The Norway terrorist attacks and religious fundamentalism

The horrible incidents in Norway provoked a stream of discussions on the Internet and in newspapers. The murderer was educated in a Christian home, sympathised with right wing thoughts trying to justify them with vague Christian ideas, and he reacted to the seeming half-heartedness of his predominantly “Christian society”.

Some have pointed at the dangerous mix of religion and ideology in the man’s thinking. Does it mean that in this case Christian faith can be seen as giving a pathway to violence? Many in the Western society point to the history of Crusades, Inquisition, colonialism, slave trade and apartheid in which Christians played a dominant role. ‘Don’t we find another type of violence, bred in Christian soil, the Western type of the lone wolf?‘

Let us be clear: this violence can only be regarded as a sign of utter evil, totally opposing the goodness and righteousness of God and totally denying the plain teaching of the Christian church. The violence of a lone terrorist doesn’t say anything about the religion he seems to refer to. No violence that is used in the name of God to exploit, discriminate against people and to take their freedom, their land and their life, can be justified.

Every religion on this earth can become dangerous when it is mixed with financial, economic or political power, or with ideologies that want to establish themselves at the cost of human freedom.

At least two lessons have to be taken seriously again in my opinion.

1. Violence can emerge in human society with many faces: in brute killing as well as in craftily designed words, in using weapons as well as in propagating stigma’s. It all starts with a lie.

The lie says that taking away some freedom from a person or a group of persons -freedom to think and to speak, to believe and to gather, to act and to move, and even to live- can establish truth or righteousness.
It is plain Biblical teaching that we must abstain from violence. The Old Testament rule is ‘eye for eye, tooth for tooth’, only that, not more. As overkill was usual in the pagan societies around Israel. Cf. Lamechs words in Genesis 4, ‘I killed a man for his wound.'

The Bible forbids the spiral of revenge and hatred. The Ten Commandments deal with the abstention of violence: we should not take away the life, the marital covenant, the possessions, the honour of our neighbour. Jesus takes this teaching to its roots when He says that we should even love our enemies. When somebody slaps us on the cheek, we have to turn him the other one. Because revenge is not ours, but God’s.

The terrible incident in Norway implies a call to renewed watchfulness for all –Christian and non-Christian- parents, educators, church leaders and politicians. So, yes, there is a responsibility in society not to combat evil as soon as it has shown its cruel face, but to prevent ‘lone wolves’ from arising. In the words we use, the model we show we must help our children, students, fellow civilians to discern the lies that are easily spread around.

We must help them to analyse advertisements and propaganda, help them to be watchful on the Internet. We must all help prevent the spread of extremist views that lead to hatred and killing. I can see no better form of doing that than teaching them the way of Christ, which is the way of unconditional love, humility, service and strong opposition of all distortion of truth and honesty that also can occur in religion or religious feelings.

2. Nobody can take away our freedom. Corrie ten Boom, the Dutch evangelist, known for her book ‘ The Hiding Place’ was arrested and brought to an Amsterdam theatre together with her sister after a raid in World War Two. She asked the German officer sitting behind the table to register all the names: ‘ Why are you doing this?’ He answered: ‘ Who are you, lady? With one word I can make an end to your life right at the spot.’ She said: ‘ You have the power to take my life, but you cannot take my freedom to give away my life.’

We will experience in our life that people take away our freedom. They violate us by taking away our honour, our possessions, our freedom to move, by neglecting or silencing our voice, by distorting truth, etc. In this sense our freedom can be taken. And this is reality today in many countries, in many political systems and many families. In Norway, one man accepted lies to govern his life and he took the freedom to take away the lives of many young people.

Can we prepare for that? No we cannot, there are no safe places on this earth, except that we help our children, students and fellow citizens to understand the only safe place in this universe is to be loved and to love. Because love never ends. It cannot be stopped. Terrorism is the utter denial of it. It is so important to realize that we never have to be victims. Even if they take our life, or even if our life is in danger because of sickness or disaster. Because revenge is not ours, it is God’s.

In 2 Kings 11 and 12 we find the remarkable story of Jehosheba hiding one year old Joash in a linen room in the temple. There is a continuing story of violence in these chapters. Gods people have moved themselves far from God’s truth. Queen-mother Athaliah wants to kill the whole dynasty of David. In a safe and holy place young Joash is prepared to meet the evil that is around and that he will face soon. One lady, his aunt, takes the faith and courage to hide him. And God uses this silky thread to continue His plan of salvation.

There is a satanic aspect to this whole story. Satan’s chief goal is to bring down, to take freedom, to kill, to hinder the Kingdom of the Messiah. Actually it is his speciality.

There is only a safe place in love. As Christians we say: the only safe place in the universe is to be hidden in the love of the Eternal God. As the apostle Paul writes to the Colossians pointing to the saving work of Christ in his death and resurrection (Col. 3,1-3): ’Don’t you know that you life is hidden with Christ in God?’



The Rev Niek M Tramper is pastor of the Protestant Church of the Netherlands and General Secretary of the European Evangelical Alliance