I had the privilige of watching Gandhi, a movie on Gandhi's pursuit of independance for India, one accomplished non-violently. The first thing that I was struck with, was that I had never learned anything about Gandhi before this. Never in my elementary, junior high or high school years did any history teacher (or any teacher) teach my class about Gandhi. Worse, never did any teacher introduce me to the non-violent peace movement. Now, this was years ago and I could guess that students might learn these things now, but as I thought this, I asked my niece if she learned anything about these topics and she said no. Not surprising. This is such an important part of our history, something we should know and study in depth. How can we ignore this topic for our children--they are the ones who can make the changes.
Why is it that nonviolent resistance, which is obviously so powerful, does not have the voice it should? I remember when I was young, there was a girl around my age who gave a peace talk that was reported in my news. I remember thinking how important it was that she did that. But in short time it was no longer a news-worthy event, and I heard nothing more of it. We did not talk about it at school, nor at home, though I often thought of what that young lady did. If I was inspired by her, who else was inspired? How many other children, if given the chance, would have learned more about peace, would have wanted to learn more about non-resistance? What if our children were exposed to more of this? What would they do with it? What if peace education were in the curriculum? What if our heroes were non-resistant activists? What if our children were encouraged to play peace-making instead of war-making? What if our stories were made up of these?
I can guess why this type of education does not go on--I am sure that it does not support a government that needs new recruits, support for war and of course money for war. But, oh, how discouraging that is, that our government does not have the foresight or the courage to undertake a new kind of education that could change us, not without sacrifice, but that would change us for the better nonetheless. I think about Gandhi and the people who followed him. The movie portrayed a people constantly on the verge of violence, a peace that relied on the leadership of one man, a precarious peace that threatened to erupt into violence at any moment. Imagine a country with a generation that has been taught, at least, the possibility of non-violence, following a leader like Gandhi.
Wednesday, January 30, 2008
Monday, January 28, 2008
Confession: At a Leadership Conference, Columbus, Ohio, January 18, 2008
it was bound to happen sometime--my first exposure to life as a possible pacifist--to one day become the minority in a crowd of patriots cheering for soldiers who fight for freedom (so says our speaker, victoriously, at a leadership conference).
but my minority status is not pure, is not yet whole--for my flesh still clings to what I knew--or believed I knew; my flesh still longs for the crowd, still longs to cheer for soldiers who fight for freedom--my flesh still wants to believe, as it once did, that my men die for purpose, kill for purpose, suffer for purpose--that there exists no innocent enemy-child--that Jesus must not have died for these.
but I can no longer align myself with this, can not believe what this crowd believes, can no longer accept blindness as a means to acceptance. I can not turn my conscience back, can not escape the truth I dared to face. It holds me fiercely.
So instead, I'll stand, hands down.
but my minority status is not pure, is not yet whole--for my flesh still clings to what I knew--or believed I knew; my flesh still longs for the crowd, still longs to cheer for soldiers who fight for freedom--my flesh still wants to believe, as it once did, that my men die for purpose, kill for purpose, suffer for purpose--that there exists no innocent enemy-child--that Jesus must not have died for these.
but I can no longer align myself with this, can not believe what this crowd believes, can no longer accept blindness as a means to acceptance. I can not turn my conscience back, can not escape the truth I dared to face. It holds me fiercely.
So instead, I'll stand, hands down.
Thursday, January 24, 2008
peace works
A pacifist told me that as I continued learning about peace, I would begin to see that peace and non-resistance "works," it makes sense in our world. This is not so strange a statement when you consider the Biblical truths that pacifists adhere to in their commitment to peace. God's way does work. If peace is God's way, it makes sense that peace would work. Even though I did not take up non-resistance as a means to gain anything, I have already seen how peace, or if I walk in an attitude of peace, works for me.
It's an everyday example, but I find God often speaks his truth through everyday activities. I struggle with a dog who struggles with fear of other dogs his own size or bigger. When walking him, if we pass another dog-owner out walking, my dog will bark, growl and pull on his leash. It's quite embarrassing and disconcerting. I have tried everything to get him to stop, but one thing I always did was to restrain him as much as possible. During the warm weather, after consistent work, I managed to get him to calm down (for the most part). But as the weather got cold again, and my dog saw fewer dogs outside with their owners, he forgot his training, and started barking, growling and pulling on his leash the few times we would pass another die-hard dog-walker out and about.
One early morning, I was walking my dog, thinking it was way too early, dark and cold for anybody to be out walking their dog (besides me), and I was singing a hymn I had heard the day before--It is Well. I was also thinking about peace and was unusually peaceful in mind and soul when we happened upon another dog-walker with a black lab--a dog bigger than mine. I had no time to think about what to do--no chance at possibly walking the other way to avoid them. But I maintained my present state of peacefulness and allowed my dog to do his little fearful/warning dance. I did not restrain him, nor did I use any force against him. I simply felt that all would be well, my dog might bark and growl, but all would be well. My dog, instead of barking and growling, simply pulled on his leash, danced around a little bit and whined. We made it past the dog and his walker and went cheerily on our way.
I immediately understood what had happened and later happened to be talking with my cousin who breeds and trains pit bulls. I told him my story and he said, yes, that I had done the right thing. "You need to know that you own the dog, you have control of him, but that he is still a being of his own." He said that I need to understand the dog's frame of mind, his own little nuances and work with those. In this case, my dog was understanding my force against him, my attempt to restrain him as evidence of my fear. And in fact, it was in fear that I would try to restrain him--fear that I might not be able to, fear that I would look ridiculous, fear that something, anything bad might happen. But it was my fear he was reacting to, not his own fear. When I did not force him to obey, did not resist his tendencies, he was okay. In other words, my attitude to walk in peace and non-resistance worked for me in the training of my dog. I wonder what other ways I will see that peace works.
It's an everyday example, but I find God often speaks his truth through everyday activities. I struggle with a dog who struggles with fear of other dogs his own size or bigger. When walking him, if we pass another dog-owner out walking, my dog will bark, growl and pull on his leash. It's quite embarrassing and disconcerting. I have tried everything to get him to stop, but one thing I always did was to restrain him as much as possible. During the warm weather, after consistent work, I managed to get him to calm down (for the most part). But as the weather got cold again, and my dog saw fewer dogs outside with their owners, he forgot his training, and started barking, growling and pulling on his leash the few times we would pass another die-hard dog-walker out and about.
One early morning, I was walking my dog, thinking it was way too early, dark and cold for anybody to be out walking their dog (besides me), and I was singing a hymn I had heard the day before--It is Well. I was also thinking about peace and was unusually peaceful in mind and soul when we happened upon another dog-walker with a black lab--a dog bigger than mine. I had no time to think about what to do--no chance at possibly walking the other way to avoid them. But I maintained my present state of peacefulness and allowed my dog to do his little fearful/warning dance. I did not restrain him, nor did I use any force against him. I simply felt that all would be well, my dog might bark and growl, but all would be well. My dog, instead of barking and growling, simply pulled on his leash, danced around a little bit and whined. We made it past the dog and his walker and went cheerily on our way.
I immediately understood what had happened and later happened to be talking with my cousin who breeds and trains pit bulls. I told him my story and he said, yes, that I had done the right thing. "You need to know that you own the dog, you have control of him, but that he is still a being of his own." He said that I need to understand the dog's frame of mind, his own little nuances and work with those. In this case, my dog was understanding my force against him, my attempt to restrain him as evidence of my fear. And in fact, it was in fear that I would try to restrain him--fear that I might not be able to, fear that I would look ridiculous, fear that something, anything bad might happen. But it was my fear he was reacting to, not his own fear. When I did not force him to obey, did not resist his tendencies, he was okay. In other words, my attitude to walk in peace and non-resistance worked for me in the training of my dog. I wonder what other ways I will see that peace works.
Tuesday, January 22, 2008
peace revelation
This is something I wrote soon after learning about peace:
When I speak of revelation, I am speaking of truth that has been revealed personally to me, not just a truth that I can acknowledge with my head. Revelation puts me in a place to go beyond acknowledgment and into a place of a personal belief that can be acted on. And since deciding to choose peace, this is what is happening to me as I read the word. With my new-found belief in this peace teaching, the Holy Spirit is opening my eyes to scripture like never before in the areas of forgiveness, faith and the absolute, remarkable tenderness of Jesus Christ.
The first night, after learning about peace and non-resistance for the first time and receiving it, I began to doubt this stance of absolute peace, but the Holy Spirit simply said, "on earth, as it is in heaven." Do I believe that or not? How can I pray that prayer and then act, think or believe contrary to it? This is the Lord's will—would I go against it?
The following night as I walked my dog, I slipped into fear. And then I realized that to walk in peace, one must give up fear. To give up fear, one must grow in love, which casts out fear! To walk in true, complete love, one must walk in peace--peace with all people, not just those you love or can at least tolerate. And then, as I wrote this, I began to see how, if I walk in peace, if I set my heart to walk in peace, then satan can no longer frighten me, he can no longer taunt me as he has in the past with fear. If I determine to walk in peace, whom have I to fear? Whom have I to fear!!
Deciding to live in peace means deciding to give up my perceived "right" to revenge. It is not my place to seek revenge. It is no longer my responsibility--it never was. I was only attempting to hold onto it, and only failing, because revenge only sets a cycle turning. This is a cycle that satan would like to place me in. Deciding to live in peace gives me the freedom that I need to forgive others who hurt me. I came to this decision by looking at peace versus war. I rejected war, seeing it as violence against my enemies, which is contrary to God's word. And as I accepted this part of God's word, my eyes were opened to how I could forgive those who hurt me! I have trouble forgiving those who hurt me, because I have been holding onto my perceived right to revenge! How can I forgive if I think it's my place, my right to set things straight--straight the way I see it? I can not. Deciding to live in peace means walking away from that perceived right to revenge; instead, it means walking in the freedom to forgive my enemies, or those who hurt me.
And this revelation continued as I prayed and read the word. I read the passage where Jesus said, “my kingdom is not of this world; if it were, my people would fight.” And suddenly I realized that I belong to the kingdom of God, not to the United States. I have believed that, to the extent that I wish and allow the Holy Spirit to move in my life. But I never extended it any further than that. With this peace teaching, I am realizing that my allegiance to my country has taken precedence over my allegiance to God and all the while, I was unaware of this. Allegiance to my country was so ingrained in me from a very young age, that I unknowingly equated the purposes of the US with the purposes of God. As I became an adult, I sensed a conflict between these two purposes, and avoided politics of any kind, and I avoided world affairs because I could not make my understanding of God coincide with the activities of my country. It was easier to avoid, because I still did not want to give up what was left of my patriotism, my love for my country. Deciding to live in peace means we must recognize our citizenship to a kingdom not of this world!! This must be where our allegiance is placed! We must change our thinking and ask the Holy Spirit to help us develop this as the platform from which we make decisions where peace is concerned. If our allegiance to God’s kingdom is in our framework of thinking and believing, then we can walk in peace.
And more. I began to see my personal responsibility for spreading this gospel. I have brothers and sisters in the countries of China and North Korea who are persecuted for what they believe. Here I sit in a country that is free at the cost of the lives of men who believed violence was the only way to freedom. I questioned that, and the Holy Spirit answered me. We too often fight in the flesh what might be won if we would only first fight in the spirit. God said that if we would only have faith as a mustard seed, the mountain would move. God said, if my people who are called by my name, would humble themselves and pray and turn from their wicked ways, then I would heal their land. We, who called our nation a Christian nation, who picked up our weapons to take freedom, should have instead taken up our holy armor. God’s will will be done—period. If we have to step into the flesh to make happen what we think should happen, then we are stepping out of the will of God in some way. I’m not saying it is not God’s will that we have a free country. But I am saying that it didn’t need to happen the way it did. This fight, too, was in allegiance to an earthly country. But since it’s done, and I have my freedom, even more now than ever, I know that I can not sit back and enjoy it—I must instead USE that freedom in ways that those who are oppressed can not.
I read the Bible daily. How did I not see this side of Jesus? I did, to an extent, but when I compare that extent to what I am seeing now, I didn't really see him like this. I didn't understand that part of him. His tenderness has always captivated me, but now I don’t know how to respond to this new tenderness that I see. He is more, so much unbelievably more than I could ever hope or imagine! I want others to see Jesus like this, to accept this truth for themselves, because it answers so many questions, fills so many spaces. We need to believe this, because it is an integral part of the gospel—without it, we are leaning on an incomplete gospel. Without it, we will not be able to do what God has called us to do!
When I speak of revelation, I am speaking of truth that has been revealed personally to me, not just a truth that I can acknowledge with my head. Revelation puts me in a place to go beyond acknowledgment and into a place of a personal belief that can be acted on. And since deciding to choose peace, this is what is happening to me as I read the word. With my new-found belief in this peace teaching, the Holy Spirit is opening my eyes to scripture like never before in the areas of forgiveness, faith and the absolute, remarkable tenderness of Jesus Christ.
The first night, after learning about peace and non-resistance for the first time and receiving it, I began to doubt this stance of absolute peace, but the Holy Spirit simply said, "on earth, as it is in heaven." Do I believe that or not? How can I pray that prayer and then act, think or believe contrary to it? This is the Lord's will—would I go against it?
The following night as I walked my dog, I slipped into fear. And then I realized that to walk in peace, one must give up fear. To give up fear, one must grow in love, which casts out fear! To walk in true, complete love, one must walk in peace--peace with all people, not just those you love or can at least tolerate. And then, as I wrote this, I began to see how, if I walk in peace, if I set my heart to walk in peace, then satan can no longer frighten me, he can no longer taunt me as he has in the past with fear. If I determine to walk in peace, whom have I to fear? Whom have I to fear!!
Deciding to live in peace means deciding to give up my perceived "right" to revenge. It is not my place to seek revenge. It is no longer my responsibility--it never was. I was only attempting to hold onto it, and only failing, because revenge only sets a cycle turning. This is a cycle that satan would like to place me in. Deciding to live in peace gives me the freedom that I need to forgive others who hurt me. I came to this decision by looking at peace versus war. I rejected war, seeing it as violence against my enemies, which is contrary to God's word. And as I accepted this part of God's word, my eyes were opened to how I could forgive those who hurt me! I have trouble forgiving those who hurt me, because I have been holding onto my perceived right to revenge! How can I forgive if I think it's my place, my right to set things straight--straight the way I see it? I can not. Deciding to live in peace means walking away from that perceived right to revenge; instead, it means walking in the freedom to forgive my enemies, or those who hurt me.
And this revelation continued as I prayed and read the word. I read the passage where Jesus said, “my kingdom is not of this world; if it were, my people would fight.” And suddenly I realized that I belong to the kingdom of God, not to the United States. I have believed that, to the extent that I wish and allow the Holy Spirit to move in my life. But I never extended it any further than that. With this peace teaching, I am realizing that my allegiance to my country has taken precedence over my allegiance to God and all the while, I was unaware of this. Allegiance to my country was so ingrained in me from a very young age, that I unknowingly equated the purposes of the US with the purposes of God. As I became an adult, I sensed a conflict between these two purposes, and avoided politics of any kind, and I avoided world affairs because I could not make my understanding of God coincide with the activities of my country. It was easier to avoid, because I still did not want to give up what was left of my patriotism, my love for my country. Deciding to live in peace means we must recognize our citizenship to a kingdom not of this world!! This must be where our allegiance is placed! We must change our thinking and ask the Holy Spirit to help us develop this as the platform from which we make decisions where peace is concerned. If our allegiance to God’s kingdom is in our framework of thinking and believing, then we can walk in peace.
And more. I began to see my personal responsibility for spreading this gospel. I have brothers and sisters in the countries of China and North Korea who are persecuted for what they believe. Here I sit in a country that is free at the cost of the lives of men who believed violence was the only way to freedom. I questioned that, and the Holy Spirit answered me. We too often fight in the flesh what might be won if we would only first fight in the spirit. God said that if we would only have faith as a mustard seed, the mountain would move. God said, if my people who are called by my name, would humble themselves and pray and turn from their wicked ways, then I would heal their land. We, who called our nation a Christian nation, who picked up our weapons to take freedom, should have instead taken up our holy armor. God’s will will be done—period. If we have to step into the flesh to make happen what we think should happen, then we are stepping out of the will of God in some way. I’m not saying it is not God’s will that we have a free country. But I am saying that it didn’t need to happen the way it did. This fight, too, was in allegiance to an earthly country. But since it’s done, and I have my freedom, even more now than ever, I know that I can not sit back and enjoy it—I must instead USE that freedom in ways that those who are oppressed can not.
I read the Bible daily. How did I not see this side of Jesus? I did, to an extent, but when I compare that extent to what I am seeing now, I didn't really see him like this. I didn't understand that part of him. His tenderness has always captivated me, but now I don’t know how to respond to this new tenderness that I see. He is more, so much unbelievably more than I could ever hope or imagine! I want others to see Jesus like this, to accept this truth for themselves, because it answers so many questions, fills so many spaces. We need to believe this, because it is an integral part of the gospel—without it, we are leaning on an incomplete gospel. Without it, we will not be able to do what God has called us to do!
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