Christianity and American State Violence in Iraq

Book excerpt: The world continues to be threatened by non-state, religiously-rationalized violence. While some fail to the see the connections between the United States’ intervention in the Middle East and this ongoing threat, the non-state perpetrators of terror consistently identify American meddling as one of their principle motivating grievances. What are the social and cultural roots of different religious positions on the war in Iraq? Christianity and American State Violence in Iraq returns to a critical moment in U.S. foreign policy, during which American Christians publicly debated war in Iraq. It examines the religious precepts that were used to argue both for and against the United States’ military engagement in Iraq. To capture this behavior, Christopher A. Morrissey delves into the distinct social and cultural origins of both war-supporting and war-challenging positions. His analysis represents an improved understanding of the public role of religion in important foreign policy debates and helps us better understand how religious culture can legitimate or challenge state violence. An original and timely resource on the social sources of religion’s ambivalence towards violence and peace in the US and abroad.