Dick Kazan

President Bush invaded Iraq and Afghanistan in his "war on terror" to bring peace to the world.

In the name of peace, the U.S. has blown-up buildings, incinerating their occupants, raining burnt body parts and charred debris where homes used to be. The bodies of innocent men, women and children, some of them still on fire, were left to bear witness to the power of the U.S. military.

Mr. Bush brought Hell on earth to these people, yet he claims to be "a born again Christian."

Meanwhile Israel, a close U.S. ally attacks Hamas, Hezbollah and other Arab factions, who respond in kind as all sides try to beat the other into submission, while thousands of innocent people have been killed, also in the name of peace.

How ironic. Jesus, a Jewish man was the original Christian, upon whom all Christianity is based and Islam reveres him as a prophet of God. In their Qur'an they reverently share his teachings.

So if Jesus walked among us today, would he support a war on terror? And if he did, who would he support, for all the combatants revere him?

"Blessed are the peacemakers," Jesus said in Matthew 5:9, "For they shall be called the children of God."

This quote doesn't support a war on terror so I explored Jesus' thought process further, and found such quotes as, "Thou shalt not kill," and "Love thy enemy."

"You're either with us or you support the terrorists," President Bush has proclaimed so I began to wonder if Jesus would be a trouble maker in Mr. Bush's eyes. The kind of person who would violate the Patriot Act or the Military Commissions Act and therefore be called a terrorist.

As President Bush continuously demands more money to fight his wars to potentially kill thousands or even millions more people, I wondered if Jesus wouldn't instead use peaceful means to achieve peace among the waring parties.

As I looked at the U.S. Government budget and saw more than 1/3 of it devoted to war, including the development of new weapons of mass destruction, I wondered if Jesus would concur. Or might he oppose it and encourage the money be spent helping people in need?

Seeking an answer, I began reading from the Sermon on the Plain in the Gospel of Luke, 6:27-31: "But I tell you who hear me: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you and bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you. If someone strikes you on one cheek, turn to him the other also.

"If someone takes your cloak, do not stop him from taking your tunic. Give to everyone who asks you, and if anyone takes what belongs to you, do not demand it back. Do to others as you would have them do to you."

After reading this, it appears Jesus would not support the creation of new weapons and instead he would spend the money to help others in need.

Now I began to wonder, would Jesus become a protester against these wars, something few people today do.

The large majority of Americans don't like Mr. Bush's wars but most of them have been too busy to get involved. Given his stature and the demands on his time, would Jesus also be too busy?

Then it occured to me, what if Jesus did return and rather than call attention to himself and get treated as a rock star, surrounded by celebrities, photographers and limousines; instead humbly walked the world and appealed to mankind by sharing his biblical lessons as he preached peace.

What if Jesus dressed casually and went to street corners to peacefully protest and to encourage others to do so as well. Wasn't this what he originally did in opposing the Jewish temple hierarchy?

Jesus in his time confronted the Roman Empire but today he would be confronting something far more powerful, the American Empire and the Bush Administration, that uses state of the art military technology and a huge nuclear arsenal to threaten the world and to try to seize its resources.

Then Jesus' words appeared again: "What shall it profit a man if he gains the whole world but loses his soul."

Yet as I thought about it I realized unless Jesus performed some miracles we could all witness he wouldn't be recognized as Jesus and would have just his ideas, and those ideas are out of fashion.

Even the hierarchy of most Christian churches doesn't get involved in trying to stop today's wars, as they look the other way.

So Jesus would appeal to you, me and to other caring people. If he did and you didn't recognize him as Jesus, what would your answer be?

Would you have the compassion and courage to rise to the occasion? Would you be bold enough to try to end the bloodshed? Would you also try to alter America's spending priorities to help mankind instead of potentially destroying it?

Is your heart open to the peaceful principles and compassion for humanity of Jesus, of Gandhi, of Martin Luther King, Jr, of Nelson Mandela, of Mother Teresa and other of history's bold figures who confronted tyranny? If so, now it is your time to enter the stage and make a difference.

Dick