A Christian University’s Reading of the Omar Khadr Cas.
Terrorist, Torture Victim, Child Soldier: Depending on who tells the story,
Omar Khadr can be seen in each of these labels. In September of 2008
Dennis Edney, Canadian Lawyer for Omar Khadr, told his version of
Omar’sstory to the student body at The King’s University College. This
address touched off an odyssey of student learning that challenged this
community to reconcile its scholarly identity with its Christian convictions.
Through its scholastic commitment to hear the story told from all perspectives
and its commitment to live out the lessons learned in a manner consistent with
their faith, the students at King’s discovered that a Christ-like reading of this
contemporary social and political issue would require them to move beyond the
narratives of both sentimentality and revenge. In its efforts to learn the story
that love tells, the King’s community has itself become a teller of the tale. By
staging public forums and organizing student rallies, King’s students have
become advocates for a charitable reading of this precedent-setting Canadian
case.
Arlette Zinck is the Faculty of Arts Dean and Associate Professor of English at The King’s
University College. Her areas of teaching and research include 16th
and 17th
century literature,
including Bunyan, Spenser, Milton, early women’s writing, spiritual autobiography, and epic
poetry. Her interest in the Omar Khadr case grew from hearing Dennis Edney speak at the
Invisible Dignity conference at King’s in fall 2008, and has grown from there.
Terrorist, Torture Victim, Child Soldier: Depending on who tells the story,
Omar Khadr can be seen in each of these labels. In September of 2008
Dennis Edney, Canadian Lawyer for Omar Khadr, told his version of
Omar’sstory to the student body at The King’s University College. This
address touched off an odyssey of student learning that challenged this
community to reconcile its scholarly identity with its Christian convictions.
Through its scholastic commitment to hear the story told from all perspectives
and its commitment to live out the lessons learned in a manner consistent with
their faith, the students at King’s discovered that a Christ-like reading of this
contemporary social and political issue would require them to move beyond the
narratives of both sentimentality and revenge. In its efforts to learn the story
that love tells, the King’s community has itself become a teller of the tale. By
staging public forums and organizing student rallies, King’s students have
become advocates for a charitable reading of this precedent-setting Canadian
case.
Arlette Zinck is the Faculty of Arts Dean and Associate Professor of English at The King’s
University College. Her areas of teaching and research include 16th
and 17th
century literature,
including Bunyan, Spenser, Milton, early women’s writing, spiritual autobiography, and epic
poetry. Her interest in the Omar Khadr case grew from hearing Dennis Edney speak at the
Invisible Dignity conference at King’s in fall 2008, and has grown from there.