Christian "Terrorists", the Crusades, and Ecclesiology

Mike Horton addresses the tragedy in Norway on the White Horse Inn blog.  Behring Breivik is a child of the Enlightenment, not a follower of Christ.  Enlightenment Terrorist

Dr. Robert Godfrey addresses the two kingdom confusion associated with the Crusades -- important to consider in light of Breivik's ranting.  The Crusades

And then for something completely different, PCA pastor Terry Johnson (with whom I served on the Westminster Seminary California board) wrote a great essay on the importance of a sound ecclesiology in light of the "evangelical" disinterest in the church.  The Importance of the Church

Comments

[Rana]

Godfrey says,
"Yet today many Muslims continue to view Christianity as a violent religion and project their Islamic convictions that religion and state should be united on the West, as if Christianity and the state were still united there."

Seriously? I'll spare you the toxic details of the last decade that might lead Muslims to come to this conclusion and instead write 2 words (for brevity's sake): Christian Zionists/ -ism.

There is a lot of violence promoted in the name of Christianity and few voices countering that violent rhetoric. Can you blame Muslims for hearing/ listening to the loudest "Christian" voices? Especially if the church is silent?

I've written letters to Reformed leaders asking for specific Reformed literature/ books to be translated in Arabic to explain our faith to our neighbors and dispel popular myths about Christians/ -ity but with little enthusiasm on the part of Reformed leaders. Have we done what we can to share the Truth with our neighbors? Are we busying ourselves with building relationships, loving them, telling them about Jesus and the Good News or are we busy distancing ourselves, living in fear, mimicking the culture/ media/ hysteria?

Sadly the latter is much of what I have seen. I would love to be proven wrong and pointed to people and ministries in our own communities and overseas that are doing otherwise.

And I am not recommending "Turn or Burn" evangelism that is NOT relationally minded at all. Middle Eastern culture is all about relationships. We need to reach out and not just react, that is what it means to love our neighbors. I'm reaching out ... anyone else want to move beyond the stereotypes, reach out and love their neighbors too?