April 14, 2003
COMMENTARY:
Seeking peace after war
___By Velma Darbo Stevens
___Our Bible study class of mixed-age adults was winding down. As group leader, I asked for prayer requests. There were the usual requests for the sick. But then one woman burst out: "We need to pray about this war situation! I have a lot of concern about going to war, but whenever I say what I think, I get told I am being ‘unpatriotic’!"
___Her husband, a Vietnam veteran with a retired rank of major, agreed. "It really bothers me to be called unpatriotic," he said. "I’ll match patriotism with any of them!"
___Another participant brought up a different grievance. "Now that this is being a called a ‘holy war,’ criticism is seen as worse than unpatriotic. It’s called un-Christian!"
___ The discussion continued for several minutes, with other class members joining in. At last, we decided to talk more the next Sunday and bowed for the closing prayer.
| No one knows how much influence small groups of Christians can have if they are following the example of their Master. |
___ This discomfort about war with Iraq has been happening in many Christian circles. For one thing, this is a highly unusual situation. The United States has never gone to war without actual provocation, such as an attack on our nation or on one of our allies. The idea of a "pre-emptive strike" war is foreign to our people.
___Some Christians have little or no difficulty knowing where they stand with regard to this war. Those who are thoroughly pacifist are adamantly against all war. Those who consider this a holy war strongly support all the acts of our government. It is the rest of us, in the middle, who are especially troubled. And there are specific areas of concern.
___ One concern is what seems to be the eroding of civil rights and the rule of justice. People are "detained" without recourse to a lawyer or even notification of their families. "Profiling" of people with Arab or Muslim characteristics is becoming more common. People are urged to be on the alert for "suspicious" characters and report them to the authorities. Privacy is being sacrificed for security.
___ All these actions are being justified by government officials on the basis of the threat of international terrorism. The rationale seems to be that "the end justifies the means." But does it? I remember a sermon my pastor preached at the height of the Watergate scandal. His thesis was: "The end does not justify the means, because the means are the end in an incipient form." The lying and deceptions that were used to ensure the re-election of the president were then used to cover up the actions of those who were involved.
___ I believe the question now is whether the individual rights being violated in order to make war may be violated in order to make peace later on. Also, a pre-emptive war is being justified as a way of avoiding terrorist attacks by evil dictators. But might such a war become an end in itself in years to come?
___The "axis of evil" declaration regarding is very dangerous. I read an article in the Feb. 9 New York Times that suggested if there is an "axis of evil," there must also be an "axis of good." If evil is presented as absolute, good also is absolute. So, we may conclude that if it is unpatriotic to question government actions because the end justified the means, it is ungodly or un-Christian to question actions of a government defined as good and fighting evil.
___ However, there is no such thing as absolute evil or absolute good in human beings. Regimes may embody good or evil. But even a "good" government has its weaknesses and sins. Going to war against Iraq may be necessary. But in doing so, we need to remember Jimmy Carter’s warning. When he was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize, he said: "War is an evil. It may become necessary, but it will still be a necessary evil."
___ So, how do Christians address these attitudes—"the end justifies the means" and "this is a holy war"?
___ We have our example in our Leader, Jesus Christ. He refused to let the end justify the means. He was committed to inaugurate the kingdom of God. But he first had to face the questions of how during what we call the "temptation." He was tempted to become a "bread Messiah," to use sensational means to accomplish his purposes and to compromise with evil. He rejected all of these means. His end was spiritual, and he employed spiritual means to that end.
___ Also, Jesus could well have defined Rome as an "evil empire." He never did. He ministered to Roman soldiers just as he did to his countrymen. He even forgave the Roman soldiers who nailed him to the cross.
___We night have had an opportunity to warn our fellow citizens of the dangers in the attitudes expressed in the war talk. But the war has started. Is there anything we can do now? Must we bury our Christian principles under the necessity of supporting our troops and our nation? If we were called unpatriotic and un-Christian before the war started, will anyone listen now?
___ We have more than one loyalty. We are not only citizens of a great nation, the United States of America, but of a higher commonwealth, the kingdom of God. Our first loyalty belongs to God. We can support the work of our fighting men and women and still point out the dangers of some policies in our government. We can work to prevent hate crimes against people who superficially resemble our "enemies."
___There is another area of concern for us Christians as we go to war against Iraq with the expectation of victory. We are the ones Jesus called the "peacemakers." It takes a different set of skills and attitudes to make peace. Writing in Orion magazine (March-April 2003), Wendell Berry says making peace is different from making war. Making peace involves loving our enemies, forgiving the sins of the war, praying for peace and caring for the needs of people affected by the war. If, when the war is over, we declare peace without working for peace, all we do is declare a victory and sow the seeds for more warfare.
___ Christians have a good example from the aftermath of World War II. I was a college senior at the time of Pearl Harbor and was proudest of our nation when we inaugurated the Marshall Plan for economic recovery in Europe. Our allies joined with us to send aid to nations that had suffered the ravages of war, including not only the occupied countries but also Germany and Japan. The seeds of peace were so well sown by the Marshall Plan that in 50 years there have been no more world wars.
___ We Christians can be in the forefront of peacemaking efforts. We can call for justice and mercy upon the people of Iraq. We can extend a hand of friendship to nations that did not support our war effort. Thus we can be "children of our Father in heaven."
___ These are important issues, but our individual contributions may be so small. Few of us will be in positions of influence in government or community. Protests gain headlines but last so short a time. How are we to make a difference during and after the war?
___ Again, Jesus provides a model. He was willing to take small steps to advance the kingdom of God on Earth. He chose only a small group of followers. He recommended to them that they work in concentric circles to spread his message: To Jerusalem, to Samaria, to the very end of the planet Earth.
___ This is what is called "the ripple effect." Not many people can hurl a boulder across a pond and hit the other side. But a number of small stones, even pebbles, tossed into the water will spread ripples until the effect reaches the other side.
___ So, we Christians can do what we can where we can, believing in the "ripple effect" of what we do. No one knows how much influence small groups of Christians can have if they are following the example of their Master. It is our job to be faithful to the truth and trust God to multiply our efforts as we seek to extend the kingdom of God on Earth.
___ Velma Darbo Stevens is a freelance writer, author of six books and member of Broadway Baptist Church in Fort Worth, Texas.
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