The Pentagon Gets One Right!

The Pentagon understands the danger of mixing Church and state, why can’t Christians figure it out?  From the Idaho Press-Tribune:

NAMPA — Organizers of the God and Country Family Festival say the Pentagon denied a military flyover, which the celebration has featured for 42 years, because of the event's emphasis on Christianity.

“Basically, we applied to have a military flyover," Director Patti Syme told the Idaho Press-Tribune Thursday. "We were given (Federal Aviation Administration) approval, and then had to apply through the Pentagon. When we applied they denied our request because, as the gentlemen stated, our Web site specifically stated that this is a Christian event.”

Christianity and militarism don’t mix.

Organizers don't deny the explicitly Christian nature of the annual patriotic rally.

“Yes, it's about as Christian as you can get — we believe in promoting Christianity,” Syme said. “And we have no plans to change that.”

…”It's ,” Ferdinand stressed. “You do the flyover to honor the military and the freedoms that they stand for. To me, we're honoring the military when we do that flyover, and that's why we do it. I think they made a bad decision.”

Oh really?  I invite the promoters to explain to us how their agenda matches the teachings of Christ?  Last I knew, the definition of Christian didn’t include anything about one’s country or the military, it simply meant “a follower of Christ”.

Following the example on their website, I would like to consider what Romans 1:20-21 says:

For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead, so that they are without excuse, because, although they knew God, they did not glorify Him as God, nor were thankful, but became futile in their thoughts, and their foolish hearts were darkened. (emphasis added)

Though I am not one to judge the salvation of another (that is clearly Jesus’ task – Matthew 25:31-46), I can and do judge ideas (1 John 4:1). Remembering that the Son of God was killed by the military, acting on behalf of the state, should bring one pause. The promoters of these ideas have clearly “become futile in their hearts, and their hearts [are] darkened” when they contend that the Christian message includes “God and country, and … the military and all of that”.