My nine-year-old son Aaron and his friend Logan were playing in his bedroom recently when I overheard a snippet of conversation.

"Well, if we're going to Afghanistan," Logan said, "we'd better stop at Zeller's first."

Earlier that afternoon, the boys had decided that they were going to make paper airplanes and fly them off of our back deck. They were using the day's newspaper to build their planes when something caught my son's eye. He came running into the kitchen with a picture he had cut out exclaiming, "Mom! I finally found a way to make some money around here!"

The picture was of Osama bin Laden, and the caption indicated that there was a $25,000,000 reward for his capture. Always on the lookout for ways to boost his allowance, Aaron saw this as a good option. Paper airplanes were abandoned and planning began in earnest.

First they had to find out where Afghanistan was. They hauled out the atlas and found it.

"Mom, can you take us to the airport?" Aaron asked.

"I could, but I don't think you're going to be catching any commercial flights into Afghanistan," I said, seeing a teachable moment coming on. "There's a war going on there you know."

"Besides," Logan said, "it's a poor country; they wouldn't even have an airport."

Teachable moment number two: even poor countries have airports but when there's a war on, and bombers are looking for targets, airports are usually the first to go up in smoke. The info surprised them: How can poor countries have airports? Aren't they expensive? We talked a bit about what makes a country poor, about oppressive governments, and about economics.

"Maybe we could take a boat," Aaron offered. The atlas was consulted again. He traced his finger down the west coast from Vancouver around the tip of South America and up through the Mediterranean. This could take a long time. I tipped him off to the short cut at the Panama Canal.

"Or you could take a plane to Montreal or Halifax, grab a boat from there to Turkey, get a cab," I offered.

Ah, yes, expenses. Since this was going to be a freelance job they were going to have to deal with initial costs. That's where Zellers came into the picture. Logan had recently received a gift he wanted to return which would give him $20. He also had a cheque for $20 from his grandma-but it was in American dollars so it was worth even more. Smart kid.

My son emptied out his Disneyland savings jar into his wallet. There was a brief discussion about going to Disneyland instead of Afghanistan, but Aaron pointed out that if they had $25 million they could go to Disneyland as often as they liked. Also a smart kid.

They headed downstairs to gather supplies and weapons. I followed, under the guise of doing laundry. I was disturbed by the ease with which they discussed blowing up the bad guy.

"Why do you have to kill him," I asked. "He's wanted dead or alive-why not just catch him and put him in jail?"

"But if he's dead, he can't hurt any more innocent people," Logan said. True, I countered, but pointed out that there were hundreds, maybe thousands, of guys out there who would just take his place and be even more determined to hurt innocent people because Osama would have become a martyr. What if you put him in jail and gave him a chance to have a change of heart?

"I doubt that would happen," Logan said, looking at me like I was crazy.

"It's happened before, with other criminals," I said, challenging them to think about how much more powerful it would be if Osama did have a change of heart and encouraged his followers to do so as well. I could tell by their faces that this was nearly as far-fetched as the two of them going to Afghanistan, so I dropped it. Only so many teachable moments in a day.

The afternoon gave me pause. These boys knew that American money is worth more than Canadian, but they didn't know that poor countries can have airports. They knew that Osama was wanted dead or alive and they naturally chose dead as a way to end the evil, but they hadn't considered the implications. And they were willing to kill someone so they could collect the reward and go to Disneyland as often as they liked.

Such profound knowledge and such profound ignorance. Such casual conversation from nine-year-olds.

As we drove Logan home, he and Aaron continued discussing their plans. Suddenly Logan said, "Twenty five million seems like a lot of money to catch one dufus."

We laughed again. Such wisdom from nine-year-olds.

-Angelika Dawson

This past summer, I read a book that gives some helpful handles for understanding the situation we face in the church and in society today. I recommend GodViews: The Convictions That Drive Us and Divide Us by Jack Haberer (Geneva Press, 2001) to every congregational leader.

The book caused me to rethink our binary thinking. It seems that the more complex issues become, the more some people desire simple answers. To simplify matters we divide things into two categories: black or white, liberal or conservative, paper or plastic, and the list goes on.

Such binary thinking boils down to "us" versus "them." Two-party thinking organizes life simply, provides clear choices and relieves us of the responsibility of dealing with uncomfortable issues.

Binary thinking is also a powerful tool in winning arguments. In a court of law, a lawyer may demand only a "yes" or "no" answer which will make the lawyer's point but may do little to reveal the broader truth. The truth that Christians come to know in Christ does not only reside in the poles of "yes" or "no." To embrace the full measure of that truth, we need another model of relating to those who hold views other than our own.

Haberer suggests that there are at least five "GodViews," the convictions that drive and give meaning to our expression of Christian faith:

· Confessionalist GodView: Committed to discerning, proclaiming and preserving the truth.
· Devotionalist GodView: Hungry for God. Loves to pray, worship, meditate and study. Wants to know God and wants others to know God.
· Ecclesiast GodView: Known for action-serving on committees, teaching Sunday School, singing in the choir, attending ecumenical events, giving generously.
· Altruist GodView: Sees human tragedy and does something about it-giving to the needy and serving with charitable organizations.
· Activist GodView: Sees human need and addresses the far reaching realms-systemic evil, racial prejudices, gender exclusion and other injustice.

GodViews have a variety of sources. Haberer suggests they are "rooted in our temperaments, shaped by our environments, 'converted' by our faith experience, empowered by our spiritual giftings, reenforced by our affiliations, and magnified by our sense of call."

While our GodViews drive us to do good things, they also isolate like-minded groups from others. Humans, like "birds of a feather," tend to flock to those who share common convictions. These convictions provide the magnet that draws some believers together and drives others away.

Haberer identifies in each GodView the inherent tendency to damage the very effort it aims to accomplish. The confessionalist becomes a judgementalist, the devotionalist a superspiritualist, the ecclesiast an isolationist, the altruist a secularist and the activist an elitist.

The greatest pitfall of all, according to Haberer, is the "balkanization" the GodViews are visiting upon the church. People retreat into their enclaves of agreement from which they make claims of superiority and throw ideological grenades at each other. Quoting Blaise Pascal, Haberer offers, "Men never do evil so completely and cheerfully as when they do it from religious conviction."

The church is impoverished in the fray by silencing many voices that could offer correctives and lessons leading to more wisdom. In Mark 9:38-41, the disciples report their efforts to stop someone who was casting out demons in the name of Jesus, "because he was not following us."

Jesus replied, "Do not stop him: for no one who does a deed of power in my name will be able soon afterward to speak evil of me. Whoever is not against us is for us." Like the disciples we often say, "Whoever is not for us is against us."

In an era that daily multiplies mechanisms of communication, we seem to be hiding more and more in our safe circles. We truly do need each other, Haberer argues, and we need to "redignify our disputing." We are called to intentional encounters with those we label as "other."

Dialogue, Haberer asserts, works better than debate as a means to discover truth and experience reconciliation. Haberer longs for the day when Christians of varying GodViews will join in pleading with God to revive the church.

"Let us begin with reviving our manners in relating to each other," Haberer concludes.

-David Brubacher

The writer is Minister to Conference, Mennonite Church Eastern Canada. This is from his September 14, 2001 letter to church leaders.

I was struck by Doreen Neufeld's article on the shortage of pastors (Nov. 5). I suggest that the church, including us as parents, become more conscious of our role in nurturing future pastors. Consider the following recommendations:

1. Develop a ministry of multiplication. This pastor shortage may be a symptom of the church straying from Paul's teaching to Timothy: "...the things which you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses, these entrust to faithful men, who will be able to teach others" (2 Timothy 2:2).

Here we have the principle of a "ministry of multiplication" that for Paul began with Barnabas who mentored him (Acts 9:27). Paul developed a modelling and mentoring relationship with Timothy who entrusted his faith to others who would be able to teach. If the church developed this three-generation, relationship-building model, it would launch a process that ideally would never end.

2. Expand the ministry of encouragement. "Therefore encourage one another, and build up one another, just as you also are doing," says 1 Thessalonians 5:11. Remember the vital role that Barnabas ("Son of encouragement") played in Paul's life just after his conversion (Acts 9:27). Are we as parents and church members encouraging our children in their choice of vocation? Are we recognizing talents and spiritual gifts that would support pastoral leadership?

3. Implement a ministry of mentoring. "As iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another," says Proverbs 27:17. Have you been sharpened by another person's Godly wisdom and character? Are we too busy to be sharpened or walk alongside one another the way people once did? Are we trying to reach personal and spiritual maturity solely on our own resources?

I believe God intends all of us, including pastors, to develop under the influence and encouragement of seasoned believers. In Hebrews 13:7 we read: "Remember those who led you, who spoke the word of God to you; considering the outcome of their way of life, imitate their faith." Also, this approach would alleviate expectations of perfection that congregations may have for their minister.

-Harold Harder, Rockwood, Ont.

While not wishing to minimize the ministry of anyone who moves from the "backwoods" to the world stage (Eduard Klassen feature, Dec. 17), I was disturbed by the hint of prejudice against Christians who might decide they can be true to Jesus Christ without leaving the "backwoods," wherever that may be. Is mission or ministry done only in the spotlight, in front of crowds or in urban areas?

The inhabitants of that colony of Menno in that "backwoods" country of Paraguay have taken upon themselves perhaps the greatest mission in the history of Mennonite people-to reach out and be a witness to the thousands of Lengua natives that surround their colony. People from Menno have been looking after the Lengua's spiritual and physical needs for decades, providing the native settlements with pastoral, missionary, health, educational and agricultural support.

Even more important, they have come to know the Lengua as neighbours. Several years ago, while visiting with young people from Menno, I was amazed to hear one of them break out of German and tell a joke in the Lengua language, which almost all in the circle were able to understand.

Often it is easier to leave the "backwoods" than to stay. My hat goes off to the residents of Menno Colony and other colonies in Paraguay who have decided to stay, and who have found a God-given purpose in being where they are, even when the rest of the world may see them as "backwoods."

-Allan Friesen, Laird, Sask.

I can understand Peter Sawatsky's concern about the appropriateness of worshipping with Muslims (Dec. 17 letter in response to my Nov. 5 article). I felt awkward at the mosque that day, and yet, as I prayed before and during my time there, it was clear to me that this was where God wanted me to be.

The Bible does not give a clear answer on how to relate to people of non-Christian faiths. I suspect the apostle Paul would emphasize converting Muslims to the Christian faith. However, I am certain Jesus would have a different response.

How would Jesus respond to people worshipping Allah (the Arabic word for God)? Are they not worshipping the same God he is? What would Jesus say to Muslims who strive to submit their lives to the will of God (the meaning of the word "Islam")? Are they not seeking first the kingdom of God?

Would Jesus praise them for their faith, as he did the Canaanite woman (Matthew 15:28) or the centurion (Luke 7:9), both God-fearing Gentiles, or would he tell them that they need to repent, which means turn back to God? I believe Jesus would have taken a positive view of Muslim people who were faithful to their religious tradition.

I realize this creates a problem for Christians, for we hold a higher view of Jesus than Muslims do. For us, Jesus embodied God, and thus Jesus' life, death and resurrection carry sacred meaning. For Muslims, as I understand it, Jesus was also a man of God but he was a prophet whose importance is in his teachings.

I have no answers on how to resolve this tension, except to live with it and, where appropriate, to discuss it with Islamic people so we can learn from each other. Someday, probably in heaven, I will fully understand God's ways.

The Sunday after my visit to the mosque, Zafar Bangash spoke to the adult class at my church about his understanding of the U.S.-Afghanistan situation. His perspective was very different from that of the mainstream media and he challenged our thinking.

On Christmas day, I was surprised when Bangash came to my house to deliver a large decorated cake from his Islamic community to be shared with my Christian community. It was accompanied with these words: "On this blessed occasion of Christians, members of the Islamic Society of York Region extend to you and to your congregation a very happy and spiritually rewarding Holiday Season and a wonderful New Year. May the New Year bring joy and happiness in the life of every one of you and the lives of those whom you love."

-Gord Alton, Stouffville, Ont.