I am trying to understand why man needs God as his crutch when it comes to war. In the movie Patton, Patton asks a preacher for a weather prayer, to give the Americans better weather fighting the Germans during the Battle of the Bulge. How can both sides claim God is on their side when killing and war is suppose to be wrong.
2006-07-02 18:34:06 · 3 answers · asked by BRY1970 2 in Social Science ➔ Other - Social Science
Depends on your idea about God. Only in modern times have most people in the Western World began to believe in an ever patient, all loving, and completely kind and gentle God. Before now, people were more likely to tell you about a wrathful, angry, and vengeful God who sent all sinners to be tormented in the fiery flames of hell or who cursed the wicked and non-believing with all sorts of ills and mis-fortune. It was easy for them to equate the Christian God with warfare. Today, given our change in views, we have began to have some amount of trouble with this issue and now must think hard when trying to resolve our new image of God with the horrors and bloodshed of war. People can sometimes, whoever, still use God as an excuss for war. Take a look at the 9/11 attack where Muslim fundamentalists killed over 3,000 innocent American civilians in the name of Allah. Or, take a look at America's response where a Christian president declared war against all "evil-dooers." Even though this response seems more justified, in our minds, God still plays some role in the matter, even if only as an assurance that "we" are right and "they "are wrong. But war is wrong in that it is not the most skillful means by which a conflict can be resolved. Even still, God is within everything and everything, in it's own way, is divine and is of God. Even war. We are told that only the good things pertain to God and that is what we want to believe. Therefore, when bad things happen we get confused, even though the answer to our questions about God are right in front of us the whole time. The truth is not something that people tend to want to hear even when it is in plain sight.
I'm guessing that God doesn't find it necessary to take sides in any battle because he himself has orchastrated the whole conflict and is already aware of the final outcome.
2006-07-02 19:05:44 · answer #1 · answered by Ξ▼Ξ 3 · 1⤊ 0⤋
It would be hard to get your troops to go into battle if you told them that God was not on their side, wouldn't it? I doubt very much a soldier would go to war and fight hard if he/she believed that his/her God was against him/her. And, since both sides egocentrically believe theirs is the best and most just cause, it's only natural that each commander would believe that God is on his side.
2006-07-02 18:40:56 · answer #2 · answered by Crys H. 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Another indication of how ridiculous the entire idea of a god is. 'But my god is loving and caring but if you don't beleive in him then you'll be struck down and sent to hell." Amazed that people don't see god for what it is....a creation of man....
2006-07-02 19:19:23 · answer #3 · answered by ndmagicman 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋