Righteous Violence?

In the scripture reading for this past Sunday, we were confronted with an episode of violence.  The Prophet Elijah had directed the prophets of the god Baal be killed.  Although not named as such in the biblical record, this was what was called the Wadi Kishon Massacre and the numbers killed (to prevent an evil force from influencing or affecting those that lived in the Northern Kingdom of Israel) were in the hundreds. This was violence in the name of God, a “righteous” reason, or so it was thought. Needless to say, this action brought on an immediate response from the ruling party of the nation at the time, the King’s wife Jezebel.  More violence was unleashed in retaliation and retribution. After the story of Elijah encountering God in the still small voice, the story ends with Elijah anointing new kings to rule the Northern Kingdom and a neighboring nation with the clear implication more violence was to be their objective.

Violence is not willing to settle with “one and done”.  The retribution may not come immediately, or as it appears in our current situation it may.  But violence is based on hate.

Violence is based on choosing elimination rather than negotiation, which is in turn focused on reconciliation.

Yes, there is evil in the world.  Yes, there are times when the only recourse left is war.  We have seen this play out in the twentieth century.  And we have paid the cost of that in the lives of those who died, those who were wounded, and those who were forever damaged.

We have already heard the rhetoric thanking God in all God’s Providence that a military plan was well executed.  Because something was carried out does not mean it should have been.  And when we use the name of God to justify our actions and bless our decisions, it would be wise to do the heavy theological thinking around violence and war, even if the conclusion theologians over the years (Augustine, Aquinas, Reinhold and Richard Niebuhr, Susan W. Thistlewaite) have offered are not your preference.

Something has begun.  We do not know what is next.  I pray that you join me in prayer that a break in the rising violence may happen, AND…that when the talking resumes it is talking that is respectful of one another, not the talk of ultimatums or bully behavior. That prayer goes to the situation unfolding with Iran, the war involving the Gaza people and Israel, and the war in the Ukraine.  Violence continues to beget violence.  A conquering mentality continues to find new victims.

I ended last week’s sermon with words from the prophet Micah:

He shall judge between many peoples
and shall arbitrate between strong nations far away;
they shall beat their swords into plowshares
and their spears into pruning hooks;
nation shall not lift up sword against nation;
neither shall they learn war any more;

 

Rev. Clara