"Allah is stirring up a generation who will fear nothing but him. A generation who will fear nothing and do everything to see Allah's dominion established in this generation. Allah is seeking a voice of righteousness and of justice who will come forth from the emerging generation and reclaim the righteous foundations of our nation. Allah is baptising a generation with a holy burning passion to see the idols of unrighteousness fall in our land and to see the altars of righteousness established again. He is looking for a generation who will walk in the ways of our righteous fathers who founded this nation for one purpose. They were sent with a vision, they were sent with a mandate, to see the kingdom of Allah and and all his glory dwell in a nation.Osama bin Laden released another message last week, but that's not where the above quote is from, though it easily could have been. The quote is from an interview with Faytene Kryskow, author of Stand on Guard and member of Motivated Young People for a Strong Canada (MyCanada), a religious group that targets youth in Canada. I simply substituted "Allah" for "God".
Through Muhammad, Allah took back all authority and because of that we now are baptized with a kingly annointing of authority to stand on the Earth and execute his dominion and to see the kingdom of Allah come on Earth as it is in heaven. Allah has given us a revelation that we need to possess and conquer. Allah is going to be sending us into all the places of influence in our nation. He's going to be sending us into the arts to stand there in a place of authority. He's raising up ones that he's going to send into the political realm and they're going to stand as a voice of righteousness. He's raising up ones who are going to stand in the education system, in the justice system, and in the medical system, and they're going to stand in a kingly annointing to tear down those things that exhalt unrighteousness and to reestablish righteousness."
In the interview Ms. Kryskow rambles on for over ten minutes about how God spoke to her and told her that the youth in Canada have been chosen to rise up, destroy the insitutions of unrighteousness, and impose heaven on Earth.
Her words are similar to those frequently used by Islamic fundamentalists who wish to impose Sharia (Islamic Law) on all nations. Such Islamic zealots often call for the destruction of institutions they see as unrighteous such as banks, government buildings, democratic institutions, courts, and even large cities. Their tone and vocabulary are also very similar to that of Ms. Kryskow, and like MyCanada they target impressionable youth looking for a cause to fight for. To illustrate my point, here's a line by line comparison of Ms. Kryskow's comments with those of a well known Islamic fundamentalist:
| Faytene Kryskow | Osama bin Laden |
|---|---|
| "God is stirring up a generation who will fear nothing but him. A generation who will fear nothing and do everything to see God's dominion established in this generation. He is seeking a voice of righteousness and of justice who will come forth from the emerging generation and reclaim the righteous foundations of our nation. He is baptising a generation with a holy burning passion to see the idols of unrighteousness fall in our land and to see the altars of righteousness established again. He is looking for a generation who will walk in the ways of our righteous fathers who founded this nation for one purpose. They were sent with a vision, they were sent with a mandate, to see the kingdom of God and and all his glory dwell in a nation." | "O you who believe fear God, by doing all that He has ordered and by abstaining from all that He has forbidden as He should be feared. Obey Him, be thankful to Him, and remember Him always, and die not except as Muslims with complete submission to God."1 |
| "Through Jesus, God took back all authority and because of that we now are baptized with a kingly annointing of authority to stand on the Earth and execute his dominion and to see the kingdom of God come on Earth as it is in heaven. God has given us a revelation that we need to possess and conquer." | "We also stress to honest Muslims that they should move, incite, and mobilize the [Islamic] nation, amid such grave events and hot atmosphere so as to liberate themselves from those unjust and renegade ruling regimes. They should also do so to establish the rule of God on earth."2 |
| "We are coming together with one voice, with one heart, and one mind. It's through the voice that there's going to be a preparation. I believe He's looking for a voice in this day that will speak a message of truth, and justice, and righteousness, that will prepare the way to see His dominion and His kingdom established in a generation, and a culture, and a nation." | "Muslims must prepare all the possible might to repel the enemy on the military, economic, missionary, and all other areas. It is crucial for us to be patient and to cooperate in righteousness and piety and to raise awareness to the fact that the highest priority, after faith is to repel the incursive enemy which corrupts the religion and the world, and nothing deserves a higher priority after faith, as the scholars have declared, for this cause, it is crucial to overlook many of the issues of bickering in order to unite our ranks so that we can repel the greater Kufr. All must move giving life to the words of the Most High: "Indeed this, your community, is one community, and I am your Lord, so worship me" and that they should not be like those whom Allah has described with His words: "Indeed those who have divided their religion and became schisms, you are not of them in any way." It is essential to volunteer and not to bicker, and the Muslim should not belittle righteousness in any way."3 |
Now, I don't forsee Ms. Kryskow instructing Christian youth to fly planes into buildings anytime soon, however it is precisely this type of religious zealotry that leads to such things. Remember the Crusades? Inquisitions? Slavery? All justified by religion. The perpetrators of these events all claimed to be justified by God and/or the Bible.
As we have seen in many Muslim nations (not to metion England), theocracy doesn't work. It leads to oppression, rights infringements, and atrocities. Of course, being a libertarian I support, and defend, the right of all individuals and organizations to voice their opinions. However, that support hinges on the optimistic hope that common sense will triumph over religious fanaticism in the marketplace of ideas. I would hope that Christians who hear Ms. Kryskow's speech would have immediate concerns regarding not only the words and tone, but the professed goal: a Christian theocracy in Canada. Unfortunately, my experience does not seem to support that hope. I find that most Christians switch off their critical reasoning once a messenger has identified themself as a Christian. Also, Christians seem to love freedom only when it suits them. I don't think you'd find many Christians advocating for a Muslim theocracy, or Sikh laws, or Hindu prayer and Buddhist creation in schools.
Jesus never ran for public office. He didn't come to "possess and conquer". He never sought to overthrow the judiciary or impose Biblical law. He came to love, and to save. Just as He allowed people of all religions, all opinions, and all walks of life to approach him and be saved, so should we embrace all religions, all opinions, and all walks of life. It is not our place to judge, nor is it our place to "establish his dominion". God made man free. Truly free. There was no coercion or imposition. Man could choose God, or not. A truly Biblical nation should most certainly be built on that basic principle.
NOTE: Blind following is not unique to religion.
5 comments:
"All justified by the Bible."
Justified by religion anyway... as in a certain interpretation of the bible.
Certainly a thought-provoking post!
"I find that most Christians switch off their critical reasoning once a messenger has identified themself as a Christian."
Doesn't this (sweeping: "most") statement presume your personal understanding/view of critical
reasoning is correct? How else would you be able to make this judgement?
"Also, Christians seem to love freedom only when it suits them.
I would guess this is true of many people... regardless of religious or philosophical persuasion... maybe even including some libertarians?
We'll have to debate libertarianism sometime. ;)
Greg
"Justified by religion anyway... as in a certain interpretation of the bible."
Yes, that's what I meant. I've changed that sentence to more closely describe what I was trying to communicate.
"Doesn't this statement presume your personal understanding/view of critical reasoning is correct?"
Critical reasoning involves acquiring information and evaluating it to reach a well-justified conclusion or answer. My comment was not intended to be sweeping. Though I did say "most" Christians, I qualified it with "in my experience". Most Christians in my experience don't question, investigate, or critique those who claim divine authority. It's like they think, "this person claims they're a Christian and received this from God, so I can't question it or them". I don't believe that God wants us to be blind followers. I believe He wants us to choose Him knowingly. The Bible warns us of the false prophets, and Jesus himself fielded hundreds of questions from his disciples and others, never once getting angry at them for asking.
"I would guess this [loving freedom only when it suits them] is true of many people... regardless of religious or philosophical persuasion... maybe even including some libertarians?"
Yes, it is true of many people, and many groups, but not libertarians. Libertarians are characterized by their love of freedom for all, even those they disagree with. They believe in "equal freedom for all, provided one doesn't infringe on the freedom of another"
Sure, a discussion of liberarianism would be great. :)
Just came across this posting. Very interesting comments. I just would like to inquire as to if you have ever met the lady in question. It does seem that your perceptions of religion as well as terrorism have been brought as a hermenutic to understanding the comments given. In other words, it is obvious by your comments that you are ignorant of what she is all about. Take your own advice and do a little research before imposing your perceptions on other people.
(please excuse my lack of identity as I am lacking a "blog" to cite)
Thank you for commenting. I'm glad you found my post interesting.
No, I haven't met Ms. Kryskow or Mr. bin Laden for that matter. Does one need to meet Stephen Harper or President Bush in order to disagree with them? Did you need to meet me in person in order to disagree with my post? Of course not. Physical location and direct conversation are not prerequisites to opinion.
The motivation for this post was an official public relations video produced by MyCanada and obtained directly from the MyCanada website. My assumption was that an official video directly released by an organization would accurately reflect that organization's ideas, motivations, and message. In the video, Ms. Kryskow sermonizes for almost the entire 11 minutes. The quotes in my post are taken directly from her monologues, with only the first one edited as indicated (replacing "God" with "Allah"). Thus, I would argue that the video and website explain quite well what Ms. Kryskow and MyCanada are all about. This is bolstered by the fact that in your critique you didn't identify any inaccuracies but merely took offense to my disagreement.
Finally, I haven't "imposed my perceptions" on anyone. You found, and read, my post voluntarily.
It seems to me that you are having a difficulty with certain phrases and language used in Ms. Kryskow’s “service announcement”. The difficulty is based in the fact that there is no common definition of phrases any longer in our post-modern society. We tend to place our own definitions and “preconceived” ideas on to words rather than looking at the historical (not Crusades historical but B.C.E. historical) and Biblical meanings. The words Ms. Kryskow are using have deep meaning. When she refers to “dominion”, this is not an exclusively earthly context. For Christians the dominion of God begins in the heart and seen in a just society. It is taken from the “Lords Prayer” where Christians pray for God’s Kingdom to be on earth as it is in Heaven. What does this look like? Look at the life of Christ, it is a way of living that is union with poor, the down trodden, the orphans, and the widows. It is seeking the good for each individual, not just society as a whole. It is about seeing that every individual is made in the Image of God, an identity with infinite value.
I notice you mentioned that everyone’s freedom is to be respected, that is impossible. Freedom, true freedom, requires rules and boundaries. Freedom is a community term, not an individual term. It is not about what “I” want, but about what “we” need. This is most simply seen in sports, there are rules that allow all the players to thrive and enjoy the whole game. If each player feels it is their right to play by their own rules, then mass chaos will occur. As well, in society, there are certain behaviors that promote mercy and justice, terms that mean seeking the good for each other and allow everyone to live a fully human life.
You mention that 4 MyCanada “targets” young people in Canada...well...actually it does not. It encourages youth to be active politically, to let their MP’s and community leaders know what they want for Canada as the up and coming generation. This group is motivated by the reality that in the past the youth of Canada have just sat idly by watching a loud few choose which way the country is to head.
You also note that she said that the “youth in Canada have been chosen to rise up, destroy the institutions of unrighteousness, and impose heaven on Earth.” Do you not what institutions that promote inequality, slavery, murder, and fraud to be put out of a job? What do you have against “heaven”? Heaven is true “peace on earth”, true justice, true joy. Heaven is not selfish, not focused on “what I want” but rather on looking outward to others, to easing each others burdens.
Finally, it is unfortunate that many people through out history have used “religious” or Christian terms for there own agendas. This has greatly distorted their true meaning. It is our job has rational beings in a “multi-cultural” country and world to realize that English is a limited language, few words and many understandings. Although the words Ms. Kryskow uses may seem in tune with Bin Ladin, they are not, they are opposite. They are words promoting true peace. There is no violence in her words. I have watched the video you speak of. Although the terms may be confusing if you are not familiar with their root meanings, look at her eyes when she speaks. In her eyes you will see that the words are words of love, hoping for a better Canada. And just like her, 4 My Canada is violent or aggressive in any way. Rather, it is vocal, and involved in constant dialogue, a true sign of democracy.
Finally (again), please do not take my comments as an “offense” against you or your comments. I appreciate your “voice” and that you are using it, and I want to encourage you to continue using it for the good of every individual in Canada, young and old.
JD
(clarification: the statement “imposing your perceptions” was in regards to the topic of Ms. Kryskow’s words, not my reading your blog.)
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