Conservative logic and foreign aid

Conservatives are very vocal about the amount of money 'wasted' on Foreign Aid, regardless of whether it is for humanitarian or developmental purposes. The logic behind this opposition is that there are needs in our own country that should be met first. So far, this logic actually has some merit. There are needs in our own country which should be met. However, the logic falls apart the moment that said Conservative opposes addressing those needs, for instance, through social security, or socialised health, housing and educational programs.

The logic develops an even greater flaw when said Conservative is more than happy to see trillions of dollars wasted on illegal and expensive wars, such as Iraq and Afghanistan which have dragged on for a decade and killed hundreds of thousands of innocent people. Additionally, the borrowing of over a trillion dollars to fund these wars has greatly contributed to the economic demise of the United States.

The logic is fatally flawed when Conservatives support providing billions of dollars to Israel to commit war crimes in the Occupied Palestinian Territories, such as killing and maiming civilians by attacking them with white phosphorous and depleted uranium, or continuing the construction of illegal settlements which breach the Fourth Geneva Convention, let alone the ongoing construction of the apartheid wall which imprisons Palestinians and prevents them from accessing hospitals, schools, jobs and their own farmland.

This is not logical.

Wealthier nations should be providing foreign aid AND social security to assist in making people's lives better, rather than funding the destruction of people's lives.

Repenting of the Palestinian Pogrom

Zionists justify Israel's genocide and ethnic cleansing in the name of God. The same God who gave them the Ten Commandments. The same Ten Commandments which the genocide is violating. 

On 29 November 2012, the United Nations voted to admit Palestine as a 'non-member state' of the U.N., implicitly accepting Palestine as a nation state. This was 65 years to the day, after the U.N. passed Resolution 181, from which the modern state of Israel was created.

Since then, a number of nations have told Israel to desist building illegal settlements and the United Nations has requested Israel's nuclear program be opened for access to the International Atomic Energy Commission.

Following the creation of modern Israel in 1948, many Christians claimed that it was a fulfilment of biblical prophecy. Unfortunately, they have used this to deny and ignore the many human rights violations that Israel has committed, and is continuing to commit against Palestinians.

Call me old fashioned, but if you're going to go Old Testament on a people-group then you should at least read ALL of the Old Testament. There is a little section in Exodus 20 that is very well-known ... and even netted God a movie deal. It's called 'The Ten Commandments'.

The crimes of modern Israel have been perpetrated in the name of Zionism, which claims that the Jews have an entitlement to the land because they lived there back in the day ... back in the Old Testament day. I have written on this argument in 'Road to Nakba'.

Rather than justifying these abuses in the name of God and the bible, the modern state of Israel and those who blindly support her, should get down on their collective knees and repent of the following breaches of the Ten Commandments:

• 'You shall have no other gods before me': God has been replaced with Zionism and the modern state of Israel, which are treated with such great religious reverence that critics will apparently incur the curses of God. These curses are based, as a lot of Zionism is, on a misinterpretation of scripture. In Genesis 12:3 God told Abraham he would 'bless those who bless you and curse those who curse you'. Zionists have extended this verse to cover all of Israel, yet it was only ever meant for Abraham.
• 'You shall not make for yourself an idol': yet Israel itself is idolised through Zionism, which is essentially nationalism, an extreme version of patriotism that puts the nation ahead of all criticism, morality and accountability. 
• 'Do not take the Lord's name in vain': Zionists commit genocide and ethnic cleansing in the name of God and justify it through mispresenting scripture. The bible does not give Zionists this land and it certainly doesn't give them the right to commit ethnic cleansing. I have written more on that subject in 'Israel - Superstition, Prophecy and Human Rights'.
• 'Keep holy the Lord's day': the Sabbath has been desecrated as Israel continues killing innocents and waging war on the day of rest.
• 'Honour your father and mother': Zionists have desecrated the memory of those who suffered in the holocaust claiming that 'never again' will there be another holocaust, while they commit genocide and ethnic cleansing of Palestinians.
• 'Do not kill': Murdering Palestinians from 1947 to now, including women and children shot dead at gun-point by the Israeli soldiers and by the indiscriminate bombing of civilian areas. Israel has used white-phosphorous and depleted uranium in civilian areas which is a war-crime. Even the illegal settlers kill Palestinians.
• 'Do not steal': Stealing the land, houses and possessions of Palestinians often at the point of guns, tanks or rockets since 1947. The theft continues with the construction of illegal settlements which breach the Fourth Geneva Convention. 
• 'Do not lie': Zionists have been lying about their genocidal actions and making up terrible lies about Palestine, such as a 'land without a people for a people without a land' to wipe an entire people-group from history and deny their very existence. The land was, and is, inhabited by a people-group who have thousands of years of history in this area.
• 'Do not covet': Coveting land that was, and is, inhabited by others and then actively displacing those people so Zionists could take the land.

The Ten Commandments were handed down to the Jews as they escaped persecution in Ancient Egypt, while the above breaches of the Ten Commandments have been committed by some Jews fleeing persecution in Europe. This persecution was widespread, including being perpetrated by Nazis, Soviets and others. The pogroms and injustices that Jews in Europe faced were terrible, however, they cannot be used as excuses for similar crimes.

The creation of Israel occurred in the name of Zionism, which claims that biblical scripture prophesies the re-establishment of Israel (Zion) and the return of the Jewish diaspora to it. As mentioned previously, Zionists claimed that Palestine was a 'land without a people', that those who lived there had no culture and had not cared for the land.  This mantra was used 100 years ago in the Zionist campaign for the creation of Israel, and is still believed and repeated today.
'Land without a people' is a mantra aimed at legitimising the genocide and ethnic cleansing of Palestine.

It is a lie.

It was particularly evident in the lead-up to the recent U.N. vote on admitting Palestine as a non-member state, in order to discredit any attempt to recognise Palestine as a state.

Contrary to Zionist propaganda, Palestine existed for thousands of years:

• Prior to 1948, currency and passports were issued in the nationality of 'Palestine'.
• In World War II, war in the Middle East was known as the Palestine Campaign and the British military issued a General Service Palestine Campaign Medal .
• In World War I, war in the Middle East was known as the 'Palestine Campaign' and the British military issued a General Service Medal with Palestine clasp.
•  In 1798-1799, Napoleon undertook his 'Palestine campaign' and was defeated.
•  The Crusaders fought in and at one stage ruled Palestine.
• The bible refers to Palestine.
• The ancient Greeks referred to it as Palaistine.
• Ancient Egyptians referred to the area as Peleset.

Many claims have been made by Zionists to discredit Arab claims to the land, including claiming the call for Palestinian nationhood is only a 20th century phenomenon and prior to that there was no common Palestinian identity. However, the same is true for Israeli nationhood and identity.The Zionist movement of the late 19th century was new and in response to antisemitism in Europe which had seen a number of genocidal pogroms waged against Jews. The Jewish diaspora never referred to themselves as Israeli, they referred to themselves as Jews or by the nation that they were living in, e.g. Polish, Russian, German etc.

Arabs in Palestine however, did identify with their location, referring to it as Palestine, to themselves as Palestinian, or by the town they lived in (e.g. Gaza, Jaffa), and of course by their religion, namely Muslim, Christian or Jew. Perhaps they did not call for a nation-state during the last 1,000 years, but neither did 'Israel'. It must also be kept in mind that the 'nation-state' is a modern concept. In Europe for instance, the nation-state only commenced around 360 years ago with the Peace of Westphalia treaties that were signed in 1648.

The 'land without a people' argument will sometimes acknowledge that the land of Palestine existed, but never with its own government. The argument states that the land has always been ruled by others. This does not mean that the land was without people. It also does not mean that the people were without culture. Ironically, the land of Palestine is the same land as Israel, which means all those years of foreign rule apply to Israel as well.

Zionists claim that Israel has a continuous history and the people have inhabited the land for thousands of years. Ironically, the same Zionists will declare that the Jews were exiled some 2,000 years ago which contradicts the 'continuous history' argument.  The land has not been ruled by Jews since 587BC, when Babylonian King Nebuchadnezzar captured it. Since then, the land has been ruled by numerous empires, none Jewish. Additionally, the claim of a continuous Jewish identity over thousands of years is misleading, as prior to 722BC, there were separate tribes, such as Judah, Benjamin, Levi and Israel. When the northern kingdom of Israel fell in 722BC, the southern tribe of Judah took control of the area. Nonetheless, the Jews have not ruled this area for at least 2,500 years.

Comparatively, it has been 3,000 years since the area was ruled by Palestinians, or the Philistines as they were known back then. In 1125BC the Israelites conquered the Canaanites. In 1050BC the Philistines conquered the Israelites and ruled until overthrown in 1000BC. While it has been 3,000 years since they ruled, the Palestinians have lived continuously in this area since at least then.

Zionists claim that prior to the establishment of Israel the people in that area had no culture and had not cared for the land. Are they saying that the richness of Islamic culture which is evident throughout Spain, the Middle East, Persia, Eastern Europe and Turkey, did not happen in Palestine? Are they saying that people who lived there for thousands of years did not care enough to grow crops and tend farm animals? Yet, the Palestinians managed to survive for all those thousands of years, did and do have a rich culture and did and do care for the land.
Zionism is a dangerous cult which has hijacked Judaism and Christianity. It is claimed to be of God in order to fulfil biblical prophecy, when it is of man in order to fulfil racist, genocidal policies and expand power and hegemony.

Zionists have a genuine belief that the next holocaust is just around the corner; that the whole world is conspiring to wipe Judaism from the planet. This is fundamentally flawed and inaccurate. The Holocaust was a major tragedy, as were the centuries of European pogroms against the Jews. However, those are no reason to perpetuate the pogroms through the ongoing slaughter and oppression of the Palestinians. It was not the Palestinians who waged these terrible atrocities on the Jews. The Middle East itself has been relatively peaceful with Muslims, Jews and Christians living harmoniously together compared to the violence of Europe in which many Jews found themselves persecuted. I have written in more detail on this in 'Liberty comes with hands dabbled in blood'.

To justify its paranoia, Israel claims that it has been attacked a number of times by its Arab neighbours. Yet, since 1948, there has only been one international attack on Israel; the fourth Arab-Israeli war (or Yom Kippur War) in 1973, in which Egypt and Syria attacked. Prior to that, Israel had initiated the attacks:

• On 30 November 1947, the day after the UN passed resolution 181, Jewish forces immediately attacked Palestinian villages, killing thousands and forcing hundreds of thousands from their homes. The first Arab-Israeli war in 1948 was in response to Israel's ongoing military aggression.
• The second Arab-Israeli war, in 1956, occurred when Israel attacked Egypt and occupied the Gaza Strip.
• In 1967 Egypt moved tanks into position along the border with Israel. The Knesset was briefed by its Generals who advised that Egypt's Army was at least a year away from being combat ready and that Israel's economy could not sustain a protracted war. The Generals recommended a preemptive strike by Israel. Some months later, the Knesset agreed and Israel attacked Egyptian forces, defeating them within 6 days. This was the third Arab-Israeli war, or the '6 day war'. Following this, Israel attacked Jordan and took control of the West Bank, which it continues to occupy to this day. ⁽¹⁾
• In 1982, Israel attacked southern Lebanon because of the PLO headquarters there, even though the PLO had been abiding by a cease-fire until Israel fired rockets at them. The invasion resulted in the deaths of thousands of Palestinian refugees.

Some argue that it is the Palestinians who do not want peace. Yet, the Palestinians are still willing to negotiate after having lost 78% of their land. Hamas has stated 'Hamas is open to permanent peace with Israel if there is total withdrawal to the 1967 borders, 22% of historic Palestine and if the arrangement is supported by referendum of all Palestinians living under occupation'. ⁽²⁾

Isaiah 41:10 tell us 'do not be afraid for I am your God', yet Israel lives in daily self-induced fear generated by its paranoia. The scriptures say to trust in God, but Israel is putting trust in itself, its military might and the billions of dollars provided by the United States. Any claim that Israel's military superiority is a blessing from God contradicts the scriptures, for instance, Hosea 1:7 which states 'Yet I will have mercy on the house of Judah, will save them by the Lord their God, and will not save them by bow, Nor by sword or battle, By horses or horse-men'.

Peace in the region can only be achieved when Israel stops the illegal occupation of Gaza and the West Bank, when it stops the illegal settlements and the brutality it unleashes on the Palestinians. Whether a one-state or two-state solution eventuates the only way to peace is for both Palestinians and Israelis to have the same rights as each other. The international community must hold Israel accountable by hearing allegations of war-crimes through the International Criminal Court.

A good start for peace, is for Israel to acknowledge its crimes, ask forgiveness, repent by removing the illegal settlements and tearing down the inhumane annexation barriers, return to the borders of 1967, or even 1948, and cease the violence by both the IDF and the settlers, opening the way for true love and peace with its neighbours.

Reference:

1. Miko Peled (2012), 'The General's Son - Journey of an Israeli in Palestine', Just World Books

2. Rogers Waters address to the United Nations on behalf of the Russell Tribunal.

     http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9DrSPFYXUfQ&feature=share

Owen Jones BBC Question Time

British columnist, Owen Jones, on BBC Question Time, exposing the truth behind Israel's attacks on Gaza.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=VO-22uJG9xk

Treating asylum seekers worse than criminals

Australia treats criminals, including pedophiles and rapists, better than it treats asylum seekers. Most criminals only get sentenced to a few years jail, if that, and are usually given a relatively comfortable cell to themselves. Whereas asylum seekers, who have committed no crime, are imprisoned without charge for years in cramped and inhumane conditions.

Jail may not be the most luxurious place to spend time, but Australian jails are far better than the detention centres that we incarcerate asylum seekers in. Asylum seekers, including children, are often imprisoned for years before being granted asylum.

Amnesty International's recent visit to Nauru found the camp to be 'a human rights catastrophe with no end in sight'. It found '... 387 men cramped into 5 rows of leaking, tents, suffering from physical and mental ailments - creating a climate of anguish ...'. Amnesty describes conditions at Nauru as 'cruel, inhumane and degrading'. No-one has legal representation and not one case for asylum has been heard yet. Our criminals have more rights and better treatment than that. Australia should be ashamed.

It is not illegal to arrive in Australia by boat and seek asylum, regardless of how much some politicians like to maintain that position. What is illegal, is for Australia to continue with inhumane conditions and off-shore processing. It is illegal because it breaches a number of conventions to which Australia is signatory to, including the Refugee Convention and other human rights conventions.

Hypocritically, Australia condemns the treatment of asylum seekers by countries which aren't signatory to the Refugee Convention, even though our treatment of asylum seekers is disgraceful and the worst in the western world. Other western nations, such as the UK, USA and European nations release asylum seekers into the community. In fact, Australia is the only country in the world with mandatory detention for asylum seekers.

The reason for the off-shore processing is because it is meant to deter people from making the dangerous journey by boat. The deterrence factor of off-shore processing is debatable. Australia is an island. That means that people will continue arriving here by boat.

Shamefully, last week the Australian government approached a number of church and community groups asking how we can make things harder for asylum seekers. This in itself borders on persecution. We make things harder for people seeking our protection than we do for people who commit crimes. We should be facilitating the processing of asylum seekers by working better with our neighbours and other countries.

Australia takes very few asylum seekers compared to other nations, and ranks 46th in the world for accepting asylum seekers. As an example, Sweden, with a population of 9.5 million, took 81,000 refugees in 2011. Australia has a population of 22 million and had 21,000 refugees in 2011. Sweden has 8.8 refugees per 1,000, compared to Australia taking 0.98 per 1,000 head of population. Yet, Australia is 17 times the size of Sweden. Refer to Table 22: http://www.refugeecouncil.org.au/r/isub/2012-13-IntakeSub-stat.pdf 

We have politicised the issue at the expense of people's lives. Instead of Australians being so fearful of a few people who can contribute positively to our society, we should be extending a helping hand and assisting them to settle here. Apart from the human cost of these racist, inhumane policies, Australia also spends billions of dollars trying to stop people arriving here. After years of incarceration in crowded refugee camps, some in which the accommodation is barely better than a tent, we expect them to then fit straight into Australian society as well-adjusted citizens. Oh, and to be thankful for our magnanimous gesture.

The Fraser government worked with its neighbours to resettle refugees from Cambodia and Vietnam in the 1970s. This resettlement program helped to stem the flow of boats to Australia while settling many more refugees into Australia and neighbouring countries. While this was admirable, it was purpose was to stop the arrival of boats rather than assisting refugees. Fraser's theory was that by opening the 'front door' to refugees it would reduce the number entering through the 'back door', or by boat. Unfortunately, it set in place the idea that boat-people are arriving illegally. Nonetheless, the policy had some merit and may certainly be more humane than the current political-driven, fear-based policies that see Australia treating asylum seekers in a manner that is not commensurate with the idea of us being the land of the 'fair-go'.

While there is persecution in the world, people will flee it. The only way to truly stop people seeking asylum is to stop persecution. Of course, this is idealistic and unlikely to ever happen. In the meantime, we can honour the conventions we've signed and help asylum seekers settle into Australia, not via mandatory detention, but through being released into the community pending decisions regarding their claims.

Instead of being driven by fear and hatred, we should be driven by an altruistic sense of compassion and caring for those who are suffering. We should be treating asylum seekers with dignity and compassion, not treating them worse than criminals.

The History of Palestine

The below video provides a brief overview of the modern history of Palestine and, in particular, the influence of Zionism, which really was the beginning of the current conflict. It challenges issues such as 'land without a people' and the Zionist claim that Israeli occupation of Palestinian towns was peaceful and legal.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=n3bxj1uvDXU

On the side of the oppressor

As Israel amasses a 30,000 strong Army on the border of Gaza, threatening a massacre of civilians in Gaza, world leaders have spoken out in defence of Israel, while silent on the massacres of Palestinians.

Today (16 November 2012) Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard condemned Palestinian rocket attacks, while the opposition leader, Tony Abbott, stated that Israel has a right to self-defence.

Christians across the globe are praying for Israel. Very few are praying for Palestine.

The Palestinians have been labelled terrorists. The Israelis have been lauded as the peace-loving victim. Yet, Israel has illegally occupied Palestinian territory since 1948. It has killed hundreds of thousands of Palestinians and forced more than a million out of their homes. Israel is in violation of hundreds of U.N. resolutions, which it continues to flout.

Israel's actions are genocidal. The denial of Palestinian nation-hood and the erasing of Palestinian history is ethnic cleansing.

Who speaks up for Palestine?

Desmond Tutu once said, 'if you are neutral in situations of injustice, you have chosen the side of the oppressor'. Sadly, national leaders and millions of Christians are not neutral, they have blatantly, proudly and vocally joined the side of the oppressor, while being completely silent, or even hostile towards the oppressed.

Israel is guilty of arresting and detaining adults and children without charge for months, some for years. This is called 'administrative detention'. Israel has segregated, demonised, dehumanised and invalidated Palestinians. Israel may not be using gas chambers, but they are using Nazi tactics. For decades Gaza has been a massive concentration camp.

Israel has built a 'security barrier', which in most parts is a massive wall and in other parts a high, impassable fence. This security barrier is placed well within Palestinian territories and prevents Palestinians from accessing schools, hospitals, their own crops and jobs.

Some Palestinians fire rockets into Israel. Israel responds with military jets, tanks and personnel. They launch missiles loaded with white phospherous and depleted uranium that cause horrendous injuries to the survivors of the attacks. The missiles are launched into civilian areas.

Israel claims they have a right to self-defence. Based on this, Palestine could argue the same thing.

While Israel makes much of the recent rocket attacks from Gaza, it must be kept in mind that Israel has been firing rockets and bullets into Gaza for years, killing dozens of people. For example, Stop the War Coalition has reported the following:

• In 2011, Israeli weapons killed 108 Palestinians, including 15 children and injuring 468 people. Israeli weaponry used in these attacks was 57% (310) military aircraft, 28% (150) live ammunition, 11% (59) tank shells, and 3% (18) mortars.
• In September 2012, Israel killed 55 Palestinians and injured 257 people. 209 of these casualties were caused by Israeli Air Force missiles, 69 by live ammunition, and 18 from tank shells.

Over the years, Israel has been guilty of provoking Palestinians to retaliate. As documented by Maureen Clare on Electronic Intifada, Israel has been shelling and shooting Palestinians in the lead-up to the most recent attacks:

• 11 November 2012 - Five Palestinian civilians, including three children, killed in the Gaza Strip in the last 72 hours. Four of these deaths occurred as a result of Israeli military firing artillery shells at children playing soccer. Additionally, 52 civilians were wounded, including six women and 12 children.
• 8 November 2012 - a 13 year old boy playing football in front of his house was shot dead by the Israeli military.
• 5 November 2012 - a mentally-ill man wandered close to the border and was shot by Israeli military. Israelis did not allow Palestinian medical personnel to attend to the man for six hours. It is believed this delay caused the death of the man.

At the moment, the world's media is upset at there being three Israelis killed. While the deaths are a tragedy, there has been no mention of the above Palestinian deaths or of the other 53 Palestinians who have been killed by Israel this year. Since 2000, there have been 6,617 Palestinians killed by Israel, while there have been 1,097 Israelis killed. The full report can be viewed at http://www.ifamericansknew.org/stats/deaths.html#source

Whether Palestinian or Israeli, killing cannot be condoned. However, the world's leaders, and sadly many Christian groups, are condoning the Israeli massacre of innocent Palestinians.

The violence has been grossly misreported, with little or no mention of Palestinian deaths in the mainstream media.

Israel accuses Palestinians of being terrorists. The Palestinians blame the violence on Israel's illegal occupation of Palestine. The following map shows how much land Israel has stolen from Palestine (the white areas show Jewish land, the green areas show Palestinian land):

Now, with 30,000 troops preparing to invade Gaza, I fear a massacre that will make the atrocities of Sabra and Shatila (3,500 deaths), Operation Cast Lead (1,400 deaths) and other brutal and ongoing attacks pale against it.

This is a continuation of the Nakba; the genocide and ethnic cleansing of Palestine.

When will the world stand up to this brutality and hold Israel accountable?

When will the world stop trying to erase Palestinians from history? When will their existence be validated?

It seems that Palestinians are not entitled to the same human rights of safety, security and dignity that the rest of us are.

When will Christians pray for Palestinians instead of condoning Israeli aggression in the name of God.

Rather than backing the oppressor, it is time the world spoke up for the oppressed.

Speak up for Palestine!

The Palestinian Nakba

Sheep or Goat? Government or Church?

The influential religious right-wing, claim that the bible puts responsibility for the poor and downtrodden in the hands of the church and its people, not in the hands of government. This is used to justify smaller government and the removal of publicly funded welfare, health and education services. Yet one of the most famous passages in the bible, the parable of the Sheep and the Goats, Matthew 25:32, tells us that all 'nations' will be held accountable to God. Nations are ruled by governments. 

For so long now, right-wing Christians have been stating that government is not meant to provide welfare or social security, that caring for the poor is the responsibility of churches and individuals. This belief has been used to justify lower taxation in order to remove or prevent government funded programs such as health, education, housing and welfare. The provision of these services by government is often seen as socialism, which is decried as being evil, as being a principality of Satan.

In the parable of the Sheep and the Goats, in Matthew 25:32, Jesus tells us that 'all nations will be gathered before Him, and He will separate them one from another, as a shepherd divides his sheep from the goats'.

The parable doesn't tell us that 'all people will be gathered before Him', but all 'nations'. Nations are not just comprised of people, but have leadership; government. The nations will be held accountable for whether they looked after the 'least of these', those less fortunate, those who were unable to provide for themselves; those who need food, water, clothing, shelter, security, love.

In the parable of the Sheep and the Goats, Jesus states that the 'nations' should have provided:

• food - for I was hungry
• drink - for I was thirsty
• refuge - for I was a stranger
• clothing - for I was naked
• caring - for I was sick 
• compassion - for I was in prison

Those who did provide this, were put with the sheep and will inherit the Kingdom of God. Those who didn't provide for the poor, will be with the Goats who will depart from God's presence into everlasting fire.

Why did God separate the nations into the sheep and the goats? Sheep need shepherds. For a nation, the government is the shepherd. It is the government that provides the direction and the protection for the people of that nation.

In Ezekiel 34:2-4, God warns the shepherds of Israel, 'You eat the fat clothe yourselves with the wool; you slaughter the fatlings, but you do not feed the flock. The weak you have not strengthened, nor have you healed those who were sick, nor bound up the broken, nor brought back what was driven away, nor sought what was lost; but with force and cruelty you have ruled them'.

The shepherds that the bible talks of are Kings and religious leaders. This scripture is criticism of both the government and the religious institutions.

Throughout the Old Testament, God did not just single out individuals for his warnings and blessings. He also directed his edicts towards nations, in particular the nation of Israel. He warned Israel of the need to care for the least of these, for the poor, the widow, the orphan, the stranger. The stranger being someone who was not of that land, a foreigner.

While each of us is responsible for our actions ... and inactions ... God also holds governments accountable for their treatment of everyone, including the 'least of these'. In Matthew 25:40, He states 'Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did it to one of the least of these My brethren, you did it to me'.

In the parable of the sheep and the goats, government is held accountable for its treatment of poor, the destitute, the homeless, the refugee, the prisoner, the patient. It cannot be argued that this is not the responsibility of government, that only the church can provide these services. Besides that, most churches are only interested in providing these services to their followers, not to those who have no interest in their religion. Would the church provide refuge for Muslims fleeing a despotic regime, or would they only provide it to the Christians? Would they provide care and compassion to an openly gay person who may be dying? Some might, most won't.

Governments are responsible for caring for all members of their society, not just those who fit certain religious criteria.

And of course to take those services off government and give them to churches would be to overwhelm the ability of the church to deliver those services. Certainly there is a place for churches to provide these services, but not to be the sole providers of them. In a world with more than 7 billion people, can the churches truly claim that governments should not be used to deliver these services?

The parable of the Sheep and the Goats holds governments responsible for their treatment of the 'least of these'. As mentioned in Ezekiel, religious leaders are also held accountable. By undermining the ability of government to provide these services, religious groups are denying the 'least of these' access to food, clothing, accommodation, security and care. Is there an agenda that the churches are working towards by transferring social welfare from government to them? They can't possibly deliver services to all, so is it just a power-grabbing, money-making scam? Or is it a genuine concern for the poor?

Instead of pursuing their own agenda and fighting for essential services to be taken off government, religious groups should be working with government to ensure that the services are provided to all who need them.

There will come a day of reckoning.

Will government, will the church, be with the Sheep or the Goats?