Did you ever think you’d hear Christian children singing Islamic songs that exalt Allah and the five pillars of Islam? In a Christian church, no less?
Well…we didn’t either. Had we not witnessed it with our own eyes, we’d not have believed it. Above, for your listening pleasure, is the song that Christian children were led to sing at Rejoice Lutheran Church in Omaha, NE on the evening of 9/22/13. (This isn’t a recording of the actual event, but a version of the same song found online)
We witnessed this musical spectacle while attending a ‘tri-faith initiative’ informational program that was…well…very informational.
For those of you unfamiliar with the term ‘tri-faith’ or ‘interfaith’, here’s the vision statement provided by the tri-faith initiative in Omaha, NE…
“In working together, our vision is to build bridges of Respect, Trust and Acceptance, to challenge stereotypes of each other, to learn from one another, and to counter the influence of extremists and agents of hate.”
The reality is that three ‘houses of worship’ are being erected on a small plot of ground, along with a common tri-faith building. There’s a Jewish Synagogue, an Islamic Mosque and a Christian Church. Ostensibly, the goal is to promote ‘peace and understanding’ among the different ‘faith communities’ as well as the world as a whole. Undoubtedly, by writing anything that seems contrary to the vision and goals of this initiative, we’ll likely be branded as “extremists and agents of hate” (as seen in the vision statement), maybe even the dreaded ‘I’ word…Islamophobe!
As we’ll be spending a great deal of time addressing the various issues involved with the tri-faith movement, we want to be very clear on something from the very beginning; we are 100% supportive of any movement that promotes peace among men…provided the peace is based on truth. If part of our calling is to be Christ-like, then becoming more like the ‘Prince of Peace’ is certainly a mission that all Christians should strive to accomplish. To reiterate, if it wasn’t clear enough thus far…we’re huge advocates of peace, but that peace must be based on TRUTH. As we’ll show in future posts, there’s a whole lot of ‘feel good’ going on, but not a lot of truth.
Christians must stop acquiescing in their faith. The misrepresentation of truth, even when spoken in the name of peace and understanding, has both eternal and temporal consequences. No one comes to the Father, but through His Son, Jesus Christ. Lest we forget…
*This is Part One in what will likely be an ongoing (very ongoing!) series of articles regarding the ‘tri-faith’ movement, though we’ll be focusing specifically on the tri-faith initiative in Omaha, NE unless otherwise noted.