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To Die or to Kill for Christ Is Not Criminal, but Glorious


About the lawfulness of war against the pagans, Saint Bernard, the Mellifluous Doctor, has these glowing words:

But in truth the knights of Christ fight the battles of their Lord with all tranquillity of conscience, fearing neither sin by the death of their enemies nor the danger of their own death, because death inflicted or suffered for Christ’s sake bears no trace of crime and often brings the merit of glory. In the former case, there is a gain for Christ; in the latter, Christ is gained, Who doubtless both willingly accepts the death of an enemy for punishment and more willingly offers Himself to the soldier for consolation.

The knight of Christ, I say, kills with tranquil conscience and dies even more tranquilly. In dying he benefits himself, in killing he benefits Christ. For he bears not a sword without cause; he is the minister of God for the punishment of evil and the exaltation of good. When he kills a malefactor, it is not homicide but, so to say, "malecide"; and he is clearly considered the avenger of Christ in the case of those who do evil, and the defender of Christians. Moreover, when he himself is killed, it is understood that he has not perished, but that he has arrived in eternal glory. The death, therefore, that he inflicts is again for Christ; the death that he receives is his own gain.

The Christian glories in the death of a pagan, because Christ is glorified; in the death of a Christian, the liberality of the king is revealed, because the soldier is taken away to be rewarded. Furthermore, the just man will rejoice over the one when he has seen the punishment.

Concerning the other, a man will say: "If indeed there be fruit to the just: there is indeed a God that judgeth them on the earth" (Ps. 57:12). Not that the pagans should be slain if by any other means they can be impeded from persecuting and oppressing the faithful. But presently it is better that they be killed so that, in this way, the just men do not bend to the iniquity of their hands, for on the contrary, certainly the sinners’ rod will be upon the lot of the just.


Saint Bernard, the Mellifluous Doctor
De laude novae militiae, in Migne, Patrologia Latina, vol. 182, col. 924.
Crusade for a Christian Civilization.

The Christian glories in the death of a pagan, because Christ is glorified

(BTW nice attempt at spinning the Islamic teaching that martyrs go to heaven with St Bernard's call for glorious killings in the name of Christ.. doesn't quite work though, does it?)

God has bought from the believers their selves and their possessions against the gift of Paradise; they fight in the way of God; they kill, and are killed; that is a promise binding upon God...

Narrated Khalid bin Madan:
That 'Umair bin Al-Aswad Al-Anasi told him that he went to 'Ubada bin As-Samit while he was staying in his house at the seashore of Hims with (his wife) Um Haram. 'Umair said. Um Haram informed us that she heard the Prophet saying, "Paradise is granted to the first batch of my followers who will undertake a naval expedition." Um Haram added, I said, 'O Allah's Apostle! Will I be amongst them?' He replied, 'You are amongst them.' The Prophet then said, 'the first army amongst' my followers who will invade Caesar's City will be forgiven their sins.' I asked, 'Will I be one of them, O Allah's Apostle?' He replied in the negative."

Martyrs go to heaven, yes. But killing does not wipe away sins.

The difference isn't even subtle. You can't even bring yourself to quote the verse in full.

Not that the pagans should be slain if by any other means they can be impeded from persecuting and oppressing the faithful.

The knight of Christ, I say, kills with tranquil conscience and dies even more tranquilly. In dying he benefits himself, in killing he benefits Christ.

...Nevertheless, this idyllic situation developed into a deep crisis that led to the severance of the relations and what appeared to be the end of the filming. From an innocent conversation about religious holidays, Raida Abu Mustafa launched into a painful monologue about the culture of the shahids - the martyrs - and admitted, during the complex transplant process, that she would like to see her son perpetrate a suicide bombing attack in Jerusalem.

"Jerusalem is ours," she declared. "We are all for Jerusalem, the whole nation, not just a million, all of us. Do you understand what that means - all of us?"

She also explained to Eldar exactly what she had in mind. "For us, death is a natural thing. We are not frightened of death. From the smallest infant, even smaller than Mohammed, to the oldest person, we will all sacrifice ourselves for the sake of Jerusalem. We feel we have the right to it. You're free to be angry, so be angry."

And Eldar was angry. "Then why are you fighting to save your son's life, if you say that death is a usual thing for your people?" he lashes out in one of the most dramatic moments in the film.

"It is a regular thing," she smiles at him. "Life is not precious. Life is precious, but not for us. For us, life is nothing, not worth a thing. That is why we have so many suicide bombers. They are not afraid of death. None of us, not even the children, are afraid of death. It is natural for us. After Mohammed gets well, I will certainly want him to be a shahid. If it's for Jerusalem, then there's no problem. For you it is hard, I know; with us, there are cries of rejoicing and happiness when someone falls as a shahid. For us a shahid is a tremendous thing."

A moving and harrowing account by a woman who wishes the occupation of Jerusalem to end. Can't spin the occupation of Jerusalem or the desire of those living under occupation (and illegal annexation, don't forget) as anything other that what it is.

The knight of Christ, I say, kills with tranquil conscience and dies even more tranquilly. In dying he benefits himself, in killing he benefits Christ.

The Christian glories in the death of a pagan, because Christ is glorified