War

I'm about half way done with McLaren's final installment of his New Kind of Christian trilogy, The Last Word and the Word After That. Dealing with the doctrine of hell, this book is probably most troubling for many. I will deal with some of his proposals dealing with hell later, but in my reading today I found the following passage especially provocative and timely:

"My second memory centers on another display in the same exhibit. It was another quote, easy to miss, on a small panel in a corner. Karl Brandt, Hilter's personal physician, had written:
'The Fuhrer was of the opinion that killing the incurably ill woulud be easier and
smoother to carry out in wartime, since the public resistance of the churches
would not play such a prominent role amidst the events of wartime as it
otherwise would.'
Neil pointed out this quote to me. I read it in silence and restated it in my own words: The Fuhrer realized that his agenda of killing the weak rather than caring for them was contrary to the ethos of the churches; wartime, he felt, would create an environment where the churches would be less likely to break ranks and speak prophetically to the state.
Neil turned to me, whispering again. 'Could the same sort of thing be happening today? Could the so-called war on terrorism be keeping the churches here in America from speaking prophetically to the state?' My mind was so jammed full that I noddeed slightly again and said nothing.'"