Pacifism – What about…

Peace on Earth | Illustration by Jonathan Blundell
Peace on Earth | Illustration by Jonathan Blundell

Last night on Power Talk, we brought up the issue of ISIS and pacifism.

You can listen to the audio here:

The idea of pacifism has been on my mind a lot lately, even more so when thinking about ISIS and reading Farewell to Mars.

I don’t have all the answers to ISIS. I don’t have all the answers to Syria, Uganda, Ukraine and other hot spots around the world. I don’t know what will ultimately happen. But I also believe we as followers of Jesus should provide shelter from the storm rather than adding to it with a never-ending cycle of violence.

With this in mind, I was doing a little late night reading and researching and I came across two great ideas from Bruxy Cavey.

The first asks one of the most common questions I’ve heard when people ask me about pacifism, “What about Hitler?”

And I’ve never really had a solid answer. I usually refer to the story of theologian Dietrich Bonhoeffer, who wrestled with that very question and was allegedly involved in the assassination attempt on Hitler. The assassination didn’t go as planned and Hitler survived. Hitler then viewed his survival as a divine moment that assured him he was on the right path, following God’s will.

I also tend to talk about the priest and community in Bulgaria who stood up to the German soldiers and simply told them there would be no Jews leaving their city on a train. They stood together as a church and as a community, as one with the suffering and the Germans backed down.

But while these can be used as a powerful story against action, it doesn’t fully soothe the soul.

Perhaps Bruxy’s thoughts will add more:

And the other question I get asked constantly when talking about pacifism and gun control is, “What if someone breaks into your house and tries to attack you family?”

Again, I don’t have a solid answer, I just know that I would hope to lay down my life for my family if it comes to that vs killing for it.

Bruxy shares another story that pulled on every heart string tonight as I thought about this question again.

“What if a bad person broke into your house and threatened to kill your family – then in a moment of confusion left his gun right in front of you. Would you take the gun and shoot him?” There were various responses to this question. Finally one older gentleman replied, “no, I would not pick up the gun. I would fall to my knees and pray – because I believe that I would be tapping into a greater power on my knees than with the gun.”

Oh that I could have that kind of faith.

I serve a God who destroyed an entire Egyptian army with the parting of a sea. He destroyed a city with trumpets and clay pots. He made the sun stand still. He destroyed the cycle of violence by sending his son, Jesus to make foolish the ways of the world by laying down his life on a cross.

And he tells me, “Do not be afraid.”

Oh that I could have that kind of faith.

Ten reasons why I make a poor pacifist

pacifist demonstration
Pacifists Demonstration (03) - 17Jun08, Paris (France) | By Philippe Leroyer
  1. I still get a kick out of watching professional wrestling and will still “mark-out” from time to time during a great match
  2. I want to pummel anyone who hurts my wife or boys
  3. I often think it would be far easier to just bomb the heck out of evil dictators
  4. Truth be told – part of me was excited that we got Osama bin Laden
  5. I can have a horrible temper if I’m not careful
  6. I still want to flip off half the drivers around me on the road
  7. I can still get caught up in nationalism and military pride from time to time
  8. I still love movies where the good guy wins by destroying the bad guy
  9. I’ve never participated in an anti-war rally
  10. Forgiving my neighbors who sprayed paint on the back of my house is hard enough – and you want me to forgive my enemies?!

And two reasons I want to be a really good pacifist…

Tomorrow needs you today
My boys and my new Two Futures Project t-shirt | Photos by Jonathan Blundell

Where do you struggle with putting your ideals into practice?

I want to be a pacifist until…

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At the gym yesterday I finally finished watching Prince of Peace/God of War on my Zune.

The documentary shares the views of folks who subscribe to Christian pacifism and those who subscribe to the Christian Just War Theory. I think it became clear which side the producer/director came to side with, but I think both sides were presented fairly.

Towards the end of the movie there’s a great contrast. Is violence justified at any time? (starts at 52:10) Is there a need for violence over Love Your Enemy?

At 55:42 in the movie Dr. Victor Shepherd, Professor of Systematic and Historical Theology at Tyndale Seminary in Toronto, ON, says he wants to be a pacifist with all his heart until he hears of the horrors of the holocaust and the horrors of those being oppressed around the world. And I was agreeing that yeah, that makes sense. I think we should be on the side of the oppressed and the hurting. We should be willing to stand up for them.

But then at 56:41 Dr. Tony Campolo, Professor at Eastern University at St. Davids, PA, shares a story that almost brought me to tears on my exercise bike.

Despite Bulgaria’s alliance with Germany in World War II, the leader of the Orthodox church in Bulgaria comes walking up to a train station in the middle of the night, where countless numbers of Jews were waiting to be taken to the Auschwitz concentration camp. The leader of the church is followed by 300 members of his church.

He walks to the fenced in area where the Jews are being kept and the guards tell him, “Father you’re not allowed in there.” He laughs and brushes their machine guns aside as he walks into the gated area. The Jews gathered around him, waiting to see what the Christian leader in Bulgaria would say in their moment of despair.

As they cried and begged for help the leader of the Bulgarian church quoted a simple verse from Ruth.

Where you go I will go, and where you stay I will stay. Your people will be my people and your God my God. (Ruth 1:16)

The Jews cheered. The Christians outside the fenced in area cheered. The noise became so loud that it woke up everyone in the community and they came to the train station and heard the news. Quickly the hundreds grew to thousands.

The Nazi soldiers suddenly realized there was no way they could overcome everyone there. There was no way they’d be able to get away with carting off the Jews to the concentration camps. The train left a short time later with none of the Jews on board and never returned again. And after that point, no Jews from Bulgaria were taken to a concentration camp of any sort.

“Because the Church of Jesus Christ boldly stood up and said we’re not going to kill the enemy, we’re going to identify with the suffering and suffer with them. This is Jesus’ way.”

Take an hour and watch download the movie to your desktop for free.

What about you? Are you a pacifist? Are you a pacifist until…? Why or why not?

UPDATE: The site where this movie was originally hosted may not be working now. But the entire documentary is available on YouTube: