Rushing to Peace

Why do we fight? I’ve just watched a documentary of the same name. I have heard many answers in my life, sometimes from members of my family who have been – and continue to be – part of our country’s military.

“We fight to preserve our freedom.” That, or things like that, are said. Over and over and over again. When we bombed houses in Afghanistan and Iraq, this is what was said. We didn’t fight for oil, or for American interests and defense contracts, or for what Dwight Eisenhower called “the military-industrial complex.” We continue to fight for freedom.

If this is questioned, in any way, it becomes a matter of pride – an emotional attack. I still cannot argue with my dad about Iraq War II today because of the inevitable emotional tie-ins to Vietnam, where he served in the Navy. He will not have his struggle, the death of friends and those close to him, be in vain. It all must have been for SOMETHING.

I am not talking about our motives in this current war, or for the lies that have been passed down from this current administration regarding that war. I’m not even talking about the effectiveness of war, or the theological basis for it.

I would just say this: War has become such a part of our culture that it is never even questioned. When it is – when one million people flood the streets to protest war – it’s seen as a nuisance at best, inappropriate and treasonous at worst. Anti-American. Subversive. If you protest war, you are showing disdain for the millions who support their family through military jobs.

I can honestly say I do no such thing. I just think that the taking of human life should be scrutinized much more, and that any action which could lead to this outcome has to be questioned. Again and again and again. Why can’t peace be the default?

How can we call ourselves Christians unless it is?