Je suis Charlie?

"Choose your allies carefully: it's highly unlikely that you'll ever be held morally, legally, or historically accountable for the actions of your enemies." Some New Tactical Reflections by L. Neil Smith

During an editorial meeting with cartoonists and satirists at the French magazine Charlie Hebdo, two hooded men walked in with automatics and started shooting. The world was shocked and outraged. The aftermath of the attack was five injured and twelve dead, including a police officer, and a maintenance worker at a building two doors down from the intended target. Horrible, unspeakable violence justified, some would argue instigated, by religion.

Our natural reaction to such violence, or tragedies in general, is to rally around the victims and stand shoulder to shoulder with survivors. We create shrines of flowers, and candles, and stuffed animals at the scene of the tragedy. In recent years we've begun identifying with the victims. Live Strong, Chuck Strong, I Will Get Out Of My Car, I Can't Breathe, and now Je Suis Charlie.

"Je suis Charlie" means, I am Charlie. I've seen Christians post "Je suis Charlie". Politicians and Hollywood stars take pride in saying, "Je suis Charlie". Over 40 world leaders from nearly every world power marching in the streets of Paris under the banner, "Je suis Charlie". But is that who we really want to identify with?

Most people who say, "Je suis Charlie" have never read, or even seen Charlie Hebdo. To say that Charlie Hebdo is political satire is the most charitable way to describe the magazine. Charlie Hebdo is irreverent, offensive, divisive, and in many cases, repulsive. I doubt many Christians would proclaim, "Je suis Charlie" if they saw the cartoon depiction of Jesus having sexual relations with God the Father.

The world is not binary. Either on or off. Right or left. It is not always true that, "If you are not for me, then you are against me." What happened to the writers and editors of Charlie Hebdo was despicable and should never have happened. But that doesn't mean that we should identify with Charlie Hebdo. Sometimes the enemy of my enemy is not my friend.

I am not Charlie. I am not Al-Qaeda. But who am I?

Scripture encourages us this way: "Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children; and walk in love, just as Christ also loved you and gave Himself up for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God as a fragrant aroma." Eph 5:1-2 NASB

Our task is to identify with Christ, to imitate Him as best we can in every situation. But where does that leave Charlie?

If I am not Charlie, if we take the "I" out of "Je suis Charlie", we are left with something intriguing: Je-sus Charlie. Even as we are called to identify with Christ, Jesus has already identified with us, all of us. Even the cartoonists and editors of Charlie Hebdo.

"… Christ suffered for you, leaving you an example, that you should follow in his steps. 'He committed no sin, and no deceit was found in his mouth.' When they hurled their insults at him, he did not retaliate; when he suffered, he made no threats. Instead, he entrusted himself to him who judges justly. 'He himself bore our sins' in his body on the cross, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; 'by his wounds you have been healed.'" 1 Peter‬ ‭2‬:‭21-24‬ NIV

Every citizen, and especially every Christ follower, has a responsibility to oppose the terrorism prevalent in the world around us. We should roundly condemn violence in the name of God. But our identity is found and bound up in Jesus, our Messiah. Charlie Hebdo already has someone who identified with them - and bore their sins. And that is both the beauty and mystery of God.


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Lessons From September 11 - Discipleship

Events can impact us, but they rarely transform us. Nine years ago we were impacted by an event. September 11, 2001 started as a normal day but ended with thousands dead, all air travel grounded, and a nation in shock.


That morning nineteen al-Qaeda extremists used four commercial airliners to stage an event that paralyzed a nation, but only for a while. Soon we were calling friends and family to assure them that we would be all right. Later, we gathered in churches and synagogues to seek help from God. Then we turned to our first-responders and encouraged them and prayed for them. We were impacted.


I know that many in the church, leaders especially, hoped that this event would bring transformation. Unfortunately, increased airport security and increased limits on carry-on luggage have become the only long-lasting changes. True, we are fighting two wars overseas that we weren't fighting then. But only the ones who lost loved ones, or those who are now sending them overseas, are living lives that have been altered forever. The rest of us were merely, temporarily impacted.


Transformation happens not through events but by living it - daily. For many Americans, including American Christians, life isn't much different than it was on September 10, 2001. American life has retreated to an imaginary world of televisions, computers, and I-Pods. We remember 9/11 simply as a horrific day in history. It impacted us, but only for a time and nearly a decade ago.


But how would the world be different if we could live a life that was transformed rather than simply impacted? Every day would offer new opportunities to live this revolutionized life. We would understand and accept new responsibilities. We wouldn't simply 'think' about an issue; we would be compelled to action. Dietrich Bonhoeffer stated, "We have learned a bit too late in the day that action springs not from thought but from a readiness for responsibility."


This is where many in the church have forgotten the mechanism that God instituted for ensuring that our efforts accomplish transformation and not simply well packaged events.

Jesus came to them and said, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,  and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age." -Matt 28:18-20 "The Great Commission"

In the original language, this passage could read ". . . cause them to learn all of the things that they see that I have instructed you . . ." The mechanism that God established for transformational growth is discipleship; transmitting to others what we learn on a daily basis.


My theological friends are thinking to themselves, "Salvation is what changes someone"; and my holiness friends are saying, "TheHoly Spirit baptism is what brings real change." I agree with both views, to a point.


Here is where I often see a disconnect in the church: we assist people as they experience 'salvation' and an 'infilling' of the Holy Spirit, but that's where the church often stops. We leave these 'spiritual babies' in the delivery room and go look for another 'pregnant' event.


We don't do that with human babies. We understand that, even though we have witnessed a miracle that only God could perform, we have a responsibility to care for and nurture these newborns for several years to come. Likewise, discipleship is the next natural step in spiritual development, yet in many cases it is ignored. No wonder that recent studies have shown no difference between the moral behavior of Christians and non-believers.


This may be why September 11 surprised many in the church. We forgot the power of discipleship.


How could you train nineteen men to live peaceful, quiet, suburban lives for several years, and yet expect them to willingly sacrifice those lives for what they believe in? Discipleship. It's time for the church to reclaim its Commission.

You can find me on FACEBOOK at my Facebook Page (http://www.new.facebook.com/profile.php?id=504321719). Here's a link to my Flickr.com Page (http://www.flickr.com/photos/curtisferrell/) Thanks for reading!