Thread by @TabithaMcDuffee

I’m seeing a lot of mixed thoughts about the #SyriaStrikes. Most of them are incoherent and not very level-headed. Here is my humble attempt at the opposite.

War and bombs are not part of God’s vision for the Kingdom, but we live in the “already, not yet” /1

so there has to be a place for military might to be used appropriately. I believe that a military intervention in #Syria could bring stability back to the country, ending the killing of innocents and allowing refugees to return home to rebuild. /2

But, of course, real life is always more complicated than that. The struggling factions in Syria (ISIS, Assad, & rebels) have all used civilians as pawns or shields at one time or another. A successful western military intervention that ends the civil war and /3

sets up a functioning government conducive to rebuilding the country will inevitably mean some civilians get caught in the crossfire. This is a risk some are not willing to take.

I get it. You don’t want blood on your hands. But our hands are already bloody. /4

For 7 years we done almost nothing in response to #Syria. We haven’t intervened militarily, we haven’t sustained a commitment to resettle Syrian Refugees, and we haven’t supported the countries bearing the weight of refugees with actual solutions. /5

My reason for opposing the #Syria strikes is not that I oppose any military intervention. My reason is that the motivation for the attacks seems to be only our own “national interest” and not also a desire to bring stability and peace to the region so that millions of /6

suffering people can begin their lives again. I’d like to see the U.S. defend it’s national interests and defeat ISIS and act with true compassion toward the people of #Syria at the same time. That would look like starting a job you intend to finish, knowing that /7

it will require incredible resources, time, and even the lives of some of your own soldiers. That would look like welcoming far more than 11 of the most vulnerable Syrian #refugees. That would look like making a plan to do the right thing, even though people will /8

surely hate you for it. That would look like using your privilege as the most powerful and free nation on earth to fight on behalf of the oppressed and displaced.

But I don’t expect to see any of that from an administration only interested in “America first!” /9

It is for these reasons that I grieve over the #SyriaStrikes, because I don’t believe they make the painful beginning of healing and restoration for that land, but only the continuation of senseless violence. /10