Airline Security Procedures Under Heavy Protest

To say that many travelers are irritated, frustrated and flat-out offended over some of the new screening techniques at the nation’s airports would be a gross understatement. With Thanksgiving, the heaviest travel day of the year, upon us it should be interesting to see how passengers react when x-ray pictures are taken of their bodies, or the hands of total strangers begin touching them in almost every imaginable area of their bodies.

The current body scans take as little as 10 seconds. But people who decline this process must then submit to a full pat-down which takes much longer. This second option, if chosen, includes agency officials touching the entire clothed body including the genital areas of passengers. The fear is that the whole sordid scene will cause massive delays on Thanksgiving at dozens of major airports nationwide.

John Pistole, head of the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) has pledged to review security procedures in the wake of a public outcry but states that this must be somehow balanced by people's demand for passenger protection. On an interview on CNN's "State of the Union," Pistole stated, "Clearly it's invasive, it's not comfortable. But if we are to detect terrorists, who have again proven innovative and creative in their design and implementation of bombs that are going to blow up airplanes and kill people, then we have to do something that prevents that."

The head of the TSA is requesting that the flying public be patient with the current procedures despite the fact that many feel they are not only wrong, but also flawed and somewhat ineffective in what they are trying to achieve in the first place. But try telling that to the 100 people whose full body scans were somehow leaked onto the internet last week or the father of a 15-year old daughter whose body is being fully scanned, or worse - physically searched by a total stranger. I surely know what my reaction would be!

Privacy is a precious commodity and something Americans value highly, have fought for valiantly, and have come to expect despite more and more government intrusions into their personal lives. And this latest form of control is, without question, over the line and must somehow be adjusted or improved upon drastically. The future of the entire airline industry may well rest on its ability to do this job but in a far less offensive manner.

But as maddening as this new transportation fiasco has become, people should be far more concerned about what the Bible says about the constant inspection that takes place in the deepest parts of their lives every day – namely the ongoing inspection of their hearts and minds on a 24/7 basis.

The writer of Hebrews recorded a basic biblical truth in chapter four regarding the continual gaze of God into the hearts and souls of each and every living being. Verse twelve begins with the probing ability of the Scriptures themselves. That is then followed in verse 13 with a staggering reality – one that should be of even greater concern to everyone and far more than the current procedures for boarding an aircraft in a post-9/11 world.

Verse 12 begins, “For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart. And there is no creature hidden from His sight, but all things are naked and open to the eyes of Him to whom we must give account.”

The battle and debate for security screening methods for boarding airplanes in America has just begun. It will likely rage on for years to come as both sides dig in their heels and bolster stances through their arguments and strategies.

But the battle and method for defeating human sin was accomplished some 2,000 years ago on a cross, long before mankind even dreamed of flying the previously “Friendly Skies”. It was there that the Son of God paid the price for the sins of men. When all is said and done, it will not be any human inspection, by any method, for any reason that will matter. It will be all about the condition of the inner heart and whether or not the all-seeing eyes of God detects His Holy Spirit living there through personal faith in His Son Jesus Christ.

Hopefully, going through or even reading about the current airport inspection system might act as a reminder to some that there is a future day approaching when all men will stand fully exposed before God. Nothing they did wrong, or failed to do right, will slip past His supernatural screening process. All that will matter in that eternally significant moment is whether their hearts are exposed and shown to harbor unforgiven sin, or their souls are viewed as clean and cleared through the purifying effects of salvation in Christ as eluded to in 1 John 2:1:

“My little children, these things I write to you, so that you may not sin. And if anyone sins, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous.”

Bill Breckenridge