A short documentary by NBC Chief Foreign Correspondent Richard Engel about his own time in Iraq during the war. It’s broken into six short clips, each about 5 minutes long, so you can view them all at once or individually when you have time. Either way, it’s worth your time; It’s over a year old, but informative nonetheless. Please note some of the images are graphic, but it gives a more complete view of what the war has been like on the ground for Iraqis (and for this journalist) than the brief video clips allow for during the nightly news.
During my recent travels in Lebanon and Syria I met more than a few Iraqi refugees. One man in particular remains close to my heart. He is a middle-aged man working at an Iraqi restaurant we frequented in the Jaramana Palestinian Refugee Camp outside Damascus – a refugee working among refugees. He was quiet and kind, and had moved to Damascus 8 months ago from Baghdad with his family. It is humbling to exchange the “Where are you from?” questions when you are from the U.S. and the other person is from Iraq. Because of what my country has done, he and his family have had to flee theirs. I was grateful for his kindness to us despite the deeply painful circumstances, and his ability to separate us from the acts of our government. One day I asked him, sincerely, “How are you and your family?” He replied first with the expected superficial answer, “Fine.” But then he hinted at the reality underneath the surface: “Not fine, but fine.” I asked him to explain his answer, and he humbly expressed how he is grateful his family is doing alright there in Damascus, but how they long for home and wish they could be there. With as much honesty in my words as I could communicate, I said simply, “I’m sorry.” I meant it. But it was still cheap in light of all that needed to be forgiven and restored.
This documentary puts into perspective what the kind waiter, his family, and countless others have left in search of peace. As long as they are far from home they will not find it in whole. Let’s pray that God restores peace in Iraq, and raises some of us up to be a part of the process.
The link to the clips: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/17636144/
[...] H/T to Amanda. [...]
I agree Amanda. America should stop the war over in Iraq. We should let them take care of themselves and we should take care of our own people. America should focus on America. That is what the founding fathers wanted, as well as what the constitution states. We should shut the boarders and take care of America. Are, and or would, any countries help America? So, again, I agree. We should pull all our Troops, Resources, and $ out of all other countries and focus on fixing America. This also begs the question, “Why are we “helping” people who hate/dislike/indifferent, to us Americans or what America is trying to do to help them in their country?”
Dusty,
First of all, your sarcasm is out of line.
Second, as long as you keep considering yourself an ambassador of America, instead of an ambassador of Christ — and further, considering America TO BE an ambassador of Christ and God’s kingdom — you will miss the point.
Please go to the Middle East as Amanda has. Please go and meet some Iraqi refugees. Please go and see the destruction that war causes families and nations. While you’re at it, talk to some American soldiers who have taken part in the war, and tell me what many of them say. After you have done that, let me know how war makes you feel.
By the way, the Republican party has done an amazing job of making you believe that American went to Iraq to “free” the Iraqi people. How easily we forget America went there because the Bush admin. was convinced there were WMD’s (when there were none) and they were links between Saddam and Al Qaida (when there wasn’t).
If you want to take the stance that “something had to be done,” that’s fine. But why are you so convinced the options were either to do nothing, or go in there and blow stuff up? Could there have been a different response from the Christian community? Was a Christian’s response reduced to supporting the government to go somewhere and make war? Am I completely crazy to think that a Christians response should never be to commission a military to go blow stuff up and kill people? (Would other
Christians in the world also commission the American gov’t to do so?)
Finally, all this talk about what stance we take on the war is really a moot point. The point of this post wasn’t to take a stance on this war necessarily. Amanda simply met an Iraqi refugee and her heart broke for him and his family. The thing is, we are so far removed from war, sitting in wealth, peace and security, that we have no idea what war does to people. Amanda saw what it does to people and was clearly affected by it.
Dusty, i do think as Christians we are called to advocate for peace as opposed to war (and the documentary provides ample evidence, in my opinion, for other common sense reasons why that is a good idea), though i wasn’t using this post to advocate for an all-out immediate withdrawal at this point, nor an isolationist international policy for us, or any nation for that matter. I can’t tell if you were being as sarcastic as Brian seems to think. can you clarify that for me?
if you weren’t being completely sarcastic, i will say this: while i don’t think this is what you were implying, i do think there is some validity to “taking care of America,” insofar as war has economic costs as much as human ones. i personally think the human issues outweigh the financial ones, but the economy is a moral issue too and we have put trillions toward the destruction of one society (and its “rebuilding”) while at the same time, as a consequence, suffered the neglect of our own, due to lack of diverted resources (away from health care, education, public safety, etc.). So, whether you were being sarcastic or not, i think the documentary sheds some light on where our tax dollars are going. I don’t want anyone to misunderstand this as nationalism, isolationism, or selfishness (because i do think America’s resources should be used to help other nations) – but even on a purely philosophical level, i’d rather my money go toward things that are life-giving in the world than things that are destructive.
i’m concerned that you jumped quickly to generalize, taking a very specific (and admittedly incomplete) look at one war in one country, and using it to assert that our country should avoid interaction with all nations (a policy that any knowledgeable person involved in foreign affairs would discount for multiple reasons). And, to argue this on the simplistic notion that “they wouldn’t help us” seems downright naive. On an interpersonal level, followers of Christ could never use this rationale for helping others. Beyond this, I believe the U.S. has built (and taken!) enough from others that we have enough to give; there is a reason why other nations are not helping America. At least for a little while longer, we don’t need it (though Fareed Zakaria has written extensively on the changing global landscape if you’re interested in the shift of America’s position in the world).
Let me know what you think, and i’ll leave you to respond to Brian, if you’d like. Though I would like to thank Brian for clarifying, correctly, that my intention for the post in the first place was not to argue any particular stance on the war, but to share a more complete picture of what’s happening on the ground, to share what war really is like, and to share how it’s affecting some of the people who have had to leave their country and community and home. When we let these stories truly sit with us, i think it demands a humble, repentant response, where we acknowledge the reality of our sinful natures that are bent toward violence and destruction, or at the very least, accept it.
I believe that Brian has mistakenly assumed that my reasoning for my comments was out of a lack of compassion for the people affected by the war. Far be it. I have full compassion for the many innocent people that are torn apart by their own countries war. There was devastation in Iraq before America got into the war, and there will be devastation there after. War is horrible. It is never glamorous or, I believe, desired. We all want peace. But, being a Christ follower, I maintain that there will never be peace until Christ returns and sin no longer has its hold on the world. Christ is the Price of Peace. Any form of peace outside of Him is a shadow or and illusion of peace. Isaiah 2:4 shows this happening when Christ returns.
I am an Ambassador of Christ as are all Christians. I am as well a citizen of America. Can a Christian be appointed as an Ambassador for America? I believe so. One can have a political office as an American Ambassador as well as be a Christian. I know I am not in that political office, nor do I desire it. From Brian’s verbal lashings, I perceive Brian does not believe so. Does the bible or the constitution have separation of church and state? No. Should we not render up to Caesar what is Caesar’s and to God what is God’s? I maintain that we can be both, and Ambassador of Christ and a citizen of America. The Apostle Paul stated that he and Silas were (Acts 16:37) Roman citizens and is also held to the laws meant for those who are Citizens. He as well stated that he was an (Eph 6:19-20) Ambassador in chains for Christ.
I have two reasons for my comments. One, the vilification of America, and two, a lack of appreciation for all America has done for the people in Iraq to help them have freedom.
How and why has America become the “Bad Guy” in this war? Let’s not forget that Saddam Hussein was a murdering dictator that killed his own people, invaded Kuwait, rounded up women, children, and elderly putting them into concentration camps, burning down villages, using chemical weapons on anyone who stood against him, and hung people inside of his own house.
Forget about WMD for a minute. WMD is just a political exercise, or even a ploy, between the Reps and the Dems. The Reps used it to justify the war and the Dems used it to crucify it. Saddam was removed from power.
Look at another evil dictator who murdered many people. Hitler decided that the Jews should be eradicated and used heinous way to do it. Should the Jews be angry or mad at the Allied Forces for attacking and defeating Hitler? Were the Jews disgusted at America for their involvement in the war and the devastation that comes from it? Hitler was removed from power. That is what the goal was in WWII and as well as it was with Saddam. Even the very liberal NY Times has this story well covered: http://www.nytimes.com/2003/01/26/weekinreview/the-world-how-many-people-has-hussein-killed.html
Is apologizing for America’s involvement in the war justified? No, I believe not. Apologizing for America’s involvement in the war, I believe, is an insult to the many American men and women who fought, as well as died, for Iraq’s freedom from tyranny. Not to mention all the Iraqi’s who died as well. Is America trying to take over Iraq and add another state to make 51 total? If it were that, I would be appalled. Since we are freeing Iraq from tyranny, I maintain that American is not the enemy in all this and apologizing for “what my country has done” is not justified.
I believe an apology is justified out of compassion for the Iraqi in Damascus. Reaching to him emotionally, being empathetic to his situation, however horrific it is. Then using that, as and Ambassador for Christ, to share the Good News to him the Christ has overcome the world and we can rest in him. Not resting on political stances “Sorry for my country” but reaching out of compassion for the person “Sorry for your loss”.
In the second of the series of videos, you see an Iraqi saying “Thank you Mr. Bush!” Why do you think that was? I believe it was that because America helped free Iraq from an evil murdering dictator.
In Iraq, when Saddam was ousted, others try to move in quickly to take over as ruler. So it seems, from the videos, that Al Qaeda has moved in to try and take over as ruling power. There may be others but my point being; Is it America’s fault that when you remove one evil dictator others try to take its place? Is it America who caused this? Now, years after, Iraq is much more peaceful. You even see in the videos, that when America brought in 30,000 more troops to patrol the streets, the war quieted down immensely. People were selling things in markets, businesses opened, and children were able to play. (Brian, notice the sarcasm in this statement) Let’s not thank America for that! Let’s overlook at how Iraq is now.
Yes Brian, I have talked to a soldier that just came back from Iraq in July. He praised the Lord that he was not posted in Afghanistan where the war is much more fierce. He was stationed in Iraq and didn’t even fire his weapon once throughout his deployment and all his scouting missions. So, praise the Lord he is back and safe now. He also stated that you get people on both sides. Some love the American’s because they know that they are helping them attain freedom. As well, there are others that see them as the “bad guy”. So from his eyes he says he felt more positive from the Iraqi’s than negative.
On the topic of Foreign Affairs, there are two things the Constitution permits America to do: 1) the power to declare war, and 2) the power to make treaties. I do not presume to know everything about Foreign Affairs and do not maintain that we should avoid interaction with all countries as you stated Amanda. I maintain that we are permitted by the constitution to do two things; declare war (to protect America) and make treaties (to work with other countries to better America).
So, I agree with the war, or any war, when we are protecting America from any enemy or danger that would harm us. I do see that the war in Iraq is not strictly protecting America. It was Al Qaeda that attacked us in 9/11. Where ever they are, we should pursue them. Just like when Leon Klinghoffer was isolated from the other passengers on the Achille Lauro, murdered, and thrown into the Mediterranean, he was killed because he was an American, as well as because he was a Jew. His killers were pursued and intercepted over the Mediterranean by United States Navy jets. As well as when Robert Stetham was murdered on a TWA flight because he was an American and a military soldier, we pursued his killers as well.
So, I maintain, anywhere Al Qaeda hides, we are obligated to pursue them for the killings of thousands of lives. The problem is the nature of Al Qaeda. They are no where and everywhere at the same time. If Al Qaeda is in Iraq, lets go to Iraq. If they are in Sweden, lets go to Sweden. It does not matter where, it only matters that we protect America and Americans from danger. That danger is from the Taliban and Al Qaeda.
I am not justifying the war, but I am against the vilification of America in this war. I do however see the changes in Iraq since America’s involvement and feel it not justified to apologize for “What my country did.” as a general statement for the entire war in Iraq.