Dear fellow searcher,
Now we have come to the point where we need to define Just Peace Apologetics (JPA). Here is my view:
- Just, as in justice, and not only civil/cultural justice, but also heavenly justice, as in “Blessed are…”
- Peace, as in nonviolence, from individuals to legitimate governments to religions, and being free of violence to our body, mind, and spirit
- Apologetics, the defense and explanation of a particular view, in this case one of Christian pacifism/nonviolence.
JPA is an attempt to build a strong case for Christian pacifism. I could say that it is as plain as day from reading the Gospels that we should be nonviolent and that Christianity is the religion of peace. I can then hear my Missouri relatives saying, “Show me!” As this JPA series develops academically, agree or disagree, I hope will be able to say you will have read a well-defended view of the faith.
There are four large categories of how Christians view war/violence, though there are variations on each. Here is a simple list:
- Crusade or Conquest, as defined as aggressive and often preemptive
- Just War, as defined as defensive and protective
- Nonresistance, as defined as protecting the individual from having to kill, but that individual may support the “war effort” in a nonviolent way
- Pacifism, as defined as providing no support for war or violence, based on Holy Scriptures, the life of Christ, and the early church
Please let me state at this point that I have never really liked the word “pacifist.” It raises images to me of punching bags or bowling pins being struck and damaged, while being inactive and immobile. One like this is truly a fatalist, and has abdicated hope to the aggressor. Christian Pacifists, armed with JPA, are full of the hope of God and are active in the effort to spread the true word of Christ.
In the unfolding of the revelation of God through the Holy Scriptures, both Old and New Testaments, we reach the final culminating revelation of Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. “What did Jesus do?” should be the question we ask over and over. No speculation needed. Look to His life. I will present to you in further writings scriptures and writings that support our call to nonviolence
In Christ’s love,
Fr. Robert Pax
BOOKS: I ran across an interesting title while at a book store a couple of years ago: “Put Down Your Sword, Answering the Gospel Call to Creative Nonviolece,” by Fr. John Dear. He has done so much, why hadn’t I heard of him? I suppose we always like what agrees with us, but I am learning from his writings daily. Fr. John is a Jesuit priest, and one of the most active and vocal proponents for recapturing the Gospel intent of this religion of peace. I would also suggest “John Dear on Peace, An Introduction to His Life and Work,” edited by Patricia Patten Normile, S.F.O. This book is a wonderful entrance into the mission and passion of Fr. John.
QUOTES: “Peace begins within each of us. It is a process of repeatedly showing mercy to ourselves, forgiving ourselves, befriending ourselves, accepting ourselves, and loving ourselves. As we learn to appreciate ourselves and accept God’s gift of peace, we begin to radiate peace and love to others.” Fr. John Dear.
“Pursuing peace at every level of life – beginning within our own hearts and souls, and reaching out toward every human being alive on the planet – is the greatest and most fulfilling challenge one can undertake with one’s life. But making peace in a world at war is an act greater than any of us. It is a spiritual journey that begins in the heart and takes us on a road not of our own choosing. But because it is a spiritual journey, a course charted by the God of peace, it is filled with the simplest but greatest of blessings.” Fr. John Dear
