* UMC beliefs about terrorism

The increase in terrorism from the 1970s through the present has caused fear and desperation among people everywhere, which creates a sense of hopelessness and instability and reveals the weakness in the present world system of international peace and security at home.

The image of God and the sacrifice of Christ bestow a worth and dignity that cannot be rightfully ignored or violated by any human institution or social movement. For this reason, we condemn all acts of terrorism, with no exception for the target or the source.
There is no significant difference between "state terrorism," as the "overkill" response of a state, and group terrorism, whether in the international arena or on the home front.
With these truths in mind, it is important that we, as United Methodist Christians:

	(1) examine critically the causes of terrorism, including national and international involvement;
	(2) firmly support the United Nations as an agency for conflict resolution and as a viable alternative to resorting to war and/or terrorism;
	(3) stand against terrorist acts in the forms of retaliation or capital punishment;
	(4) urge the President of the United States to repudiate violence and the killing and victimizing of innocent people;
	(5) oppose the use of indiscriminate military force to combat terrorism, especially where the use of such force results in casualties among noncombatant citizens who are not themselves perpetrators of terrorist acts, and urge support of United Nations Resolution 40-61, which addresses international cooperation regarding terrorist acts;
	(6) condemn the use of extremist tactics that resort to violence within our own domestic society as an expression of ideological differences, racism, and anti-Semitism;
	(7) direct the General Board of Church and Society to formulate a study to show how to deal with acts of terrorism that we face as a society and give direction as to how the church and annual conferences’ leaders and members can and should respond; and
	(8) continue to support the U.S. ban on assault rifles, as they are the weapons of choice by individuals and organizations implementing terrorist activities both at home and abroad.
	From The Book of Resolutions of The United Methodist Church - 2000. Resolution 317. Copyright 2000 by The United Methodist Publishing House. Used by permission.