Force – rejected! Readings for Sunday, 25 Feb 07

So what’ll it be? What temptation would Satan use to flatten Jesus Christ?

Perhaps we most often think of temptation in terms of sex. Indeed, the popular press is awash with stories from imaginative writers about Jesus and Mary Magdalene. And the Adam-and-Eve story – suppose 9 of 10 of us assume it has something to do with seduction?

But I wonder if sizzly temptations like those would be just silly games when it comes to unhorsing the “Prince of Peace.” They’re nowhere near elemental enough – gut-level enough- for a conflict this sophisticated and unimagineably evil. No. He needs something that slices right up next to the deepest longings of his own human heart.

The temptations of Jesus are about power.

We’ll talk about it Sunday, then post the results here. Here’s the story (and check out the Comments for a little more clue on where I’m going with this):

From the Stories of Jesus: Luke 4
The Temptation of Jesus
Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit in the desert, where for forty days he was tempted by the devil. He ate nothing during those days, and at the end of them he was hungry.

Iran, the weapons, and how America gets into wars

So what’s up with these weapons they’re telling us about? Supposedly, they’re turning up in Iraq, and causing Americans casualties.

Before launching the B-1’s, let’s insist there are good answers to important questions. For, at the moment, the answers are much worse than the original news suggested:

1. How big an issue are these Iran-made weapons?

SIGNIFICANT: “Iran is a significant contributor to attacks on coalition forces.” – Sunday, 2-11-07, US briefing. Boston Globe, 2-14- 07

OR, NO MATERIAL EFFECT: “It seems to be a relatively small segment of anti-US activity. Even if this activity were to completely stop, that would not materially affect the threat to US troops.” Kenneth Katzman, Middle East analyst, Congressional Research Service (the research arm of Congress) – Boston Globe, 2-14-07

2. Are smugglers taking them to Iraq, or is this an Iranian government action against American troops?