Does The Bible Endorse Suicide Bombing? What Motivates Suicide Bombers?

            Suicide bombing has been a terrorism staple for years. A suicide bomber is one who sacrifices his life and kills many more for the sake of his religion or for the sake of principle.

            Can a Christian be a suicide bomber?

            If the Bible supports suicide bombing and if a Christian can be a suicide bomber, then Christians cannot condemn any act of terrorism that involves suicide bombing. Some of our Muslim friends believe that the Bible endorses suicide bombing. 

            A Christian cannot be a suicide bomber. In other words, a Christian cannot kill people.

            However, a Christian can be a martyr for his faith as the apostles were. The Bible espouses martyrdom (cf. Stephen’s martyrdom in Acts 6 & 7; Matthew 5:11, 10:39; Revelations 20:4). Therefore, a Christian can die (sacrifice his life) for the sake of his faith.

            However, some Muslims inaccurately claim that the Bible endorses suicide bombing.¹ They cite Samson’s death as a case in point.

            Christian apologist and blogger, Andy Wrasman, debunks the notion that Samson was a suicide bomber in his article entitled Samson is not a Biblical parallel to Suicide Bombers! Find below an excerpt of his article – the titles of the four distinctive points:²

1st – Samson was a judge over Israel, the people of God.  The position he had was appointed by God.  Justice needed to be served.  The false god and the temple of the Philistines should not prevail against the real God of the universe.

2nd – Samson’s strength always came from God.

3rd – Samson’s death was far different from that of a suicide bomber.

4th – From the Biblical worldview, all life comes from God and it is his to give or take.  All humans die as punishment for our sin (man, woman, or child).  When and how death shall come is a matter left to God.

            Therefore, Samson’s death cannot be associated with suicide bombing.

            Saul’s death can also not be associated with suicide bombing. Saul committed suicide. Period. 

            Interpreting Saul’s death as an endorsement of suicide bombing is an exercise in Eisegesis,³ not Exegesis.⁴

            Since both the Old Testament (Exodus 20:13, 23:7; Proverbs 6:17) and the New Testament (Matthew 5:21-22, 15:18,19; 1 John 3:11-12) prohibit us from killing people, we could reasonably conclude that a Christian cannot be a suicide bomber.

            So the Bible prohibits the despicable act of suicide bombing. But that does not prevent a Christian from sacrificing his life for the sake of Christ, albeit without harming others.

            The Bible endorses martyrdom.

            The Bible speaks of martyrdom. The Apostles died for the sake of their belief in the Lord Jesus Christ. They died because they literally saw the risen Lord. They knew their life on earth was short and fleeting. They believed they would continue to live after their death and they would be in the presence of God forever and ever.

            The Bible teaches afterlife. Jesus gave the apostles the assurance that they will continue to live even after they die, ““I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me will live, even though they die; and whoever lives by believing in me will never die.” (John 11:25-26a, NIV). They believed Jesus. Hence, they died for HIS sake.

            Therefore, Christians can sacrifice their lives for the sake of Christ, but they cannot be a suicide bomber. The Bible does not condone suicide bombing.

            What motivates suicide bombing?

            Religions motivate suicide bombing. For instance, Islam endorses suicide bombing.

            Islam also teaches afterlife and martyrdom. A Muslim believes he/she will be in paradise if they die for the sake of Allah (Sura 47: 4-6, 15). Sura 3:157,165-167,169-171&195b teaches that Allah will blot out the sins of the martyrs, and they will go to paradise.

            Atheism, as a religion or a worldview, cannot prevent suicide bombing. If atheists desire to be a suicide bomber, their worldview tacitly endorses it.

            Atheists believe that there is no afterlife. Lack of afterlife is also a motivating factor for martyrdom.

            If there is no afterlife, and if this life is all that there is to be, then what prevents a desolate or a deranged atheist to be an agent of death? Nothing!

            Afterlife is not the only motivating factor for a suicide bomber. There are other factors too. Chief among them is national humiliation.

            BBC cites a study of suicide bombers (because of suicide attacks that failed for a variety of reasons) from Tel Aviv University and reports that ‘national humiliation’ is another motivating factor, “…"national humiliation" ranked higher as a reason for an attack." This was by far the clearest, strongest motivation they expressed. “It is not a matter of personal suffering; they tried to avenge their communities suffering. They mentioned events that they saw on television, not events that happened to them personally.”⁵

            Therefore, the belief or unbelief in afterlife and/or national humiliation are indeed motivating factors for suicide bombing.

Endnotes:

¹http://www.answering-christianity.com/suicide_bombing_in_the_bible.htm

²https://andywrasman.com/2015/01/08/samson-is-a-biblical-parallel-to-suicide-bombers/

³An interpretation, especially of Scripture, that expresses the interpreter's own ideas, bias, or the like, rather than the meaning of the text: https://www.dictionary.com.

⁴Critical explanation or interpretation of a text or portion of a text, especially of the Bible: https://www.dictionary.com.

⁵https://www.bbc.com/news/health-11770842

Websites last accessed on 7^th May 2019.

A Christian’s Letter To ISIS (A Christian’s Response To ISIS)

Dear ISIS,

            It’s exceptionally difficult to use an endearment term ‘dear,’ for you mercilessly traumatize and slaughter human beings. I am a Christian, and I write to you since you sadistically persecute the Christian community.

            You brutalize women sexually that forces them into hospitals.¹ You are merciless with children. You beat, enslave, crucify, and use them as child soldiers! ²

            You mindlessly and cruelly deploy mentally challenged children as suicide bombers. ³ How can you not show mercy to mentally challenged children? Don’t you realize that they may not be able to understand the sadistic deeds you are forcing them into?

            I strive to love you with the love of Christ. My Bible teaches me to love you, for it instructs Christians to bless and pray for those who hate, kill and curse us (Matthew 5: 44, Luke 6: 28, Romans 12: 14).

            The Bible encourages me to pray for you. I pray you would realize your cruelty towards your brothers and sisters and refrain from hurting them anymore. Most surely, my fellow Christians are already praying towards your healing and deliverance.

            Please stop your barbarous and inhuman deeds against mankind.

            But is this even a legitimate possibility? Can you refrain from massacring people while you continue to receive support from your community? ⁴ Muslim women are offering their bodies to satisfy your sexual cravings a.k.a. Jihad Al-Nikah (sexual jihad),⁵ thus motivating you into greater evil.

            How could you cease your harmful existence if you are politically motivated? Rumors posit your creation by the British, American and Israeli intelligence agencies.⁶ 

            Is it possible for you to cease the proliferation of unmitigated violence when you cite your religious texts as a source for violence? Intriguingly, you swear by your god Allah to justify your horrific deeds against mankind.

            Egyptian journalist Ibrahim Issa said this about you, “Whenever ISIS carries out an act of barbarity, such as decapitations, throat slitting, or the burning of a person alive, as they did today, various sheiks tell you – if they even bother to say anything – that this has nothing to do with Islam, that Islam is not to blame, and whatever. But when the people of ISIS perpetrate slaughter, murder, rape, immolation, and all those barbaric crimes, they say that they are relying on the sharia. They say that this is based on a certain hadith, on a certain Quranic chapter, on a certain saying of Ibn Taymiyyah, or on some historical event. To tell the truth, cavernous everything that ISIS says is correct…” ⁷

            If your insanity is fuelled by a certain Hadith or a Quranic chapter or other Islamic traditions, I can only pray for you and urge more prayers for you.

            Honestly, I pray more for the lives you have irreparably damaged. I love them dearly.

            You have rendered multitudes into unfathomable grief and despair. Their lives are perpetually transformed. Joyous lives are now in utter anguish. They need our prayers and support. They will receive our deepest sympathies and warm affection in thoughts, words and deeds.

            I pray these families would seek God during their distress. Notwithstanding man’s support, these families will receive, in abundance, the comfort and encouragement of The Triune God – The Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Of this I am sure.

            Now please give me your undivided attention, ISIS.

            If the one and true living God allows you to exist, no matter how many Christians you continue to massacre, Christianity will continue to exist, and even grow. Christians will continue to love the Lord Jesus Christ despite your evil existence.

            You will never ever succeed in breaking Christianity. You cannot even impede Christianity’s growth.

            You are fighting a losing battle, ISIS.

            Do you want to know why?

            Persecution is ingrained in Christianity. Persecution neither surprises Christians nor is an aberration in Christianity.

            Christians who live godly lives will be persecuted (2 Timothy 3: 12). Those persecuted for our belief and devotion to the Lord Jesus would be blessed in abundance (Matthew 5: 10-12).

            So keep shouting at the top of your voice that your objective is to create a Caliphate or to invade Rome or whatever. But you cannot vanquish Christianity.

            Truth be told, your presence will unite Christians; for it is during intense persecutions that our otherwise warring denominations would unite. Your presence will strengthen Christianity.

            Are you aware that your existence teaches common man a bitter yet glorious truth? Yes, your evil existence posits hell as a literal, physical, and an eternal realm for the godless.

            Some mindless Christians foolishly and relentlessly argue that God will save all mankind. Thoughtlessly they advocate that your members will go to heaven despite your bloodthirsty evil atrocities that stems from your unbelief in the Lord Jesus. 

            Am I supposed to believe that you will continue to rape, massacre, immolate and plunder lives at your insane will and animal pleasure but, at the same time, go to heaven despite your cumulative evil?

            These debauched Christians erroneously argue from the Bible that God will save all mankind. A god who will usher you into heaven despite your cumulative evil and unbelief in Christ is not god. Such a god deserves to be abused and trampled under our feet. Such a god does not deserve worship. Such a god exists in degenerate minds.

            I named this figment-of-imagination-god as ‘unigod’ – the god who supposedly saves all mankind. This was my response to ‘unigod,’ “Please brace yourself for an unmitigated indecent assault on unigod. The unigod is an evil, corrupt, depraved, putrid, brainless blockhead; he is a nonsensical dummy, foolish idiot, insanely ignoramus dolt, a nincompoop, and a senseless monkey. Anyone can mock and thoroughly disrespect unigod. Despite these abuses on unigod, Universalists will claim that unigod will still save me. A god who accepts and agrees with abuse of any intensity is a god without perfection and holiness. Even man’s intrinsic dignity and self-worth prevents him from agreeing and accepting to abuses of any form or size. So a god who is awfully comfortable with abuses to the extent of supporting and welcoming evil is an evil god that resides only in the fantasies of certain minds.” ⁸

            I pray that your macabre existence would infuse good sense into those who advocate that God will save all mankind. Any worldview that offers heaven to perpetrators of horrendous evil is untrue and rooted in treacherous blunder.

            I pray you would repent and seek God’s forgiveness now. Now is the time for you to repent and accept the Lord Jesus as your savior.

            The Lord Jesus Christ died for you too. But you can reap the benefits of HIS sacrificial death if you believe in Christ, repent and plead for forgiveness for your sins.

            When the Lord Jesus returns in all HIS majesty, glory and splendor, your knees will bow down to HIS Lordship and your tongue will confess Christ as Lord. By that time, it would be too late for you to repent. So act now.

            Surely evil will not cease until the return of the Lord Jesus. If you don’t perpetrate evil, someone else will. Although we pray for deliverance from evil (Matthew 6: 13), we will pray that none of us will fear evil.

            We will not be afraid of you, because our God will never leave or forsake us (cf. Deuteronomy 31: 6; Isaiah 41: 10; Hebrews 13: 5).  

            Your evil existence urges our churches to teach Christians to face persecution head on. Our churches would nurture and develop stronger and mature believers, especially the younger Christians. You will indirectly strengthen the Christians.

            Christian persecution in 2014 was historic – approximately 100 million Christians were persecuted – by far the largest numbers in mankind’s history. ⁹ Above all, Muslims persecute Christians the most, so your persecution of Christians is normal.¹⁰ If the current scenario in persecution continues, persecution in 2015 and the future will be worse.¹¹

            But our belief in our Lord Jesus will remain strong and steadfast despite your persecution. When persecution intensifies, we will unite like never before. Our cumulative prayers will pierce the heights of heavens.

            In life and in death we will glorify our Lord Jesus Christ. Amidst persecution, we will praise our God as long as HE gives us breath.

            Even though we walk through death’s darkest valley, we will not fear evil. Our God is with us; HIS presence will comfort us. Surely God’s goodness and love will follow us all the days of our lives, even amidst persecution. We will dwell in the house of the Lord forever (cf. Psalm 23: 4-6). Amen.

Striving to love you with the love of Christ,

Raj

Endnotes:

If you would like to read my earlier blog on “Should Persecuted Christians Fight Back?” please visit this link…http://rajkumarrichard.blogspot.in/2014/08/should-persecuted-christians-fight-back_18.html

¹ http://nypost.com/2015/02/18/female-isis-captives-endure-brutal-and-abnormal-sex/

² http://www.worldmag.com/2015/02/un_condemns_isis_for_brutality_against_children

³ Ibid.         

⁴ http://www.gulf-daily-news.com/NewsDetails.aspx?storyid=381045

⁵ http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/malaysia/article/malaysian-women-join-middle-east-jihadists-as-comfort-women-reveals-intelli

⁶ http://www.gulf-daily-news.com/NewsDetails.aspx?storyid=381153

⁷ https://whyevolutionistrue.wordpress.com/2015/02/10/all-this-barbarity-is-sacred-a-muslim-journalist-dares-to-say-that-isis-is-motivated-by-religion/

⁸ http://rajkumarrichard.blogspot.in/2013/10/the-god-who-admits-all-people-to-heaven.html

⁹ http://www.sltrib.com/lifestyle/faith/2038782-155/persecution-of-christians-reached-historic-levels

¹⁰ Ibid.

¹¹ Ibid.