Wimpy Theology

I just read an article entitled "The Military: Faith Under Fire" by Eve Conant in the 7 May 2007 print issue of Newsweek. It's a story about Army Chaplain Roger Benimoff and his experiences in Iraq. In a nutshell, he goes to Iraq, an evangelical Christian feeling full of faith and enthusiasm to help the soldiers there, and he ends up "losing" his faith, then slowly regaining it after returning to the U.S. The uniqueness of the article is the way in which the author tells Benimoff's story by interspersing personal interviews and diary entries.

It becomes clear that during his two tours in Iraq, Benimoff's faith in God is severely tested as he goes about his duties. Though at first his faith appeared to be strong, he became increasingly troubled by the senselessness and carnage of the war. It is related that he often quoted Bible verses to himself and others for comfort, "But it didn't explain why bad things happen to good people, a question Benimoff would face again and again from the soldiers he served with - and
from within himself." When counseling other soldiers, "They would ask me: if I'm a child of God, then why isn't God protecting me?"

The thing that made me want to write this post was a quote from Benimoff's wife, obviously very concerned about her husband's faith and general well-being: "Sometimes he would ask me: why does a loving God allow suicide bombers to attack civilians? We were both brought up with a picture of God that was different from the world he was seeing."

This highlights what I believe is a problem in many Christian churches today. What is this "picture of God" that they found so different from their experience in the real world? Theologians have wrestled with this problem for a long time (there's an understatement for you!), but many basic truths from the Bible can illuminate our understanding of the problem. For example, it is true that God allows "bad" things to happen to "good" people (see the book of Job, for instance). God is also sovereign and acts in ways that are sometimes difficult or impossible for us to understand. For a Bible-believing Christian, this is a given. I think it is due to a "wimpy gospel" that some Christians think we are immune to such troubles when we become believers. Being a Christian is not always "fun" - there are trials and troubles that God
uses to refine us and build our faith in Him. But we need to understand that is the norm, and being a Christian is not a guarantee of a trouble-free, happy-all-the-time existence.

I have great respect for Chaplain Benimoff and all our other servicemen who selflessly work to protect our citizens, our country and our freedoms. But I lay blame on denominations, seminaries, churches, and pastors who preach a warped gospel. We must present a full and well-balanced view of real Christianity, including all the fun and not-so-fun aspects.

After returning to the U.S. to take a tour at Walter Reed Army Medical Center, he wrote in his journal, "I was reading my Bible and I found myself getting violently mad at God." But by the time of his Newsweek interview, he appears to be regaining his faith, but still deals with the pain, saying, "But now I have a new relationship with God. I tend to be much more blunt with him." This sounds to me like a good thing; be honest with God and be realistic about what it's like to serve Him.

J.A.W.

P.S. - I just got the 21 May 2007 issue of Newsweek, and there were several letters to the editor on the Faith Under Fire article. Some of them basically agreed with me, but did not identify wimpy theology as the problem.