Could it be sheer coincidence that the murderous attack on the Holocaust Museum in Washington DC on Wednesday by James W. von Brunn, an anti-Semitic Christian terrorist, occurred scarcely a week after an attack on a Wichita health clinic that performed abortions? Perhaps. Though it is also possible that these incidents, and a host of other threats in recent months, are the violent fringe of a new wave of religiously-motivated violence that might rival America’s Christian terrorism of the 1990s.
If, as it seems, Scott Roeder was indeed the culprit behind the ghastly killing of Dr. George Tiller last week in a Wichita church, the attack raises the possibility of the beginning of a new wave of Christian terrorism in the Obama era. Ruby Ridge and other incidents in the 1990s culminated with the Oklahoma City Federal Building bombing, an event so horrendous that it seems to have sobered the radicalism of many Christian militia members. Then came the eight-year reign of President George W. Bush who voiced his support for anti-abortion activists and gave the impression that they had a friend in the White House. The violence abated.
All this may now be changing. A new president is vilified in the right-wing press not only as pro-abortion but as a demonic figure. The image is one of desperation: that the moral authority of the country has been taken captive by an evil enemy. This has the effect of giving moral license to an image of cosmic war, goading the violent urges of some of the most extreme of the Christian activists, whose world view is a melange of millenarianism and anti-abortion adventurism.
Scott Roeder’s religio-political stance is a disturbing example of the revival of this 90s-era Christian terrorism. Though Roeder has been identified with the right-wing Freeman movement, he is also closely related to one of the 1990s most vicious Christian extremist groups, the Army of God [warning: while this link leads only to the Wikipedia page, should you then decide to click through to the AOG website please note that it can be very disturbing]. Roeder has been associated with the movement for some years, and his actions—such as pouring glue into the locks of clinics that perform abortions—are straight out of the Army of God Manual, said to have been authored by Rev. Michael Bray, the Army’s “chaplain.”
Last week, soon after Roeder’s attack on Dr. Tiller, Bray wrote a publicly-published letter to Roeder, declaring that the assassin had acted in “righteousness and mercy.” Bray went on to praise Roeder for following the commandments of God as he “sought to deliver the innocents from the knife of a baby murderer.”
Bray is the author of A Time to Kill, the 1990s booklet that gave a theological justification for anti-abortion activism. One of Bray’s best friends, Rev. Paul Hill, was a Presbyterian pastor who killed several staff members of a Pensacola, Florida clinic that performed abortions. Hill was convicted by the State of Florida, sentenced to the death penalty, and recently executed for his crime. Bray himself served prison time for a lesser offense, bombing several abortion-related clinics on the Eastern seaboard.
Some years ago I interviewed Bray at his home in Bowie, Maryland [see Terror in the Mind of God, UC Press, 2003]. What I found was a likeable Lutheran pastor with a solid theological background whose worldview was much more sophisticated than simply an anti-abortion stance. Bray saw society at the brink of economic and moral decay, and envisioned a radical revolution that would usher in a Christian world order.
According to Bray, Americans live in a situation “comparable to Nazi Germany,” a state of hidden warfare, as the comforts of modern society have lulled the populace into apathy. Bray was convinced that a dramatic event, such as economic collapse or social chaos would reveal the demonic role of the government, and people would have “the strength and the zeal to take up arms” in a revolutionary struggle. What he envisioned as the outcome of that struggle was the establishment of a new moral order in America, one based on biblical law and a spiritual, rather than a secular, social compact.
Until this new moral order is established, Bray said, he and others like him who are aware of what is going on and have the moral courage to resist it are compelled to take action. According to Bray, Christianity gave him the right to defend innocent “unborn children,” even by use of force, whether it involves “destroying the facilities that they are regularly killed in, or taking the life of one who is murdering them.” By the latter, Bray meant killing doctors and other clinical staff involved in performing abortions.
Bray defended the 1994 actions of his friend, Rev. Paul Hill, in killing Dr. John Britton and his escort. Bray’s theological justifications were echoed by Hill himself. “You may wonder what it is like to have killed an abortionist and his escort,” Hill wrote to Bray and his other supporters after the killings. “My eyes were opened to the enormous impact” such an event would have, he wrote, adding that “the effect would be incalculable.” Hill said that he opened his Bible and found sustenance in Psalms 91: “You will not be afraid of the terror by night, or of the arrow that flies by day.” [NAS Bible]. Hill interpreted this as an affirmation that his act was biblically approved.
When I suggested to Bray that carrying out such violent actions is tantamount to acting as both judge and executioner, Bray demurred. Although he did not deny that a religious authority has the right to pronounce judgment over those who broke the moral law, he explained that attacks on abortion clinics and the killing of abortion doctors were essentially defensive rather than punitive acts.
According to Bray, “there is a difference between taking a retired abortionist and executing him, and killing a practicing abortionist who is regularly killing babies.” The first act is in Bray’s view retributive, the second defensive. According to Bray, the attacks were aimed not so much at punishing clinics and abortionists for their actions as at preventing them from “killing babies,” as Bray put it. He was careful to say that he did not advocate the use of violence, but morally approved of it in some instances. He was “pro-choice,” as he put it, regarding its use.
Bray found support for his position in actions undertaken during the Nazi regime in Europe. His moral exemplar in this regard was the German theologian and Lutheran pastor, Dietrich Bonhoeffer, who abruptly terminated his privileged research position at Union Theological Seminary in New York City to return to Germany and clandestinely join a plot to assassinate Hitler. Bray also cited Reinhold Niebuhr, one of the greatest Protestant theologians of the twentieth century. Niebuhr began his career as a pacifist, but in time he grudgingly began to accept the position that a Christian, acting for the sake of justice, could use a limited amount of coercive force.
Once again Christian theological arguments are being advanced to support the most lethal acts of terrorism. In the imaginations of Scott Roeder, James W. von Brunn, and Michael Bray, they are soldiers in an awesome war, a grand struggle between the forces of good and the reign of evil—now incarnate in the Obama era of liberal society. Their positions might be taken as poignant reminders of the past if they were not so vividly in the present, and so gruesomely destructive.
Tags: abortion, abortion-related violence, antisemitism, army of god, army of god manual, christian terrorism, dietrich bonhoeffer, george tiller, holocaust, james w. von brunn, michael bray, neonazi, reinhold niebuhr, rev. paul hill, scott roeder, terrorism, white supremacy
Mike Bray sounds like a good man. You totally ignore the 60,000 babies murdered by George Tiller. If anyone is a terrorist, it's people like you who support these mass murderers.
Mike Bray, and you sir, sound completely deluded. You totally ignore that Dr. Tiller also saved many lives by offering late term abortions. But no, don't think about the women who are currently contributing to their families and society, let's just think about the the possibility of life even at the expense of what we already have (ie the woman) and possibly also the child as well... makes perfect sense.
Dr Tiller did not "murder" any "babies."
NOT.
When do you start murdering people in support of and defense of Christian terrorism? You think Christian terrorism is defendable, ergo you support it -- that makes you worth interest to Federal law enforcement.
This chant that abortion is murder is nonsense. There are many proper reasons for late term abortions. Dr. Tiller mudered no one, but people who equate abortion and murder killed him.
What's frightening to me about Pastor Bray is that you--or at least, I--can see the strength of his logic. We celebrate John Brown, for example, for/despite his violence in the cause of the abolition of slavery.
Good article.
John Brown was a hero whereas Michael Bray is a lunatic. Even worse, he's a lunatic pretending to be a man of God. What is frightening is that some people can see logic in his words where none is present.
We need to know more about this pastor Michael Bray. What Lutheran body ordained him? What is his relations with (any) Lutheran groups today? Has he been defrocked? If not, why not? He is clearly a person of interest.
Arguments, even the most irrational, become more logical when the "enemy" is spoken of as non-human or sub-human. Anytime someone invokes the word/name "nazi" most of us recoil as if there is a demon present. That puts those accused into the category of "non-human." The same is true when one uses rhetoric such as "spiritual warfare," "Armageddon," even the abstraction of "revolutionary struggle." A good rhetorician can make anything seem logical. The key here is would it be logical if we look at the incidents/issues/circumstances/people face to face; without nebulous vocabulary.
Michael Bray is one of our leading terrorist theorists who spent more than four years in jail, along with several co-conspirators in the bombing or arson of 11 clinics, as well as pipe-bombing of Washington office of the ACLU -- on the Fourth of July in 1984, as well as that of the National Abortion Federation. Here is a post from Talk to Action (with links to several pieces I did for Salon.com) regarding his unsuccessful effort to get a presidential pardon for Shelly Shannon, also a serial arsonist serving a long sentence for the attempted assassination of Dr. Tiller back in 1993.
Bray is no different than the Muslim Mullahs who quote the Koran to justify killing. Whatever happened to "Thou Shall Not Kill"
Chuck
San Diego Tax Attorney
says we should have an open hunting season on Christian conservatives. Starting with the leaders. I don't have the moral constraints that believers have. I think the Bible is completely man made, as is it's message.
That's just the angry cynic in me. Another thought is that the full weight of the law enforcement departments of the US should jump all over these groups, and the conservative media that incite them. Establishing links between the two would not be difficult.
This murderous faction is no different than the Taliban and al-Qaeda, and should be treated as such.
James W. von Brunn, an anti-Semitic Christian terrorist
Actually, von Brunn appears to have rejected Christianity, which he mocked as a Jewish conspiracy created by Saint Paul. It's a detail that's been seized on by the usual suspects as evidence that he wasn't really right-wing...
What's ironic ab out this latest rise of Christian terrorism is that one of the main reasons why Osama bin Laden attacked the United States was his belief that Islam and Christianity were engaged in a Titanic cosmic war and that the people of the United States were unaware of the fact.
bin Laden attacked New York because he wanted to "wake up" Americans to the "fact" that the Islamic gods were at war with the Christanic gods.
Then came the Bush regime which was a Christian terrorist regime in its own rights which handed Osama bin Laden everything he dreamed for. The Bush terrorist regime rebranded Islamic terrorism as terrorim whereas for decades the United States deliberately classified such acts as law enforcement crimes, denying the terrorists the "sexy excuse" for their crimes.
So now we have a rise of Christian Republican extremism which rises to match the extremism coming from their Islamic colleagues.
To the better educated, intellectually and morally superior atheists of the world, Islamic crazies and Christanic crazies are equal, they look the same, they act the same, they spew the same hate and bigotry, they are virtually indistibguishable.
When the pentagon was struck on 9/11 the first thing that came to my mind, "has the Turner Diaries come true"? In the book Earl Turner crashes a plane into the pentagon in a suicide attack. The FBI and other allied agencies must continue to stay ahead of the game with more sophisticated and innovative means, because both middle eastern and domestic far right terrorists rely more on smaller groups and individual acts for their impact on the psyche of the public they strike upon.
Bray was not, or at least does not claim to have been, educated by any Lutheran institution of higher education. Indeed, his MA is not a ministry degree, and it was granted by an institution that mandates believer's baptism. The Lutheran church with which he is associated appears not to be affiliated with any of the big 3 synods in the U.S. (ELCA, LCMS, WELS). He clearly holds several theological opinions that fall outside of the realm of orthodox Lutheranism. In what sense is he a Lutheran?
DAVID LETTERMAN'S HATE, ETC. !
David Letterman's hate is as old as some ancient Hebrew prophets.
Speaking of anti-Semitism, it's Jerry Falwell and other fundy leaders who've gleefully predicted that in the future EVERY nation will be against Israel (an international first?) and that TWO-THIRDS of all Jews will be killed, right?
Wrong! It's the ancient Hebrew prophet Zechariah who predicted all this in the 13th and 14th chapters of his book! The last prophet, Malachi, explains the reason for this future Holocaust that'll outdo even Hitler's by stating that "Judah hath dealt treacherously" and "the Lord will cut off the man that doeth this" and asks "Why do we deal treacherously every man against his brother?"
Haven't evangelicals generally been the best friends of Israel and persons perceived to be Jewish? Then please explain the recent filthy, hate-filled, back-stabbing tirades by David Letterman (and Sandra Bernhard and Kathy Griffin) against a leading evangelical named Sarah Palin, and explain why most Jewish leaders have seemingly condoned Palin's continuing "crucifixion"!
While David, Sandra, and Kathy are tragically turning comedy into tragedy, they are also helping to speed up and fulfill the Final Holocaust a la Zechariah and Malachi, thus helping to make the Bible even more believable!
(For even more stunning information, visit MSN and type in "Separation of Raunch and State" and "Bible Verses Obama Avoids.")
the angry cynic in me. Another thought is that the full weight of the law enforcement departments of the US should jump all over these groups, and the conservative media that incite them. Establishing links between the two would not be difficult.For more reference you can check these links as well Online GED Test
Then please explain the recent filthy, hate-filled, back-stabbing tirades by David Letterman (and Sandra Bernhard and Kathy Griffin) against a leading evangelical named Sarah Palin, and explain why most Jewish leaders have seemingly condoned Palin's continuing "crucifixion"!
homeschool curriculum | online homeschooling
He clearly holds several theological opinions that fall outside of the realm of orthodox Lutheranism. In what sense is he a Lutheran? doctorate degree | Online Bachelor Degree
Killer Tiller's probably roasting in Hell as the Bible declares all unrepentant sinners.
Bonhoeffer & Hill probably are walking Pearly Gates with Bray on to follow when God is through with this devout man.
Tiller did not seem to fear God & the latter 3 knew to fear God & to fear not men.
Hill and Bonhoeffer don't give a tinker's about your opionon, Bray may be praying for your repentance or Bray may care less, the Bible clearly tells us to beware mocking Godly men.
You would ask that a man of God like Mike Bray who has a heart for his neighbor to the point of laying down his life and liberties to protect the innocent, but not wonder how a reformed Lutheran minister could allow a monster like George Tiller and the BTK killer prominet places in his "church"? What's wrong with this picture?
The basic difference between civilization and what precedes it is that with the coming of civilization there historically has been a generalized diminution of violence. Toward a more highly evolved society, various Utopias have been postulated as self-appointed philosophers have attempted to construct an ideal future, but none has been achieved. On the purported road to attaining the nirvana society millions have meanwhile been actively sacrificed in world wars, civil wars, and lesser conflicts. If we pay attention to the real world around us however, the best our species has been able to do has been to minimize bloodshed from time to time. The law, for instance, doesn't purport to create a perfect world. It merely realistically seeks to limit damage as soon as possible once it starts occurring. Further looking at reality, and the various points of view regarding abortion's extremes, the contrast is obvious. Abortion controversy has killed 50 million innocent babies since Roe v. Wade, and has killed about a dozen or fewer abortionists and clinic workers. Even a kindergartener can tell the difference. So, if we calm down, take a deep breath, and look at the big picture, we can see that the vast majority of the violence is coming from the abortion mills. Even the few abortionists killed wouldn't have been killed had they not knowingly acted to incite the various dimensions of rage in their attackers, while in no instance has an unborn infant been responsible for his/her own existence, much less been in any position to incite rage by any process by which that child could conceivably be held knowingly culpable. So, how can we build civilization and decrease the violence surrounding abortion? The most important thing to do is to quit killing the millions of children who are innocent of any killing themselves, because that is where the cycle of violence begins. That will automatically take care of the killing of abortionists, because their attackers will thereby be without a motive. Along with civilization being about reduced violence, civilization is about self-control. It's up to purported adults to be truly civilized and adult about their adult behavior, rather than being sexually irresponsible in the first place. Individual immaturity and selfishness is the real ultimate root of the problem. No excuses. Those are for children and apes.
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