This September weekend marking the ninth anniversary of the 9/11 tragedy has been almost overshadowed by the plans of a pastor to hold a public burning of the Koran, which he then decided he would not do, although The New York Daily News reported that one unidentified man did burn some pages of the Koran near Ground Zero.
Christians have a mixed history when it comes to burning books, sometimes with unfortunate results. Those who think it is a justifiable act presume that there is biblical support for such behavior, citing events at Ephesus recorded in The Acts of the Apostles by Dr. Luke. In Acts 19:19 he writes that a number of people who had been involved in occultic practices became Christians and decided to hold a public burning of their books and materials which contained incantations and instructions for carrying out rituals of magic.
As a caution to any Christians who now believe this justifies public burning of the Koran or any other objectionable writings it would be wise to consider two important facts in the account in Acts.
First, the burning of the occultic books was not a planned, organized event staged for the purpose of publicity. It was instead a spontaneous and public demonstration of repentance. The new Christians were saying to the city, “This is what we were, but now we are something else. This is what we followed but now we follow someone else”.
The second fact is just as important. The people in Ephesus burned their own books. They did not go and gather up the books of those who continued with the practices they had now abandoned. They did not go and collect the writings of any other religions. They simply burned their own stuff.
A number of years ago, following a sermon in which I encouraged parents to know what their children were reading one of the sheep approached me, angry, demanding to know why I had not called on parents to burn the Harry Potter books. I replied that I held a degree in literary criticism and did not really hold with book burning. He became even more angry and removed himself, his ewe and his lambs from the congregation and went off to find a new sheepfold.
There are times when it may be appropriate for you to destroy harmful writings, but only if, like the people in Ephesus, you also are engaged in a true act of repentance, and the only things you burn are your own.
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It strikes me that any act done in the name of faith (and “name” is significant here — where’s the actual faith?) for the purposes of “publicity” is ultimately misguided.
That leader taught his congregation how to be attention-seeking and ignorant… not how to pursue truth, or how to extend grace, or how to make a difference in the world around him. Sad that Fred Phelps has taught a whole group of loonies that the path to notoriety can start inside a church.