I can then hear you say; “Grow up, get some common sense – get a taste of all that – you must be soft in the head!” The last decade has been full of international terrorist attacks in many parts of the world, America, the United Kingdom, Spain, the Middle East, the Far East, India and Pakistan, and, although it would be hard to prove the direct connection, the International Community seems to be convinced, from the evidence it has, that the al-Qaeda Group is behind many of these attacks. “So where will the ‘softly, softly’ legal approach to such a group and its methods likely to take us?” The answer of the ‘mob’ would be that this is not the way to deal with terrorists and the threats they pose to the international community of nations. I think the most popular answer is that all such evil people should be condemned to hell, forthwith, and good riddance!
I can find nothing inside of my heart and mind that could ever be thought supportive, in any way, of terrorism or terrorists. All of such activity is steeped in evil and I don’t care what ideological cover- name you give it. However, on reflection, it was the mob that cried out for the crucifixion of Jesus, and Jesus gave us one or two choice pointers to the right way to deal with such questions. In the first instance, he warned us not to judge others, as this was not our place, but God’s, and went on to say that those who judge will face judgement themselves. He refused to condemn Mary Magdalene and offered the first stone to the one that was without sin. And, try as I might, I cannot picture Jesus jumping up and down for joy should the crowd have chosen Barabbas for execution – instead of himself – that was certainly not his style! Can it ever be right for other mere humans to judge, when we cannot objectively be certain of his, or her, guilt, and even if we could, we cannot possibly know what passed through their minds and hearts, at the very instance of their deaths – what intimacy transpired between their minds and their God, as they gave up life on this mortal coil. Did they say sorry? Did they ask for forgiveness? Unless we were to know such things, how can we condemn? I wonder!
The ‘bottom line’ is, in my view, that anything to do with the perpetration of terror is wrong and unsupportable. Any act of terror that can be proved to result from the actions of a terrorist is evil in itself, and any allegations of such evil actions against a known person, once caught, should be the subject of a fair trial according to International Law. It follows, that, on conviction, any sentence must be one awarded in accordance with that jurisdiction. This is what International Law demands. It does not give licence for unlawful killing, and nor does it, in my view, applaud the rather unseemly rejoicing at the killing of a terrorist group leader – Bin Laden – et al.
Socius
(3) A Short Statement from the Vatican
The Vatican has said that a Christian ‘never rejoices’ in the face of someone’s death, even if that person has committed heinous crimes. The comment came as part of a short response to the worldwide news that Osama bin Laden, taken to be a key al-Qaida leader, had been killed by US forces in Pakistan, according to a statement made by President Barack Obama. The Vatican described ‘bin Laden’ as a man who sowed division and hatred and who caused ‘innumerable’ deaths, and said his demise should prompt serious reflection about human responsibility before God.
A Christian ‘never rejoices’ in the face of a man’s death, the Vatican spokesman, Father Federico Lombardi, said in a brief statement this morning (2 May 2011). Peace not hatred should be what we seek in all events, he declared. An English translation of his statement was released by the Catholic Church, and reads as follows:
“Osama bin Laden, as we all know, bore the most serious responsibility for spreading divisions and hatred among populations, causing the deaths of innumerable people, and manipulating religions for this purpose.
“In the face of a man’s death, a Christian never rejoices, but reflects on the serious responsibilities of each person before God and before men, and hopes and works so that every event may be the occasion for the further growth of peace and not of hatred.”
(Unfortunately, in sending out this blog by e-mail, ‘Word Press’ distorts the original formatting of the document. Readers are, therefore, advised to visit the website www.stmarysblog.co.uk should they wish to read it in its intended format).
