Christian leaders react to the US-Israeli strikes in Iran, death of Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei
3. Shaine Claiborne of Red-Letter Christians
Progressive Christian thinker and activist Shaine Claiborne, a pacifist, was among those critical of the attacks on Iran, saying in a social media post that “attacking Iran is terribly wrong.”
“Let’s be very clear. Killing people is wrong. Attacking Iran is terribly wrong. We will never build a better world by killing other people’s children,” Claiborne wrote, apparently referencing allegations from Iranian health officials and state media that dozens of people, likely mostly children, have been killed in strikes that hit at least two schools.
U.S. Central Command told The New York Times that it is “aware of reports concerning civilian harm resulting from ongoing military operations” and that it takes those reports “seriously” and will investigate, stressing that the “protection of civilians is of utmost importance.”
“Violence only begets more violence,” Claiborne wrote. “When we live by the sword, we die by the sword. Two wrongs never make a right. It is impossible to love our enemies as Christ commands and simultaneously prepare to kill them.”
