Patriotism is not a subject that fits easily into church discussions. First, there are theological issues about separation of church and state, with Jesus guiding us: “Render therefore to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s.” (Matthew 22:21)

And in our sophisticated age, some feel that patriotism is corny or old fashioned or jingoistic. Nevertheless, as we celebrated the 4th of July, I found myself thinking, as perhaps you did also, about many aspects of America: history, immigration, war.

War is a political issue that divides public opinion like perhaps no other subject. I offer one point of view here, acknowledging that people may strongly hold other viewpoints.

The church has taken a stand on the issue of war. From the United Methodist Church Book of Discipline 2004:

We believe war is incompatible with the teachings and example of Christ. We therefore reject war as a usual instrument of national foreign policy and insist that the first moral duty of all nations is to resolve by peaceful means every dispute that arises between or among them; that human values must outweigh military claims as governments determine their priorities, that the militarization of society must be challenged and stopped; that the manufacture, sale and deployment of armaments must be reduced and controlled; and that the production, possession or use of nuclear weapons must be condemned. We also acknowledge that most Christians realize that, when peaceful alternatives have failed, the force of arms may be preferable to unchecked aggression, tyranny and genocide.

With this proclamation in our hearts, we know that our country is at war and our military is actively engaged in armed conflict. Many families in the Northern Illinois Conference have been touched by a connection to the military and war now and in the past.

My father passed away at the end of last year at the age of 85. He was a World War II veteran, having been deployed overseas in the Army Air Corps, serving in North Africa for three years. He never talked much about the war, and even on direct questioning quickly changed the subject.

After his death, going through his things, I found a packet of letters from the front he had written in 1943-45. The letters reflected a longing for home, but also very touchingly, showed that one of the things that buoyed him most during his long months at war was the chance to meet with other Christian soldiers to share faith together.

My mother’s older brother, who was a faithful church leader, son, brother, friend and fiancé, was killed on an Air Force mission in 1944. Even though this uncle died before I was born, his unknown presence and dedicated service to his country and the life he gave for his belief in America has been a backdrop to my entire life. There are many families with stories similar to mine.

At our annual conference last month, a young Army chaplain attended in full military fatigues. His presence was controversial. Yes, his purpose was to recruit chaplains. Some thought this very inappropriate.

I was able to speak with the young soldier and learn that he was a deeply religious person, a husband, father of two young children and he had recently returned from a 16-month deployment in Iraq.

I looked at some photos with images from his unit in Iraq. They were edited with a chaplain’s view of the war. I saw photos of soldiers being baptized in the Euphrates River, soldiers at prayer behind a berm built along an Iraqi desert road to protect our military from small arms fire, soldiers visiting biblical sites near what is thought to be Babylon.

In a time of war, when lives are at risk, and souls may have to witness unspeakable things, never could there be a time when God and a sense of God’s healing presence are needed more.

Whether you support the war in Iraq or not, whether you support United Methodist Church social principles on war or not, I invite you to separate these opinions from concern for our young soldiers being deployed to Iraq, Afghanistan, Korea or other regions of conflict around the world. There are many families in the Northern Illinois Conference who have sons, daughters, brothers, sisters, husbands or wives in harm’s way. And there are many veterans of wars past that I believe deserve our thoughtful tributes.

And there are also the innocent victims of war that should be in our hearts and prayers. Pastor Thomas Kim from Roselle UMC shared a story with me recently about an amazing journey taken by some of the relatives of 9/11 victims as part of an organization, called Peaceful Tomorrows. Peaceful Tomorrows was established by 9/11 surviving families.

Some of these 9/11 surviving American family members traveled to Afghanistan where they have seen some of the “collateral damage,” effects of devastation wrought by American bombing. They have met with dozens of Afghan families who were “in the wrong place at the wrong time” when American cluster bombs were dropped. They have reached out to traumatized Afghan children who have lost their parents to American bombs, sometimes being forced out of their houses by bombing only to have U.S. helicopters hovering above them shooting at them. Both Americans and Afghanis suffered great losses in unexpected ways. Both were victims of a war they didn’t support, or ask for. (See more about this in the video “Steps to Peace,” which the Media Resource Center stocks.)

During this 4th of July season, I invite you to pray for peace, for the innocent victims of war, for leaders who have the power to make decisions about war and peace, and for soldiers and veterans around the world.