One of the great things about playing soccer is the number of people from foreign countries and cultures that you get to meet. Last night I went over to the Indoor Soccer Arena to play the final game of the season. Many of the teams were short on players, and I wound up playing on three different teams over the course of 2.5 hours. Awesome night.
One of the teams I played on was called FC Persia. It was called that for a good reason- the entire team was from Iran. In between games, I got to talking with them. They were super nice guys and were very open to talking about their country. I asked one of them, "What is your honest opinion of Ahdmedinijad (or however you spell his name)? He said, "He's a tyrant. The whole world HATES US because of him. Nobody likes him- he only keeps power by brute force. He kills his own citizens. It's terrible over there."
Once again, another one of my stereotypes was shattered. I realized again how people who live in a free society have no right to criticize people who live in totalitarian societies. Because of news stories and all that, I have been conditioned to think that the crazy Iranian president truly did represent his people. What I found last night was that the Iranian people don't support him, don't like him, and are very well aware of what people in the world think of them because of him. These people were not fanatics, they were not jihadists. They were not Holocaust-denying psychos bent on punishing the infidels. They were people with their own thoughts, own beliefs, and own criticisms of their country.
They couldn't believe how Americans were allowed to speak about their President. They couldn't believe that Americans could walk into a store and buy a gun- in Iran, gun ownership is illegal. I guess it's difficult to terrorize your own people when they can shoot back, right Ahdmedinijad? They loved many things about America- most of them said they were never going back to Iran. Several of them had family members and friends that had been imprisoned or killed by the government over there.
Walking away from that soccer game, I had a new view on Iran. Or, should I say, Iranians. They have my sympathy- I have never lived under a tyrant. I have never lived in a totalitarian society where the rights of people aren't respected. I have never felt the disapproval of the world like the Iranians have- all for things they have no control over. While I still believe Iran to be a dangerous country, I don't blame the Iranian people. They hate their government as much as we do.
Lastly, they were very interested in the fact that I was a minister. I told them I pastored a church. They said, "Hmm!" Then they invited me to be on their team. I plan to go back and play with them. Maybe they will want to hear about Jesus. Even if they don't, I look forward to hearing more about their side of the world.
One of the teams I played on was called FC Persia. It was called that for a good reason- the entire team was from Iran. In between games, I got to talking with them. They were super nice guys and were very open to talking about their country. I asked one of them, "What is your honest opinion of Ahdmedinijad (or however you spell his name)? He said, "He's a tyrant. The whole world HATES US because of him. Nobody likes him- he only keeps power by brute force. He kills his own citizens. It's terrible over there."
Once again, another one of my stereotypes was shattered. I realized again how people who live in a free society have no right to criticize people who live in totalitarian societies. Because of news stories and all that, I have been conditioned to think that the crazy Iranian president truly did represent his people. What I found last night was that the Iranian people don't support him, don't like him, and are very well aware of what people in the world think of them because of him. These people were not fanatics, they were not jihadists. They were not Holocaust-denying psychos bent on punishing the infidels. They were people with their own thoughts, own beliefs, and own criticisms of their country.
They couldn't believe how Americans were allowed to speak about their President. They couldn't believe that Americans could walk into a store and buy a gun- in Iran, gun ownership is illegal. I guess it's difficult to terrorize your own people when they can shoot back, right Ahdmedinijad? They loved many things about America- most of them said they were never going back to Iran. Several of them had family members and friends that had been imprisoned or killed by the government over there.
Walking away from that soccer game, I had a new view on Iran. Or, should I say, Iranians. They have my sympathy- I have never lived under a tyrant. I have never lived in a totalitarian society where the rights of people aren't respected. I have never felt the disapproval of the world like the Iranians have- all for things they have no control over. While I still believe Iran to be a dangerous country, I don't blame the Iranian people. They hate their government as much as we do.
Lastly, they were very interested in the fact that I was a minister. I told them I pastored a church. They said, "Hmm!" Then they invited me to be on their team. I plan to go back and play with them. Maybe they will want to hear about Jesus. Even if they don't, I look forward to hearing more about their side of the world.
