The War Prayer

How is it that the same people who quote the bible and are strongly pro-life when speaking of embryos do not even wince when they hear the Iraqi body count?

In the course of our Libertarian outreach activities, we came upon a person who told us that, in the runup to the 2004 election, the pastor in their church had threatened all the parishioners that if they did not vote for Bush, surely the world will end. See how things never change. Here is a little article written by Mark Twain a long time ago.

"The War Prayer" was a vivid commentary on the misappropriation of religion on behalf of nationalistic causes. It begins with a church service in which the pastor calls down the blessings of God upon American military forces and concludes with, "Grant us the victory, O Lord our God!"

A frail old man makes his way into the church and, waving the pastor aside, explains that he has spoken with God Himself, who wishes to hear the other half of that prayer - the half that was only in their hearts and uttered but implicitly.

O Lord our Father, our young patriots, idols of our hearts, go forth to battle - be Thou near them! With them - in spirit - we also go forth from the sweet peace of our beloved firesides to smite the foe. O Lord our God, help us to tear their soldiers to bloody shreds with our shells; help us to cover their smiling fields with the pale forms of their patriot dead; help us to drown the thunder of the guns with the shrieks of their wounded, writhing in pain; help us to lay waste their humble homes with a hurricane of fire; help us to wring the hearts of their unoffending widows with unavailing grief; help us to turn them out roofless with little children to wander unfriended the wastes of their desolated land in rags and hunger and thirst, sports of the sun flames of summer and the icy winds of winter, broken in spirit, worn with travail, imploring Thee for the refuge of the grave and denied it - for our sakes who adore Thee, Lord, blast their hopes, blight their lives, protract their bitter pilgrimage, make heavy their steps, water their way with their tears, stain the white snow with the blood of their wounded feet! We ask it, in the spirit of love, of Him Who is the Source of Love, and Who is the ever-faithful refuge and friend of all that are sore beset and seek His aid with humble and contrite hearts. Amen.

The story ends abruptly, with the people considering the man a lunatic - and, presumably, carrying on as before.

Are Iraqi lives worth less than American lives? Are they worth less even than American embryos? Are they worth less than a brain dead Terri Shiavo? What is the exchange rate for Iraqi lives versus American lives? Is it 2 to 1, 3 to 1, 10 to 1? I am sure that, if there is a God, he loves all his children equally and the correct ratio is 1 to 1.

How then do the strongly pro-life (anti-abortion) folks support the president who kills all these Iraqis? I have no answer, it is a question for the ages. Mass stupidity and moral blindness is a constant theme throughout history.

As a people, we have a moral obligation to keep our government in control. We are responsible for the damage it does if we are negligent in our duty. To maintain our moral standards, we have no choice now but to demand impeachment and prison for Bush, Cheney and his accomplices in this heinous crime.