WHY KILL A PASTOR?

Dear friends,

         On Tuesday, July 26, 2016, Father Jacques Hamel, age 84 and priest for 58 years, was murdered with a knife by ISIS agents at St. Etienne Church, Rouen, France. Why would ISIS agents do this? Why target an old man and a small group when larger crowds were nearby?

         Father Hamel was murdered because he was doing his job as a pastor, to preach the Gospel and forgive sin. Many contemporary pastors think their task is to tell people to be a nice to each other, or to sing the praises of victorious living, or to tear down the walls of injustice.

         Christ said in John 20:23, "If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you withhold forgiveness from any, it is withheld.” A pastor shows us our sins, and tells us how Jesus has earned our forgiveness on the cross. Whether parishioners call him pastor, father, reverend or Fred, announcing God’s forgiveness is what Christ has called the pastor to do. That’s why Father Hamel was killed by ISIS agents.

         The god of ISIS demands absolute obedience. ISIS sees Hamelas handing out gifts that can only be earned by unquestioning obedience to their god. The True God sent Father Hamel to forgive sins, but ISIS agents sent themselves to kill in their god’s name.

         In early days Christians regularly faced threats of death, but they clung to the Gospel treasure all the more. Church father Tertullian said, “The blood of the martyrs is the seed of the church,” and with it the Church grew. The Church eventually was protected from persecution, but Christians forgot what it meant to be persecuted in His name. Most Christians today see persecution as an outdated problem, but Middle Eastern Christians know it is not.

         The world will do to Christians what it did to Christ. Pastors err when they preach only morality, prosperity, or social justice. Neglecting Law and Gospel, they leave their members unequipped to understand why ISIS would target them. Christ sends pastors to show God’s love and mercy, but the devil sends his agents to kill an old priest to spread fear.

         A faithful shepherd will prepare his sheep to stand firm in the face of persecution. When a pastor baptizes, administers Holy Communion or speaks God's forgiveness, he is giving us the treasures of the Gospel that cannot be taken from us, even by death.

         As the terrorists stormed his sanctuary, Father Hamel’s last words to his flock well might have been, “Don’t be afraid. These men have come to take our lives, but they’re too late. Our lives already belong to Christ.”

Rev. Bob Tasler (www.bobtasler.com)