Dear Woodland Hills Family,
What was it like just before the flood?
God tells us: “the earth was filled with violence” (Gen 6:11).
The word “violence” in Hebrew is hamas. It means “violence, wrong.”
Arabic also has the wordhamas but in this language it means “enthusiasm.”
In yet another twist, hamas is also an acronym for Harakat al-Muq?wamah al-?Isl?miyyah, or “Islamic Resistance Movement.” We know this group better as the terrorist organization Hamas.
What an irony that this group’s “enthusiasm” for Islam is expressed in violence–that their modus operandi fulfills the Hebrew meaning of their name.
And what does God think of violence? Violence and corruption seem to be the two deciding factors in God’s decision to destroy the earth and all flesh. “The end of all flesh has come before Me; for the earth is filled with violence because of them; and behold, I am about to destroy them with the earth” (6:12-13).
Reflecting on this has caused me to do some soul-searching. Because while I absolutely do not condone or participate in violence, I’ve realized there must be a chink in my armor based on what I watch on TV and in the movies. Uh oh. Somehow I’ve convinced myself that violence in “a good action thriller” is different. And in the process, it seems, I’ve actually become quite desensitized to violence, the very thing that is so deeply troubling to God.
Oh, Lord, teach me to despise violence as You do. Help me feel more like You feel when a life is destroyed. Give me Your attitude toward my fellow man in whom You have breathed the breath of life.
Blessings,
