Violent Disavowel of Violence

Sometimes when you read a text things become far too clear for comfort. And a reasonable question surfaces before the clarity heads back underground.

Why was I, former Gideon, scripture carrier, evangelical church board member, writer of letters opposing abortion and gay marriage, upholder of "family values," decrier of "humanism,"…why was I at the same time a supporter of the cold war, silent about nuclear arms buildup, silent about MAD (mutually assured destruction), supporter of preemptive strikes (in the right circumstances), as in "just" war?

Here’s the text often restrictively referred to as the curse against the Pharisee’s.

Therefore I send you prophets, sages, and scribes, some of whom you will kill and crucify, and some you will flog in your synagogues and pursue from town to town, so that upon you may come all the righteous blood shed on earth, from the blood of righteous Abel to the blood of Zechariah son of Barachiah, whom you murdered between the sanctuary and the altar.

Why do I suppose I will not fall under the same condemnation just because I belong to a religion called Christianity. A religion that when confronted by its own close-mouthed support of war contorts to justify itself through a fallacious reading of Romans 13 about the authority of government. A religion like other religions that is based on the violent disavowal of violence. And so hides itself from it’s own violence–once again losing the key to knowledge.

How was it possible for me not to see my complicity, my solidarity with Abel’s murderers? Well perhaps, because I once thought like this parishioner: "The same suffering Messiah is also in the book of Revelation going to be the conquering Messiah. So we have the same God, who died for our sins, is also the God of justice. Just read Revelation, read Ezekiel, read Isaiah." And like this pastor: "Often in the Bible, God sanctions and even encourages war and invasion."

Technorati Tags: Christianity, Religion, Just war, Violence