[ WAR IN IRAQ ]
FL MORRIS / FMORRIS@STARBULLETIN.COM
Bob Hamilton, left, an ex-Coast Guardsman, and wife Pat sang along to "The Star-Spangled Banner" yesterday at the First Baptist Church-Windward on Kailua Road.
War dominates Churchgoers united in worship were divided on war yesterday, the first Sunday since the start of the U.S.-led attack on Iraq.
discussion at Oahu’s
Sunday services
Advance on Baghdad slowsBy Leila Fujimori
lfujimori@starbulletin.com"I lived through the Vietnam War, so I hate to see this happening again," said Debra Creps, 51, who attended the service at Kailua United Methodist Church, where her 15-year-old is an altar boy.
"We're supportive of the troops," she said, "but I oppose the decisions of the government."
Her son Ben calls the war justified. "I think Saddam (Hussein) should be taken care of," he said.
Debra Creps added, "Regardless of how anyone stands with this issue, we should treat both sides with respect."
Marine wife April Taylor, 45, attended the service at St. John Lutheran Church with her two children, 11 and 16.
She said she appreciated the pastor for not encouraging support for either side in the war.
"You're allowed to make your own decisions," she said. "I pray for peace."
Ministers of three Kailua churches, whose congregations include some service members and their families, broached the war differently.
Taylor listened to the Rev. Karla Lundgren say from the pulpit: "It breaks my heart that sometimes war may be the only way to peace.
"Whether God is watching the world with the exact same shock and awe, to see such terror and hatred between nations and to witness such sorrow and pain, surely this isn't what he intended for Creation.
"I think it must be breaking his heart, too," Lundgren said.
Maj. Derrick Deeds, a Marine reservist whose parent unit is in Atlanta and who has been assigned to Camp Smith, was satisfied with Lundgren's sermon.
"Sometimes it takes war to bring peace," he said. "I agree with that."
At the Kailua United Methodist Church, the Rev. Tom Choi addressed how going to war with Iraq has caused divisions within the church itself.
From its leaders to its members, many have pleaded for peace, while others support the president, who is a Methodist, he said.
Some are praying for Hussein's demise through war and an end to Middle East threats and terrorism, while others are praying for an end to conflict so that nonviolent solutions might be reached.
United Methodist leaders support a letter by the Rev. Sharon Brown Christopher to members saying that their churches welcome all people: "Let our sanctuaries be gathering places for respectful and honorable Christian conversation across political perspectives ... for interreligious dialogue, especially between Christians, Muslims and Jews."
Choi read Isaiah 43, which refers to God's "chosen people," but expanded on the theme to include "the American who supports the war, the American who opposes war, the European ... the North Korean, the Muslim, the Buddhist, the agnostic, the atheist.
"Let us respect all of our attempts to achieve peace," he prayed.
Methodist Marcia Hartsock, 61, who protested the Vietnam War, had protested America's threat of war with Iraq by holding anti-war signs and attending candlelight vigils.
"But since the war started I haven't," she said, because of "the need for unity."
Esther Temple, 77, prayed for both Americans and Iraqis. "I just feel like they need prayer just as much as our people need prayer."
Navy Petty Officer 3rd Class Jon Youmans, 26, who attended the service at First Baptist Church-Windward, emphasized, "We should love one another."
He reconciles his military duty by saying: "That's why the United States, we try to help everybody. God didn't intend for us to fight."
The Rev. Rodney Wong, associate pastor at First Baptist Church-Windward, spoke about finding spiritual peace during a time of war.
Many in the congregation, including one mother of two young children, were concerned about those who could still be deployed if the fighting drags on.
"Rest in the fact that God is in control despite our adverse circumstances," Wong said.
He quoted Psalm 46:1, "God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble."
He urged his congregation "to rely upon God's ability and not our own" and "to trust and acknowledge God is greater than your problems."
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