Chris and I stayed up way too late talking about pacifism and just war. Chris has this great character trait, where he refuses to sit on theory and is always trying to drill ideas into real life.
Chris can't just talk ethics. He lives it out.
We love that about Chris.
I wish I was more familiar with Obadiah back when Chris and I had our series of conversations about just war and pacifism. I'm still on the fence between pacifism and just war. And Obadiah doesn't take me off the fence. But it is relevant.
In Obadiah, the nation of Edom is being taken down because they stood idly by when Judah / the Israelites were being sacked. Sure, they did more than that, but their isolationism was a big part of the problem.
There's a bury-your-head-in-the-sand element in the pacifist camp, a keep-to-yourself-and-mind-your-own-business trend.
But God doesn't absolve bystanders of responsibility when evil happens. We are called to step in, to do something.
Now, whether that "something" involves violence or creativity is still debatable. (Yes, that was a pacifist barb) Pacifism and just war are still on the table. But seeing evil and doing nothing is off. That's part of the message of Obadiah.
And I wonder if this doesn't extend beyond issues of war and peace. I wonder if this doesn't apply more generally to evil in the world.
Living in South Florida, we drive past homeless folks all the time. I've become used to staring straight ahead, avoiding eye contact. What's happening?
There's a book called _War is a Force That Gives Us Meaning_ by Chris Hedges that I read about a year ago and thought of when I read this post. Here's a quote from it:
ReplyDelete"And yet, despite all this, I am not a pacifist. I respect and admire the qualities of professional soldiers. Without the determination and leadership of soldiers like Wesley K. Clark we might not have intervened in Kosovo or Bosnia. It was, in the end, a general, Ulysses S. Grant who saved the union. Even as I detest the pestilence that is war and fear its deadly addiction, even as I see it lead states and groups towards self-immolation, even as I concede that it is war that has left millions of dead and maimed across the planet, I, like most reporters in Sarajevo and Kosovo, desperately hoped for armed intervention. The poison that is war does not free us from the ethics of responsibility."
The last line especially stood out to be. It's a really interesting read if you ever get the chance. Great post, very thought-provoking :)
Well, some of us could say we notice them. We may not be able to look at them in the eye all the time because even though Jesus is the answer we still cant figure out what that means for our shoes....In a good day we may actually take the time to bring them some food and learn their name. In a normal day we may wonder how much they may be lying and if it matters that they are. In a bad day we harden our hearts hoping someone else will step out cuz we cant fix the problem. In a great day we find Grace.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the recommendation, Sara. It sounds like an interesting read.
ReplyDeleteI do think that we should distinguish between pacifism (a refusal to do violence) and passivism (a refusal to do anything). I mean, is violence the only way to resist evil?
While not a pacifist, I am a hater of faulty dilemmas. :)
Great thoughts, Anonymous. We have ups and downs as relates to our ability to show compassion to the hurting. And a wise person knows that God's acceptance of us doesn't rise and fall as we bounce up and down.
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