Using Children as 'God's Army'

By Kirsten A. Powers, The American Prospect. Posted June 12, 2006.

A new documentary chronicles a summer camp where children, as young as six, are trained to become devout Christian soldiers.

Gandhi once said if Christians lived according to their faith, there would be no Hindus left in India. He knew how powerful the fundamental tenets of Christianity -- fighting poverty, caring for the least among us, loving your enemies, eschewing materialism and embracing humility -- could be if everyone who called themselves a Christian truly followed them.

The new documentary, Jesus Camp, which chronicles a North Dakota summer camp where kids as young as 6 are taught to become dedicated Christian soldiers in "God's army," is an illustration of this sentiment in the extreme.