a defense of christian pacifism

8/13/2019 A Defense of Christian Pacifism

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~ A DEFENSE OF CHRISTIAN PACIFISM ~

A RESPONSE TO

FATHER JOSIAH TRENHAMS CRITICISM

OF THE PACIFIST POSITION

ByGEBRE MENFES KIDUS

Introduction

In defending Christian pacifism, I have sometimes been accused (and I

believe unfairly so) of being disrespectful to Orthodox Priests who

disagree with this philosophy. So I want to make it clear at the outset

that I honor Father Josiah Trenham as an Orthodox Christian Priest, and

therefore I will do my best to present this refutation in a respectful

Christian manner. Sometimes bluntness is erroneously mistaken for

rudeness, and I hope that those who read and hear this message will

not fall prey to such a misunderstanding. Priests are fallible human

beings with fallible human opinions. And as with all fallible human

opinions, the personal views of Priests are also susceptible to

examination and rebuttal. My own opinions certainly warrant equal

scrutiny, and therefore I submit them to the correction and reproof of

Orthodox Christian doctrine.

I would also like to say that while I have profound disagreement with

Father Josiah on this particular topic, I nevertheless appreciate his solid

Orthodox teachings on many other subjects. Most of all, I truly

appreciate his Orthodox Christian commitment to opposing the evil of

abortion and affirming the life and dignity of the unborn child. I wish

that more Orthodox Priests were as outspoken on this issue as he is.

Part I: Defining Pacifism and Dispelling a False Dichotomy

Father Josiahs talk is titled:Jesus: PeacemakerNot Pacifist

To begin with, its very important that we define the meaning of

pacifism. There are actually various degrees and interpretations of


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pacifism. Websters Dictionary defines pacifism as the belief that it is

wrong to use war or violence to settle disputes; opposition to war or

violence as a means of settling disputes; specifically a refusal to bear

arms on moral or religious grounds; 2) an attitude or policy of

nonresistance

There are many degrees of pacifism and various interpretations of its

definition and application. So I will only speak for my own view of

pacifism, which I define as the Christian imperative to actively oppose

injustice and evil always and only with nonviolent principles and

methods.The power of Christian pacifism derives from the fact that it

is Christian. The Christian pacifist rejects the violent methods of the

god of this world,i.e. Satan (II Corinthians 4:4) and relies upon thespiritual weapons issued to us by God Himself. As St. Paul writes in

Ephesians 6 :

Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his

might. Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand

against the wiles of the devil. For we wrestle not against flesh and

blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of

the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.Wherefore take unto you the whole armor of God, that you may be able

to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand. Stand

therefore, having your loins girded with truth, and having on the

breastplate of righteousness; And your feet shod with the preparation

of the gospel of peace; Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith

ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked. And take the

helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of

God: Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, andwatching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all

saints. [Ephesians 6:10-18]

You see, Christian pacifism is not a feckless idealism that imagines that

injustice and evil will vanish if we simply wish it away. The Christian


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pacifist is a soldier in this spiritual war, and he confronts evil with the

militancy of prayer, love, and sacrificial nonviolent intervention.

So the fundamental problem with Father Josiahs argument is that his

entire premise is based upon a straw man, a gross mischaracterization

of the Christian pacifist position. Father Josiah presents pacifism as

synonymous with apathy and cowardice. But there was certainly

nothing apathetic or cowardly about the nonviolent sacrificial actions of

Our Lord Jesus Christ. And there was nothing apathetic or cowardly

about the pacifism of Mahatma Gandhi and Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

men who gave their very lives in the nonviolent struggle to confront

and redress the great social injustices of their time. Father Josiah has

made the same mistake that most people make when they reject

pacifism. He has confused Christian pacifism with a mentality of

apathetic indifference to sin, evil, injustice and oppression. And this is a

very unfortunate misconception, a misconception that I hope to correct

with this humble and sincere response.

First let me address the title of Father Josiahs talk: Jesus: Peacemaker

not Pacifist.The title is problematic because it presents a false

dichotomy between pacifism and peacemaking. Pacifism is the

unconditional commitment to nonviolence, and one cannot violently

make peace. Violence can no more establish peace than theft can

establish honesty. The simple fact is that it is impossible to make peace

with somebody that you kill.

Its fine to philosophize and theorize about strong armies protecting

national peace. But the grim realities of such militant protection

reveal that the ostensible peace which violence provides is really no

peace at all. As Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. said, True peace is not theabsence of tension but the presence of justice.And nowhere is this

truth more tragically evident than in the United States of America. We

have the strongest military in the world, but it does nothing more than

protect a superficial peace that obfuscates the violence of hunger,

homelessness, poverty and abortion. Strong armies dont provide and


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protect the peace; they only preserve a faade of peace that makes the

masses believe that their own manufactured violence is law and

order.

Part II: A Point by Point Rebuttal

Now, lets examine some of Father Josiahs statements point by point:

1.Father Josiah asks, Is there any spirit today that is unmolested by

this nonsense of extreme pacifism?

With all due respect, Im not sure what world Father Josiah is living in.

When I look at our world, I see rampant violence and discord

everywhere. The spirit of warfare, division, sin, and oppressionpermeates the globe. Rather than extreme pacifism, I see extreme

violence. In fact, violence is so prevalent that even the unborn child in

the womb is not safe. The one realm of earthly existence where peace

should be certainthe mothers womb has become perhaps the least

safe place of all. So to answer Father Josiahs question yes, the evil

spirit of violence is all too prevalent and all too pervasive. I pray for the

Spirit of pacifism to come quickly. But the Holy Spirit is not a molester;

His peace is a choice that must be volitionally embraced.

2.Father Josiah says, We live in a plague of pacifism.

Now, as I stated at the outset, Im sure Father Josiah really means to

say that we live in plague of cowardice. Surely he does not really mean

that we live in a world plagued with peace and nonviolence. And surely

he does not view peace as a plague.But again I point out that he is

erroneously confusing Christian pacifism with apathetic indifference toinjustice and evil. The reality is that we dont live in a plague of

pacifism; we live in a world plagued with violence.

He goes on to say, The Church has been plagued throughout her

history with a false spirit of pacifism.


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That is a very troubling statement, because the Church honors and

venerates countless Saints who submitted themselves to torture and

martyrdom without violently defending themselves or others. Surely

these Saints were not led by a false spirit. Surely they are not to be

condemned as cowards because they refused to injure or slay their

oppressors. God forbid that we should insinuate such a thing!

3.Father Josiah then states, The pacifist believes that Christ conquered

evil by submitting to evil on its own terms.

This may be the most egregious misrepresentation of Christian pacifism

that Ive ever heard. Christian pacifism is notapathetic and passive

acceptance of evil. Our Lords sacrificial and atoning death on the Crosswas the antithesis of submission to evil on its own terms. In fact, Christ

confronted evil on Histerms, not the devils.

Our Lord refused to submit to the ideology of violence which dictates

the retributive principle of measure for measure. He refused to meet

hate with hate. He refused to confound the calumniators with calumny.

He refused to fight political powers with political machinations. He

refused to destroy the lives of others in order to preserve His own. Byrefusing to bow to evil, by refusing to acquiesce with evil, and by

refusing to combat evil with the methods of evil, Our Lord provided

salvation to all men and redeemed the entire world.

The Christian pacifist simply seeks to follow Our Lords example to the

best of our ability. The pacifist confronts evil directly and says: I refuse

to allow you to dictate the terms of engagement. Do to me what you

will, but I will not respond in kind. I will meet your violence with peace

and your hate with love. I will resist your temporal evil with the

weapons of eternal good. And even as you seek to destroy my life, I will

seek to win your soul.

As St. John Chrysostom said, Our warfare is to make the dying live, not

to make the living die.


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4.Father Josiah goes on to say: The pacifist believes that Christs

mandate to turn the other cheek means not resisting evil and allowing

evil to do whatever it wants.

Once again, this statement could not be further from the truth. Forexample, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. did not believe in allowing evil to

do whatever it wanted. Instead, Dr. King was compelled by the

teachings and example of Christ to confront evil head on and declare,

Thou shall not! He preached, marched, agitated, and offered up his

very life in resisting evil. But he resisted evil nonviolently, lovingly, and

only with the weapons and power of the Holy Spirit. And his pacifist

resistance not only helped to change unjust laws, but it also changed

hearts and minds.

5.Father Josiah emphatically declares: Unfortunately today, our

Orthodox Churches are filled with pacifists. Filled!

In the six years since I have been a baptized Orthodox Christian, I have

yet to meet another Orthodox Christian pacifist face to face. I have over

3,000 Facebook friends, most of whom are Orthodox Christians, and I

would estimate that less than 5% of them are avowed pacifists. So I amsimply baffled by Father Josiahs statement here. I would love for him

to tell me where these Orthodox Churches are that are filled with

pacifists. I should like to send a letter of gratitude and encouragement

to their priests and parishioners. For I continue to search for a solidarity

of nonviolent Christian consciousness within my beloved Orthodox

community.

6.Father Josiah also takes a thinly veiled swipe at the Orthodox PeaceFellowship, a wonderful ministry that embraces and promotes the

Orthodox patristic concept of the consistent Life ethic. He remarks,

We have this or that so-called Peace Fellowship claiming to represent

the Church, censuring the godly use of force at all.


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This statement is both unfair and inaccurate. It is unfair because it

insinuates that the Orthodox Peace Fellowshipis not really a fellowship

of peace, but only a so-called peace fellowship. I have no idea why

Father Josiah feels the need to malign and impugn the Orthodox Peace

Fellowshipin this manner. And his statement is inaccurate because as I

have already repeatedly statedand will continue to reiterate

throughout this refutationChristian pacifism does not reject the godly

use of force, but instead relies on the use of godlyforce. And the godly

force that has been sanctioned for us as Christians is not the carnal

force of violence, destruction, and killing. Godly force most certainly

involves tremendous struggle, suffering, and self-sacrificebut it does

not involve the deliberate destruction of human beings created in

Gods holy image. As the angel declared to Zechariah the Prophet, Not

by might nor by power, but by my Spirit declares the Lord God

Almighty. [Zechariah 4:6]

7.Father Josiah also invokes the examples of Old Testament Saints as

justification for the use of violence today. This is a common argument

levied against the Christian pacifist. People will argue that since David

killed Goliath, since the Israelites slaughtered pagan nations, and sinceElijah slew the prophets of Baal, then violence is also acceptable for the

Christian as well.

But there are some serious fallacies with this argument. For example, if

the violent actions of Old Testament Saints is our model for behavior

today, then why not take up arms and slaughter abortionists? Certainly

we could save countless innocent unborn lives if we did so. Why not

burn witches at the stake and kill the false prophets of our own day and

time? If the militancy of the Old Testament Saints is our standard, then

we are most certainly failing miserably in our Christian duty.

But of course the reality is that as Christians our standard and model of

behavior is Christ Himself. We must ask how Our Lord responded to

injustice and evil. We must ask how Our Lord responded to violence


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and oppression. In the debate over to kill or not to kill, the paramount

question for the Christian is simply this: When Christand His disciples

walked upon the earth, facing violent opposition and witnessing

tremendous oppression, did they respond with violence and killing?

And the clear and simple answer is a resounding and unequivocal no!

We must understand that Christ came to fulfill the law and the

prophets. (St. Matthew 5:17) St. Paul writes that the law of the Spirit of

life in Christ Jesus has made us free from the law of sin and death.

(Romans 8:2) Just as we no longer need to offer animal sacrifices to

atone for our sins, likewise we no longer need to injure and kill. Christ

has liberated us from reliance upon weapons of fleshly destruction. He

has commissioned us with spiritual weapons that are imbued witheternal power. (Ephesians 6) Our souls are redeemed by Him, and

therefore we do not need to preserve our earthly lives by any means

necessary. No weapon formed against us shall prosper. (Isaiah 54:17)

Though our bodies may be destroyed, nothing can destroy our souls.

The Christian is not enslaved to the antiquated law of an eye for an

eye. In St. John 13:34 Our Lord gives His disciples a new

commandment: A new command I give you, that you love one another,as I have loved you.Christ is our Commander in Chief, and His orders

are clear:

Put away your sword. [St. Matthew 26:52]

Do not repay evil with evil.[I Peter 3:9]

Turn the other cheek. [St. Matthew 5:39]

Love your enemies and bless those that persecute you. [St. Luke

6:28]

8.Father Josiah says, Lots of Christians today see no place for the use

of firmness or force in any sphere of life at all. Many say that you should

never even spank your own children.


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I actually agree with Father Josiahs statement here. There are many

professing Christians today who unfortunately fail to stand up to evil,

who fail to defend Christian truth, and who fail to discipline their

children. But such failures are in no way reflective or indicative of the

Christian pacifist position. The greatest Christian pacifist of the 20th

centuryDr. Martin Luther King, Jr.was a man who opposed evil,

defended the Gospel, and by most accounts certainly disciplined his

own children.

9.Father Josiah brings up the tragic situation of Christian persecution in

Syria. He says that according pacifists, evidently the only appropriate

response when violently attacked by Muslim Jihadis is to run, hide, or

die.

I will respond to this by first saying that there are never any easy

answers in such horrific situations. Whether one espouses pacifism or

some form of just war doctrine, the reality is that its all theory until

we are actually confronted with such evil ourselves. Its easy to

advocate violent self-defense, and its easy to say turn the other

cheek. But the nature of warfare and violence is chaotic, irrational,

and unpredictable. All we can do is prayerfully prepare daily for the

strength, courage, and grace to respond to violent aggression in the

most Christian way possible.

But I must point out that while our Christian brothers and sisters are

being persecuted in Syria, Egypt, and other parts of the world, we also

have brothers and sisters who are being slaughtered by the thousands,

daily, right here in America. There is no greater or more unjust violence

anywhere in the world than the murder of unborn innocents thatoccurs with impunity in our own nation. So I find it oddly inconsistent

when Christians argue for justifiable violence but refuse to take up

arms to defend the most defenseless members of the human race. To

be quite blunt, I cant think of anything more gutless or cowardly than

demanding the right to violently defend oneself while refusing to


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violently defend innocent unborn children. Of course, as a Christian

pacifist, I strongly condemn the use of violence in the Pro-Life cause. I

am simply pointing out what I perceive to be a glaring inconsistency

and gross hypocrisy on the part of those who rationalize violence for

themselves but eschew violence in defense of the unborn.

When confronted with terrorism, aggression, and evil, Our Lord Jesus

Christ did not run or hide. But He did die. And He did rise again. When

confronted with terrorism, aggression, and evil, Dr. Martin Luther King,

Jr. did not run or hide. But he did die. And as he eloquently stated,

Truth crushed to earth will rise again.When confronted with the

terrorism, aggression, and evil of legalized abortion, there are countless

Pro-Life activists who do not run and hide. They intervene nonviolentlyto reach out to pregnant women in distress and to give voice to

voiceless unborn children. They endure insult and injury, curses and

calumnies, and oftentimes jail or imprisonment.

So once again I will respectfully point out that Father Josiah has

misrepresented the Christian pacifist position. We do not run; we do

not hide; but we do indeed pray for the divine strength to meet hate

with love, violence with peace, and death with dignity and grace. This isundoubtedly much easier said than done, but there is nothing easy or

safe about the Cross.

10. Father Josiah states: In the home, in the Church, and in the state

there is a consistent drumbeat of nonresistance in the cloak of

Christianity.

I think Ive been quite clear by now that Christian pacifism is not

synonymous with nonresistance. We always resist evil and injustice, but

we do so only with nonviolent Christian methods.

Let me also note that while the godless spirit of apathetic nonresistance

may be infiltrating the home and the Church, the godless spirit of

violence and killing permeates the state. From perpetual wars, to


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tremendous violence and force. And in my rage I cursed the man and

raised my fist to hit him again. He ran away like a frightened rabbit. The

police came. I was very fortunate that I wasnt arrested. I felt

tremendous guilt and shame. I had reacted violently, in anger, and

there was nothing Christian about my actions.

You see, it happened in an instant. Violence is not something that can

be predictably tamed or methodically controlled. The very nature of

violence is contrary to reason and order. I am fortunate that the man

did not have a gun, because he may have shot me. And if I had been

someone who believed in carrying a gun myself, then I may have shot

him.

So its easy for Father Josiah to lay out an ideal scenario for how such

aggression should be dealt with. But these scenarios rarely jibe with

reality. The Pro-Life victim Father Josiah mentions simply responded to

his assailant by saying, There is forgiveness in Jesus. And in that

particular response he demonstrated the power, truth, and nonviolent

resolve of the Christian pacifist. I wish that I had been able to respond

that way many years ago when I acted quite differently; but at the time

I allowed my passions to overcome my Christian convictions. Violencealways arises from the passions. And as Orthodox Christians we must

constantly strive to subdue the passions so that our souls can

experience the eternal love of God.

During my years as a missionary to the unborn and their mothers, I

experienced great failure and great success. I saw the depths of

darkness, depravity, and despair; but I also saw many lives saved and

many souls come to Christ. And as I reflect upon those difficult and

tumultuous years of Pro-Life activism, I realize that the most powerful

impact I had was when I was firm but humble, strong but loving,

resilient but peaceful. Whenever I allowed my passions to dictate my

words and actions, then I merely gave into the demonic spirit that was

present. But when I remained prayerful, with my mind and heart


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fixated on eternal realities, then my efforts always had a much greater

impact.

12.Father Josiah states: The courageous and lawful use of force and

discipline in appropriate defense of the innocent and their property, in

parenting by what Solomon calls the rod, the use of pastoral discipline

in the Church and the vigilant guarding of the Mysteries from those who

are not canonically prepared to receive them, and the use in the military

and law enforcement of the justifiable use of force and even warfare is

absolutely biblical and Christian and loving.

The problem here is that Father Josiah intertwines legitimacy with

illegitimacy. He links truth with error, although Im sure he does sounintentionally. Once again I have to point out that the Christian

pacifist is not opposed to force or discipline. As always, the issue is the

typeof force and the methodof discipline.

As a Christian pacifist I strive to defend the innocent, I strive to

discipline my children, and I do my part in a lay capacity to affirm and

protect the Sacramental Mysteries of the Orthodox Church. And I

endeavor to do these things with vigilant nonviolence. In our home, wechoose to spank our children, and some may disagree with that. But I

find it absurd to equate spanking ones children with the horrific

violence that occurs in acts of war. I spank my children so that they may

grow and develop as people and as Christians. That is discipline. But

warfare destroys the development of lives and negates the opportunity

for the killed to become Christians. War is not a Christiandiscipline; it is

in my opinion a Christianheresy. It is easy to proclaim military violence

as disciplinary and loving until you or your loved ones are on the wrongend of military violence. Then you would understand that there is

nothing loving or Christian about it.

13.Father Josiah says, The pacifistic spirit does not equal a peaceful

spirit.


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Here is where I would like to take the opportunity to wholeheartedly

agree with Father Josiah. It is quite possible for one to be intellectually

and philosophically wed to nonviolence while remaining completely

devoid of the authentic peace of Christ. This is why I always qualify my

pacifism as Christianpacifism. Apart from Our Lord Jesus Christthe

Prince of Peacethere will never be truepeace. Even if wars ceased,

poverty was eradicated, and abortion was outlawed, we still would not

have peace apart from Christ Himself. We would perhaps have a world

less violent (which would be wonderful), but we wouldnt necessarily

have a peaceful world. We must never confuse the absence of violence

with the presence of peace. But the absence of violence is certainly a

wonderful starting point.

So I agree that not only is a Christ-less pacifist philosophy not

synonymous with peace, but it is often quite antithetical to peace.

Christian pacifism seeks to refrainfromviolence while actively working

forpeace. It is not rational to work for peace through violent methods,

and it is not Christian to refrain from violence without actively laboring

for justice and peace.

14.Father Josiah states: These things go together: a soft heart, a great

thirst for justice, and a courageous willingness to see it done.

Here again, I am in complete agreement with him. The heart that is

molded by Christ is a soft but resilient heart, and gentle but determined

heart, a loving and active heart. The disciples of Christ were courageous

in their confrontation of paganism, idolatry, injustice and evil. And their

courage was not the absence of fear but the willingness to preach the

Gospel in spite of their fear. They willed to see the Gospel preached toall nations, and their witness cost them their lives. They were

courageous, active, and willing but they were always nonviolent.

15.Father Josiah says: Christ has brought peace to us through His

Cross. But we only have this peace in our hearts after Jesus uses His


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strength to subdue us. He uses His firmness. His peace comes to us

when we bow to Him as Lord and realize that He is the rightful governor

of our lives and not we ourselves. We see peace and strength

together.

Amen, amen, and amen. Here is another point upon which I agree with

Father Josiah. Our Orthodox theology teaches us that God honors our

free will while also intervening to save us. This is one of the many holy

paradoxes of our Christian Faith. We are autonomous human beings

with the volitional capacity to choose good or evil, right or wrong, God

or ourselves. And yet God works through His Holy Spirit to get our

attention, to humble our arrogance, and to break through our

hardened and obstinate hearts. But the choice is always ultimately upto us.

And this only serves to affirm the Christian pacifist position. We are not

God. We are not the Holy Spirit. We have no right to force others to

comply and convert. Our duty is to pray, preach, love, and serve. Our

duty is simply to be ambassadors for Christ. (II Corinthians 2:50) We

compel with truthful witness and loving service; we dont coerce with

violence, manipulation, or militarism.

Peace and strength do indeed go together. In fact, as Christian pacifists

we see no separation or dichotomy between peace and strength. Peace

is strength, and this truth is most powerfully proven by the Cross of

Christ.

16.Father Josiah states: The Lord also established peace between us

between man and man. He brought all men into a unity in Himself. He

broke down the barrier of the dividing wall. He established His reign

within us, which we call His Kingdom. And the hallmark of that reign

within the Christian heart is peace And our mission as Christians is to

take this peace out into the world.


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Yes, this is great Christian truthto take the peace of the Gospel into

all the world! And how can we bring peace while bringing the violence

of bloodshed, death, and destruction? How can we prove that the

peace of Christ reigns in our hearts if we engage the world with the

methods of the world, fighting carnal powers with carnal weapons?

St. Paul writes: Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of

Gods mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing

to Godthis is your true and proper worship. Do not conform to the

pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.

Then you will be able to test and approve what Gods will ishis good,

pleasing and perfect will. [Romans 12:1-2]

The apostle is clear: we must offer our own bodies as living sacrifices,

not sacrifice the lives of others. Self-sacrifice is the true and proper

worshipthe antithesis of demonic paganism which exalts self-interest

at the expense of the interests of others.

The apostle is clear: we are not to be conformed to the pattern of this

world, which extols violence as an acceptable method of conflict

resolution.

The apostle is clear: we must be transformed by the renewing of our

minds, which means abandoning the fleshly mindset of violent self-

justification.

Christ indeed died for all men, for all the world, and therefore we are

reconciledman to God, and man to man. Therefore our enemies are

merely our lost brethren who are suffering from lack of the knowledge

of salvation. Our mission is to rescue their souls with the hope of the

Gospel, not to negate their lives with weapons of destruction.

The Christian Faith is the one authentic hope for human brotherhood

and unity. And how can we achieve this brotherhood and unity if we

pervert the Gospel and kill in Christs name?


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17.Father Josiah says: In His own human life Christ constantly resisted

evil men in stern word and deed.

Yes, of course He did. And we must follow Our Lords example in being

equally stern in word and deed. But there is a grave difference betweenbeing sternand being violent. The disciples were certainly stern in word

and deed, but they did not kill. And we have no divine dispensation to

live and act any differently than the apostles. We are called to be

fishers of men (St. Matthew 4:19), and we cannot win souls for the

Kingdom if we cut down the lives to whom those souls belong.

18.Father Josiah invokes Christs participationin the feast of Hanukah

as evidence that He condoned violence, since Hanukah is thecelebration of the Maccabees violent resistance to Greek polytheism

and the imposition of Greek pagan life.

Well, by that logic, Jesus also condoned drunkenness and prostitution

since He ate and drank with prostitutes and drunkards. It is quite a

stretch to infer from Our Lords company with soldiers, prostitutes, tax

collectors, drunkards, and thieves that He condoned and blessed such

activities. Jesus was a Jew, and therefore He participated in Jewishceremonies and festivals. And yet as King of the Jews and Lord of all

creation, Christ fulfilled all Old Testament laws, commandments, and

customs.

Everything in the Old Testament is to be understood in the light of

Christs eternal Kingdom which has begun through the establishment of

His Church. We are now citizens of heaven (Philippians 3:20), and Our

Lord has taught us to pray: Thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on

earth as it is in heaven. [St. Matthew 6:10] No more animal sacrifices.

No more stoning of adulterers. No more putting disobedient children to

death. No more slaughtering ones enemy. No more violence and

bloodshed. No more! No more! The blood of Christ has put an end to it!

As He proclaimed with His dying breath, It is finished! [St. John 19:30]


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19.Father Josiah says, The Lords acquiescence at the end of His

ministry to evil men and to devils was the most brilliant of all military

strategies. He performed the ultimate Trojan horse. He allowed them to

crucify Him so that He could crucify the power of sin and death

I have heard this argument countless times, that Christs ostensible

nonviolence was merely a situational and pragmatic strategy that is not

universally applicable for Christians today. But nothing could be further

from the truth. If Our Lords life, teachings, and atonement were

merely pragmatic actions, then why did His disciples emulate His

example? Why is the New Testament full of instructions and teachings

about how to take up our cross, deny ourselves, forgive our enemies,

and renounce vengeance? And why does the last 2,000 years of humanhistory bear witness to the fact that victories won with the

implementation of love, truth, and nonviolence are much greater and

far more lasting than temporal victories gained through violence and

bloodshed?

If Christs entire life, ministry, and atonementwere merely temporary

mortal strategies to be jettisoned upon His death, then surely He would

have let His disciples know. Surely the omnipotent, omniscient,omnipresent and Incarnate God would have left His followers clear

instructions why we shouldnotabide by His nonviolent example. Surely

He would have spoken to the apostles through His Holy Spirit and let it

be known that His crucifixion was not to be embraced as an example

for us to follow. Surely the New Testament would be full of instructions

on how to violently defend ones nation, ones family, and oneself. But

this is not what we read. This is not the witness of the Word of God.

Instead, the entire weight of the Gospels and New Testament epistlesleads us in the total and unequivocal path of Christ. We are called to

preach, to baptize, to heal, to serve, to take up our crossand if need

beto die for others.


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Father Josiah is mistaken when he states that Jesus acquiesced with evil

at the end of His ministry. Our Lord never acquiesced with evil, and I

believe that its blasphemous to assert such a thing. In sacrificing His

life on the Cross, Our Lord opposed evil in the strongest way possible.

His death was not a relinquishment of righteousness, it was not a

concession to injustice, it was by no means an acceptance or

acquiescence to the demands of hell. Instead, it was the militant,

nonviolent, and spiritual defeat of sin and evil. I feel confident that

Father Josiah and I actually agree on this point, but I find problems with

his statement that Jesus acquiesced to evil men and to devils at the

end of His ministry.Perhaps Father simply misspoke.

20.Father Josiah states: The Prince of Peace is a warrior, and He

establishes His peace within us by leading us in spiritual battle, by

animating His own peace giving authority through the institutions

which He created of the family, the Church, and the state. And to resist

the use of authority in those realms under the cover of pacifism is to

resist the means by which Our Lord promotes peace in this fallen

world.

Our Lord is a warrior indeed, and to Him alone belongs the battle.

Through the power of His Cross and with His army of angels, Christ will

forever vanquish the devil and his minions. Father Josiah is absolutely

correct that Christ leads us in spiritual battle. And the key word here is

spiritual battle. We are Christian soldiers and Christ is our commanding

officer. Our Lord has issued us spiritual weapons that are eternally

efficacious. Therefore, to rely upon the feckless implements of carnal

destruction is an unchristian and foolish endeavor. Why would we

forsake heavenly power for earthly ammunition? Why would we trade

the eternal power of the Holy Spirit for the ephemeral power of bullets

and bombs?

And while I agree with Father Josiah that Christ works in and through

the family and the state (for in fact the omnipresent power of God is


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working in all the world), it is specifically in and through His Church that

our spiritual warfare will be won. The Church is the only organism that

has the divine promise that the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.

(St. Matthew 16:18) Satan may overcome states, nations, families, and

governmentsbut he will not prevail against the Church. And the

power of the Church abides in her Sacramental graces, not in carnal

militaristic power.

21.Father Josiah concludes his talk by quoting from the 19th

chapter of

the Book of Revelation:

And I saw heaven opened, and behold a white horse; and he that sat

upon him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he dothjudge and make war.His eyes were as a flame of fire, and on his head

were many crowns; and he had a name written, that no man knew, but

he himself.And he was clothed with a vesture dipped in blood: and his

name is called The Word of God.And the armies which were in heaven

followed him upon white horses, clothed in fine linen, white and clean.

And out of his mouth goeth a sharp sword, that with it he should smite

the nations: and he shall rule them with a rod of iron: and he treadeth

the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God.And he hath

on his vesture and on his thigh a name written, KING OF KINGS,AND LORD

OF LORDS. [Revelation 19:11-16]

That is Jesus Christ, Father Josiah says.

And amen to that! That isJesus Christ! And we arenotJesus Christ! We

must come down from our own high horse and realize that Christ alone

is worthy to ride the white horse of judgment and vengeance. We must

subdue the vision of our passions and realize that Christ alone is worthy

to have judgmental fire in His eyes. We must throw down our earthly

crowns and hail the One who alone is worthy to wear the eternal

diadem. We must preserve our own garments unstained with violence

and acknowledge that God alone is worthy to wear vestures dipped in


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blood. We must wait upon the vengeance of His heavenly armies. We

must wait upon the retribution of Hisdivine sword. We must wait upon

the revelation of Hisrod of iron. We must acknowledge that Christ

alone is King of Kings and Lord of Lords,and we are merely His

servants.

Let not the sheep usurp the rod of the Shepherd. Let not the subject

wrest the scepter from the King. Let not the creature assume the

authority of the Creator. Let God alone separate the wheat from the

tares.

I find it interesting that in quoting from Revelation, Father Josiah failed

to quote Revelation 12:19:

Dearly beloved, avenge not yourselves, but rather give place unto

wrath: for it is written, Vengeance is mine; I will repay, says the Lord.

Throughout the New Testament, Our Lord and His apostolic authors

make it clear that violence, wrath, and divine retribution belong to God

alone. When man presumes authority over life and death, he replicates

the sin of Lucifer who attempted to ascend higher than God Himself.

God alone retains the authority to create life and destroy life. And theentire impetus of the Christian Gospel is to preserve human lives and

offer them the redeeming waters of salvation through Jesus Christ and

His Church. Nothing interferes with this mission more than violence and

killing. The simple fact is that we cannot lead men to salvation if we kill

them. We cannot win souls while destroying bodies. We cannot offer

the waters of redemption from a well that is poisoned with blood.

ConclusionI believe that what Father Josiah is really condemningand rightly so

is apathy and cowardice within the Church. And if thats the case, thenI

will fully agree with him. The Churchthe Body and Bride of Christis

the most powerful spiritual, moral, and social force in the world. But

instead of actively pursuing justice, confronting evil, and proclaiming


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the Gospel to all the world, we sit passively on the sidelines as our

culture descends further and further into inhumanity, barbarism, chaos

and evil. We go about our daily lives unmoved and unaffected by the

slaughter of unborn innocents that occurs in our own backyard. We

tepidly respond to the greatest moral evil and the most important

human rights issue of our timelegalized abortionwith little more

than an occasional Pro-Life sermon, an annual march, and our impotent

votes. It seems that the only thing we are not apathetic about is

demanding the right to violently defend our own personal safety and

welfare. And somehow I dont think God is pleased or honored by such

an attitude.

So in conclusion, if Father Josiah Trenham wants to assert that Jesusand the Saints were notpassive-ists, then I shall wholeheartedly agree

with him. There was nothing passive about the life of Our Lord or the

lives of the Saints. And there should not be anything passive about our

lives as Christians. In fact, the monastic life is the most active life of all,

as monks devote their entire existence to ascetic rigors and ceaseless

prayer. And true prayer is hard work, I can assure you.

But if Father Josiah really means to say that the life, teachings, andexample of Our Lord Jesus Christ do not point to nonviolence,

forgiveness, and unconditional lovewithout exceptionthen I must

respectfully but forthrightly disagree with him.

Let us not forget that Our Lord was rejected and condemned by the

Zealots because they expected the Messiah to be a violent political

revolutionary. But Our Lords revolutionary liberation was the salvation

of the worlda salvation wrought by His ministry of healing,

forgiveness, love, and atoning redemption on the Cross. Sadly, many

professing Christians today reject the nonviolent teachings and

example of Christ, just as the Zealots did back then. In the name of the

Prince of Peace, Christians embrace the idols of patriotism, politics,

war, and destruction. Rather than elevating the message of the Cross


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we suppress it under the rubrics of Old Testament laws and human

rationales. Rather than following Christ and heeding His words, we

refashion Him into a god of our own makinga false god who tells us

to preserve our own lives at the expense of others. We have inverted

the Cross and manufactured it into a sword. In our zealousness for flag,

country, and constitution, we have unwittingly crucified the message of

the Gospel and blasphemed Our Savior.

There are Muslim terrorists who in the name of the religion of peace

fly planes into buildings and behead those that refuse to convert to

Islam. And as they commit these violent atrocities they exclaim, Allahu

akbar! (God is great!) They greet one another with the words,

Asalaam alaikum (Peace be unto you.) But as Christians we are setapart from the world because we are disciples of Christ. We do not kill

in the name of our God. We do not make converts with violent force.

We forsake bloodshed and embrace the folly of the Cross. We do not

murder those who reject the Gospel. We love our enemies and bless

those who persecute us. And such love and blessings are not issued

with the blade of the sword or the barrel of a gun.

Finally, I would like to emphasize one very important point. Jesus Christwas born as a Lamb, but He will return as a Lion. His Judgment will be

violent and His enemies will be cut down. God is a just God, and His

recompense will be awful indeed. Therefore it is important that we

dont misappropriate His divine retribution. Whenever man presumes

to use the sword to establish earthly justice and temporal peace, he

invariably leaves a wake of innocent blood behind. So as Christians we

must wait upon the Lord. They that wait upon the LORD shall renew

their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run,and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint. [Isaiah 40:31]

We must have faith that injustice and evil will be divinely avenged in

Gods perfect time. We must sheathe our swords yea, break them


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so that Christ can turn our weapons of destruction into implements of

healing.

Our God is not a tame God, and His justice will be perfect and

complete. So we place our faith in Him, trusting that no innocent soulwill slip through His merciful grasp. The blood of the martyrs and the

butchered bodies of unborn innocents are not unseen by the eyes of

divinity. Christ shall come againriding with a sword in His mouth

and His harvest will be both terrible and sweet. But if we usurp His

sword, then we inevitably cut down the wheat with the tares and

slaughter the sheep with the goats.

Our Lord has therefore told us to wait upon Hisjudgment. As the

Psalmist declares, The evildoers shall be cut off: but those that wait

upon the LORD shall inherit the earth. [Psalm 37:9]And Our Lord

echoed the Psalmist when He said, The meek shall inherit the earth.

[St. Matthew 5:5]So we wait for holy retribution, working out our own

salvation with fear and trembling as St. Paul instructs. (Philippians 2:12)

The Christian pacifist does not turn a blind eye to evil. He confronts evil

directly but refuses to reap a harvest that belongs to God alone. The

Christian pacifist walks through the fields of this world, carrying his

cross not a scythe, bearing the Gospel not a gun.

So was Jesus a pacifist? Well, no philosophical term or ideology is

sufficient to define the Lord of all creation. Jesus transcends the

limitations of human definition. He transcends patriotic, ethnic, and

religious identity. He is Lord of all. And Christ is no less God than the

Father and the Holy Spirit. He is the same God who drowned Pharaoh in

the Red Sea, and the same God who will return on the clouds wielding asword of divine justice. But when He walked the earth in His humble

but glorious Incarnation, His commands were specific, clear,

unambiguous and firm:


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a defense of christian pacifism

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