BIRMINGHAM, England (ABP) — The fight against terrorism is fought most effectively over a slice of pizza, not at airports and transit stations, according to global Baptist leaders.
The Baptist World Centenary Congress July 27-31, one of the largest Baptist meetings ever, was played out against the backdrop of terrorism and increased security in England. In the days leading up to the congress, London was struck by four suicide bombers and four attempted bombings in its transit system.
Headlines about England's manhunt for the bombers screamed across the region's daily newspapers during the meeting, and law officers made arrests in Birmingham, site of the congress.
Baptist leaders urged Christians to fight terrorism with dinner conversation. Terrorism will wane when believers reach out to disenfranchised individuals in a spirit of love and peace, said former U.S. President Jimmy Carter and Tony Campolo, professor emeritus of sociology at Eastern University in St. David's, Penn., and popular Baptist speaker.
Carter, a longtime BWA supporter and human-rights advocate, encouraged believers to get involved in interfaith dialogues and “build a common commitment” to fight terrorism.
All major faiths — Christianity, Judaism, Hinduism and Islam — hold to the basic principles of peace, justice, hospitality, truth and alleviation of suffering, Carter said. Those tenets can help people of different religious backgrounds connect against the mutual threat of terrorism.
“If we concentrate on those things, that would make the united front against terrorism more effective,” Carter said.
Campolo said young people have the “primary responsibility” of fighting the war on terror, because it is during people's teenage years and early twenties that they are susceptible to being persuaded toward terrorist acts. At that stage of life they are most likely to feel disenfranchised from society and are more willing to go to extreme lengths to change the situation.
Campolo encouraged each Christian young person to seek out a Muslim individual and meet him or her for pizza. There they can talk comfortably about ways they can prevent people from becoming isolated.
Campolo said this approach has helped in Northern Ireland, an area that has been divided between Roman Catholics and Protestants for years. A friend of Campolo's encouraged young people there to use the pizza approach between Protestants and Catholics. Healthy dialogue and friendships resulted. Both are important in leading to change.
Conversation creates an awareness and understanding of someone else's viewpoint, Campolo noted. Positive action can be taken from there. There also may be opportunities to share the gospel.
Rick Warren, pastor of Saddleback Church in Lake Forest, Calif., and author of the best-selling book The Purpose-Driven Life, believes the threat of terrorism “shows there is evil in the world,” a notion he said some people in his generation have trouble acknowledging.
Understanding the fight against terrorism as a battle against evil, Warren said this issue should be taken seriously. Terrorism must be stopped.
“I do not believe you can pacify evil,” he said. “I do not believe you negotiate with it.”