A sacred duty

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Peace on 9th Street, 2014
“Civil disobedience becomes a sacred duty when the state has become lawless or corrupt.”

“Colourful demonstrations and weekend marches are vital but alone are not powerful enough to stop wars. Wars will be stopped only when soldiers refuse to fight, when workers refuse to load weapons onto ships and aircraft, when people boycott the economic outposts of Empire that are strung across the globe.”

“We [the religious authority] gave you strict orders not to teach in this [Jesus’] name," he said. “Yet you have filled Jerusalem with your teaching and are determined to make us guilty of this man's blood.” Peter and the other apostles replied: “We must obey God rather than human beings!” -Acts 5:28 & 29

Anabaptism’s history is laced with stories of civil disobedience. Even when certain torture and death would be the consequence, early Anabaptists refused to recant, refused to bow to civil/church authority’s demanding that their children be baptized into the prevailing church/civil order. Many went “like lambs to the slaughter,” for their courageous stand, convinced that only a new covenant with God could save the church of Christ.

Since then, orders to register for military duties have been defied, owed taxes have been withheld, leaders have been arrested for defying authority in demonstrations against unjust resource development.

And yet, peace churches love order and good government as much as any other citizens. Although some Mennonites, some Quakers and others place a portion of their income taxes into a trust fund and indicate to Revenue Canada that their action is a protest against being required by law to support the military, I think any research on the subject of income, property and business taxes would indicate their general compliance with tax law.

There remain, however, areas in Canadian culture and politics that can leave peace church members uneasy. To refuse to take up arms might be the most obvious action of civil disobedience. We all know, however, that the roots of conflict, revolution, even war lie much deeper than the vagaries of political systems. Injustice, poverty, oppression and discrimination lead to division, division plows the ground for outrage and outrage leads to conflict. For Mennonites and others who have no faith in the efficacy of military “solutions,” a new “peace witness and strategy” is needed to match the temper and conditions of the times.

Our mandate today, seems to me, has to be to follow the gospel essentials that are able to prevent a future need for violent action. A tall order, this, and one that has to begin with bolstering our convictions about what it means to be salt and light for a world steeped in the mentality of division, conflict and the use of force as a means of defending the excesses of greed.

First, we need to clarify our thinking about what our faith really requires of us. For over one hundred years by now, “evangelicalism-fundamentalism” has come to predominate the theology of much of Protestantism. Nothing wrong with spreading the news of Christ’s gospel to whoever is prepared to hear it, but the New Testament clearly indicates that we receive and accept this good news not as an end, but as a first step in becoming catalysts for justice, for mercy, for lifting people out of the poverty that keeps them hungry, sick, imprisoned, discouraged and—potentially—enraged. To individualize the gospel to the place where “all that matters” is for each individual to acquire a cheap ticket to supposed eternal bliss is to produce a Christianity that is divisive, self-righteous and greedy.

In practice, every Christian Church is meant to be a team of peacemakers, members working together to point the way toward communities, societies, nations where justice and mercy are the core commitments. Every Christian Church should be engaged in peacemaking projects, in supporting and working with organizations that promote justice.

I think we can all agree. The refusal to bear arms as an act of civil disobedience can make a statement of considerable significance, but building a world where no one is asked to bear arms BECAUSE THERE IS NO NEED FOR IT is the real gospel project, isn’t it?

“We must obey God rather than human beings!”

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