Published: November 05, 2009
Op-Ed Contributor
Christian Leader Calls for Immediate Economic Sanctions on Iran
Southern Baptist Leader Richard Land says a Nuclear Iran Imperils Israel, the Middle East and the World's Peace
The Southern Baptist Convention's (SBC) Dr. Richard Land joined Jewish and Evangelical Christian leaders in calling for immediate economic sanctions to stop Iran from realizing their burgeoning desire to obtain a nuclear capability with which to militarily threaten peace in the Middle East.
The president of the SBC's Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission collaborated with Paul de Vries, president of the New York Divinity School and leader of the New York Evangelicals, and Joseph Potasnik, executive vice president of the New York Board of Rabbis, in issuing a statement Nov. 2 urging all governments to apply economic sanctions that would specifically target banks that work even indirectly with Iranian banks and firms or governments that export refined petroleum to Iran. They hope these steps will encourage diplomacy and the human rights efforts of Iranians living under the Ahmadinejad regime.
"We stand in solidarity with all people of goodwill both in the region and around the world in seeking to stop a nuclear Iran from grievously imperiling Israel, the Middle East and the world's peace," stated Land.
Furthermore, Land noted, "Jesus commanded His followers to be the salt of the earth and the light of the world [Matt. 5:13-16]," he said. "In seeking meaningful sanctions against the current Iranian regime, we are attempting to be salt in preserving Israel and the entire region from bloody conflict and terrible loss of life. We are seeking to be light by expressing our commitment to the intrinsic value and invaluable worth of all of our fellow human beings, both inside and outside Iran, whose lives and liberties are in peril by the dangerous rogue regime which presently oppresses the Iranian people."
Recent Public Opinion Strategies polls reveal that 72 percent of American voters polled believe it is "unlikely" that Iran will live up to the type of nuclear agreement being discussed, while only 27 percent think it is "likely" they will. A full 39 percent say it is "not at all likely" that Iran will abide by the type of nuclear agreement being discussed in Vienna.
Land is one of over 50 signers of a letter sent to Congress by Christian Leaders for a Nuclear-Free Iran last month, calling for urgent action to prevent Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon. The letter urged a total arms embargo and a cut off of exports of refined petroleum products, including gasoline, as a firm yet peaceful measure against the world's leading state sponsor of terrorism.
Letter to Congress
United States Congress U.S. Capitol
Washington, DC 20002
September 22, 2009
To the Congress of the United States:
We write to you today as Christian leaders who are deeply concerned about Iran obtaining nuclear weapons.
Iran, the world's leading state sponsor of terror, is funding Hezbollah and Hamas in Lebanon and Gaza, has sought to destabilize democratic and Western-leaning regimes throughout the Middle East, is currently arresting and detaining political opponents, actively persecutes its Christian citizens, has shot protestors in cold blood in the streets, and its president has denied the Holocaust and vowed to wipe Israel off the face of the earth. Iran is one of just eight nations on the U.S. State Department's list of "Countries of Particular Concern" for its "particularly severe violations of religious freedom." This designation subjects nations to actions, including economic sanctions, by the United States. For the world's most dangerous regime to obtain the world's most dangerous weapons is something that neither the United States nor the community of civilized nations can allow.
In recent years American intelligence and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) have had clear evidence that Iran's nuclear program includes a uranium enrichment program; high-explosives testing; and the design of a reentry vehicle which could have military nuclear applications.
The IAEA has recently found that Iran now has over 8,000 centrifuges that have produced enough low-enriched uranium to compile almost two nuclear weapons if it is enriched to weapons-grade levels. Furthermore, Iran has failed to answer the IAEA's questions regarding the military dimensions of its nuclear program.
Iran has rejected UN incentives to suspend enrichment, and has rejected UN Security Council Resolution 1696, which requires the immediate suspension of all enrichment-related activities and strict monitoring by the IAEA. Iran has rejected every effort of the United States, our European allies, the United Nations (UN), and the IAEA to cease its nuclear enrichment program and its provocative military displays, including the testing of intermediate-range missiles.
Speaking on his nuclear program and the threat of sanctions as recently as September 7, a defiant President Ahmadinejad told reporters that he "will never negotiate Iran's undeniable rights. … From our point of view, Iran's nuclear issue is over."
A nuclear-armed Iran is almost certain to initiate an arms race with other Middle Eastern and Arab nations who have reason to fear the religious, political and military ambitions of Iran's extremist leaders. As the world's leading state sponsor of international terror, we must assume Iran will sell or give a nuclear weapons to extremist groups that are declared and demonstrated enemies to America and her allies.
Iran has amply demonstrated its intransigence in the face of soft diplomacy, and it is past time the United States showed leadership in demonstrating to the Iranian government that there are serious and sustained consequences for the course of action on which it has embarked.
We urge your immediate action to address Iran's program to develop and deploy nuclear weapons by imposing economic sanctions on foreign companies that: export refined petroleum products, including gasoline, to Iran; help maintain Iran's domestic refining capacity; provide ships or shipping services to transport such products; underwrite those shipments; or finance or broker those shipments. The U.S. should also immediately initiate a boycott of any arms sales to Iran.
Signed,
Dr. Pat Robertson, President of Christian Broadcasting Network
Charles W. Colson, Founder, Prison Fellowship Ministries
Richard Land, Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission, Southern Baptist Convention
Wendy Wright, President, Concerned Women for America
Tom Minnery, Senior Vice President, Focus on the Family
Gary L. Bauer, President of American Values
Dr. Michael Youssef, President, Leading The WayNina Shea, Director, Center for Religious Freedom of the Hudson Institute
Dr. John Hagee, Cornerstone Church, San Antonio, Texas
Alfred S. Regnery, Publisher, The American Spectator
James Robison, Founder and President, LIFE Outreach International and Co-host, LIFE Today Television
Rev. Louis P. Sheldon, Chairman, Traditional Values Coalition
Jack Graham, Prestonwood Baptist Church, Plano, TX
Colin A. Hanna, President, President, Let Freedom Ring
Dr. Ronnie W. Floyd, Senior Pastor, The First Baptist Church of Springdale and The Church at Pinnacle Hills, AR
Dr. Randy Pope, Author
Dr. Mark A. Smith, President of Ohio Christian University
James M. Hutchens, President, The Jerusalem Connection International
Anthony Verdugo, Founder and Executive Director, Christian Family Coalition
Gail Buckley, President, Catholic Scripture Study International
Jack Rohrer, President, Virginia Faith and Freedom Coalition
Sadie Fields, President, Georgia Christian Alliance
Sandy Rios, President of Culture Campaign
Jerry Newcombe, D. Min., Senior Producer, Coral Ridge Ministries
Mark Williamson, President, Federal Intercessors
Patrick Hynes, Author, In Defense of the Religious Right
Bill Donohue, president, Catholic League for Religious and Civil Rights
Manuel Miranda, President, The Iraq Society
Chris Slattery, President, The Evergreen Association, Inc., New York City
Brian Burch, President, CatholicVote.org
Lisa Correnti, One Nation Under God
Deacon Edward J. Peitler, Ph.D., Director, Catholic Charities
Jim Martin, President, 60-Plus
Don C. Cashman, Chairman, Catholic Truth Coalition
John J. Jakubczyk, esq., Southwest Life and Law Center
Cortes E. DeRussy, Bronxville, NY, Former Board Chair Crisis Magazine
Dr. Derry Connolly, President, John Paul the Great Catholic University
Ronald J. Rychlak, University of Mississippi, School of Law
Richard Lee, President, There's Hope America
Chris Saxman, Member Virginia House of Delegates.
Michael Hall, Chairman, Golden Bear Insurance Company, Stockton, CA
Robert R. Reilly, Senior Fellow, American Foreign Policy Council
Dr. Benny Tate, Senior Pastor, Rock Springs Church, Milner, GA
Pastor Johnny Hunt, First Baptist Church of Woodstock, Woodstock, GA
Dr. James Merritt, Senior Pastor, Cross Pointe Church, Duluth, GA
Robert E. Reccord, President, Total Life Impact Ministries
C. Preston Noell III, President, Tradition, Family, Property, Inc.
Judge Paul Pressler, Southern Baptist Convention, Houston, Texas
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