Who Are The Heroes? By Star Parker
During these difficult times, it is beautiful and energizing for me
to watch my fellow Americans refocus on the powerful principles that make
our country so great. I know, as I see the flags flying and the red,
white, and blue lapel pins now widely sported, that we are indeed a nation
under God, exalting and realizing the will of the Creator as each of us
fulfill our unique destinies as free men and women.
Yet, in the midst of this, I am also saddened and dismayed by things
I am hearing from some of my fellow citizens and from some of our allies'
abroad. What type of thinking could conclude that the horrendous, murderous act that occurred on September 11th can be justified in any way and that somehow, this grotesque behavior is our fault? What type of thinking could possibly conclude that a cowardly act, resulting in the murder of innocent men, women, and children, is religious or heroic?
Let me say at the outset that I, like most Americans, know nothing
about Islam. I also believe that it is yet another sign of the beauty of
our people that among our first reactions to the horror has been to try to understand. However, perspective is crucial. When murder is committed,
when life and property are violated and destroyed, it is irrelevant whether the criminal was Christian, Jew, or Moslem. I need no knowledge of Islam to know that those who committed the horrors of September 11 committed crimes against man and God.
The God I worship, as a Christian is the God who admonished a sulking Jonah to care for all of creation. To do this is to understand that good and evil have no cultural spin. We should reject any claim that any such act by any individual, from any country, attending any church, synagogue, or mosque, be understood as religious. We should also not tolerate murder nor condone in any way disregard for others and their
property regardless or our foreign policy or racist past.
For years I have carried the message to African Americans that the principles of freedom - respect for the sanctity of life, liberty, and property - transcend race and culture and that the bounty and beauty of freedom can only be realized by embracing itsprinciples. Our battles against evil cannot cause us to lose our constant awareness of the principles of the good.
It is tragic and ironic that those who seek to destroy us finance their weapons with the wealth we create through our free and civil
society.
My God is a God of creation and I reject any claim to a God of
destruction. My God has clearly communicated in the closing chapters of
Deuteronomy that "I put before you this day life and good, and death and
evil...therefore, choose life." Those who choose death are evil in every
way and those who rationalize their acts are their partners. Those who
choose not to live, for any reason and who deny the responsibilities of
living in this world and improving it are cowards of the worst kind. The
heroes are those who choose life.
Our nation must defend itself clearly and resolutely today against
evil in any dress, in any form, and spoken in any language. We must defend
the God given principles that make this a blessed and great country.
-- Star Parker (info@urbancure.org
President & Founder of the Coalition on Urban Renewal & Education (CURE)
Star Parker
Sunday, October 28, 2001