Every once in a while we get the chance to really dislike someone. Maybe they are famously discourteous, like Simon Cowell. Maybe they give the impression of being spoiled, dim-witted and egotistical, like Paris Hilton. Or maybe they have done enormously hurtful things, like Kim Jong Il. However history shows that if we really want to inspire loathing, there should be an element of religion in the mix. Perhaps that’s why we’re so incensed at Florida pastor Terry Jones.

Jones is the small church pastor in Gainesville who plans to burn 200 copies of the Koran in front of his church on Saturday. He has been denigrated and criticized by nearly everyone. The White House, the Secretary of State, and the military say it’s a stupid idea that will inspire Anti-American violence and harm U.S. soldiers. Muslims have threatened Jones’ life. And Christians have urged Jones to cancel the event, and asked him to see what he’s doing in the light of the Gospel as brainless, divisive, incendiary, and hateful.

Yet Jones is (at least at the time of this writing) standing firm in his conviction that he is called by God to burn the holy books, to send ‘Radical Islam’ a message, and to carry out his understanding of the Christian faith. We can call him what we want, but at the very least Pastor Jones is a lost sheep.

This Sunday we will hear the Gospel story of Jesus welcoming sinners and outcasts as pious religious leaders look on and grumble. Jesus tells a story of a shepherd who loses a sheep, leaves 99 alone in the wilderness, and goes off to search. The shepherd is so happy to find his missing sheep that he calls his friends to celebrate. The implication being that Jesus came, not to impress the religious, but to go to incredible lengths to save the lost.

After all, a lost sheep is one who has, for whatever reason, wandered away from the flock. Perhaps they weren’t paying attention, got distracted, or were ambushed by an enemy. A lost sheep may be content on its own and not even know its lost, for a season, but it is in a sheep’s nature to ultimately want to go back home - to be with the flock, the shepherd, and a place of security and warmth.

Despite Pastor Jones’ twisted theology and dangerous practice, when we ask the question, ‘What Would Jesus Do?,’ we cannot doubt that the Lord would drop everything to find a lost pastor, hug him when he found him, and throw a party for him when he got home. This is not to say Christians should hold their tongues and passively stand by as Pastor Jones spreads his hateful convictions. Christians must stand up and set the record straight. However, we must do so in love, remembering that just as God is more merciful than judgmental, God’s followers must be also. It is quite a temptation to join in on this feeding frenzy, but we must remember that just as the world watches Pastor Jones’ actions, it also sees Christendom’s reactions. Pastor Jones’ enemy is radical Islam, which he is choosing to attack. Our enemy is the Pastor Jones’ of the world, who we must choose to love.


Reading
My Stroke of Insight – Dr. Jill Taylor
Wild Swans – Jung Chang
The Four Day Work Week – Timothy Ferriss