Finding the Church's Voice on the Violence of War

I’ve now lived long enough to see our nation engulfed in two protracted wars in which hundreds of thousands lost their lives. While the two wars -- Vietnam and Iraq -- have significant differences, they share these things in common: both were justified by clear deceptions, massive numbers of people died who otherwise would have lived, and many more had their lives thoroughly disrupted. In both situations the church either stayed substantially silent or waved the flag as if it had forgotten its special mission.

This weekend I’ll attend a Peace Conference in North Carolina sponsored by the Southeast Jurisdiction of the Methodist Church. I’ll drive some 600 miles to be a part of it because I want to add my “amen” to the effort.

I know many heartfelt Christians will disagree with me on this, but it’s my impression from careful reading of scripture that of all the betrayals of God’s intentions the one most likely to bring a tear to God’s eye is the violence we practice against each other. In Genesis it is central to the way we strayed from the beauty of creation and the primary reason for God’s overwhelming disappointment in the story of Noah and the flood. “I have determined to make an end of all flesh,” God tells Noah, “for the earth is filled with violence because of them.”

Many would argue that violence perpetrated by governments is essentially different than that of individuals. I would say yes; it is worse. If the church will not join God in deploring this violence there’s little chance anyone will.

So it is a sign of hope that at least one corner of one of our major denominations is holding a conference to address a question many individual Christians have asked: why isn’t the church’s voice more audible on this subject? By no means am I suggesting nothing is being done or that I’m the only one who cares about this issue. In September I attended a rally which brought many believers together at a local church to celebrate the International Day of Peace. In fact, I believe it’s because a ground swell of individual Christians have rejected our government turning so quickly to war as an answer to political conflict that the institutional church is now facing up to the issue. Whatever the motivation, I’m pleased to see it happening.

The conference will feature a series of workshops on practical questions facing clergy, lay Christians and congregations on the local level, such as Preaching on Difficult Issues, the Local Church as Peace Advocate, and Building Communities of Nonviolence, as well as presentations on international action involving peace through the United Nations, peace in Palestine and how the church played a crucial role in South Africa’s peace accord.

Dr. Peter Storey will launch the program with a conference opening message titled Finding the Church’s Voice in a Violent World. I hope it happens soon. I don’t feel it’s hyperbole to say if the church is unwilling to cry “peace” loud enough to shake the halls of congress and rattle all the news networks’ talking heads, then we should simply admit we haven’t the courage to champion God’s values. We could close the doors, reconvene at a local sports bar and get ready for a real religious event like the Super Bowl.