Theoretical Dilemma

[SpiritIsWilling]

Okay, I was on the plane back from Ireland today and I was thinking of 9/11 as I flew over New York City. A thought came into my head:

Say you were on a full plane that was being hijacked. You somehow got into the cockpit and were talking to the Islamic highjackers. They made a deal: if you denounce being a Catholic and Jesus and convert to Islam, they will land the plane safely and spare the lives of the passengers. If you don’t, they crash the plane into a building.

What would you chose in a situation like that? How would God feel if you stayed true to Him but caused hundreds to die? Or vice versa?

I want to make it clear that I AM NOT masterminding some terrorist attack. It’s just that when I thought of this I didn’t know what to pick. What would everyone else do?

 

[thistle]

In the first place they would be lying. Even if you denied your faith they would still crash the plane as they are fanatics.
Secondly by staying true to your faith the death of the passengers would not be on you at all. They would have been murdered by the hijackers, not you.
Third, the real test of faith is in a crisis. Do you trust in Jesus enough to stay true to him.

 

[carol_marie]

If the situation were, as you described, I would say whatever they wanted to hear to try to stop their plan of crashing the plane & possibly killing thousands (again ) and I wouldn’t mean a word of it. God knows my heart and motivation and He knows I would never truly deny Him - EVER - so I don’t think He’d hold it against me. If someone held a gun to my head & asked me to deny Christ or die, my answer might be different… but in your situation, I’d have the opportunity to save possibly thousands of lives and I think God would want me to do that.

 

[awfulthings9]

The only reason this scenario seems so horrifying is because it assumes we should run from death. That we should run from martyrdom, which is what this would be.

It assumes death is a tragedy.

Which it is, only if one is going to Hell. What better opportunity to turn some of the “lost” passengers over to Christ than as they are both contemplating their own impending death AND witnessesing your own rock-solid faith in the face of fear. Use the last moments of the plane fight to lead the fellow passengers in prayer. Pray to God to use this “theoretical dilemma” for good, bringing lost sheep home through your example and possibly winning the heart of a terrorist in the process. Let all who hear that message and possibly die as martyrs rather than indifferent “Christians”, lost “searchers”, complacent agnostics, and such. God uses all things for good, and as another poster mentioned, we should put our trust in Christ (not Islamic fanatics) and trust that Christ will use this evil act as a means of conversion.

As an earlier poster pointed out, the death of these passengers is not on your soul, but on the terrorists.

Or, one can go with option B. Renounce the one true faith. When the terrorist crash the plane anyway (which they would because, after all, did they really go through all that planning just to convert Joe-Smoe Catholic and end up in prison upon the “safe” landing???), all those lost souls that you could have helped save through your example might end up losing Heaven instead.

Of course I could be wrong.