War is Sin

I never thought I'd see an American president, with a Muslim name, receiving a standing ovation in Cairo before giving a major policy speech containing positive, hopeful language and never once mentioning terrorism -- but today it happened.  Early reaction from the Muslim world has been generally positive, though some people have mentioned the lack of concrete ideas, and have said that actions speak louder than words. I think perhaps Arabs cannot quite understand what a departure this is, and how much Obama is bucking the tide, especially in his firm determination about Israel and Palestine. He's proving how stubborn and courageous he is, and I wish him all the stamina in the world - he's going to need it.

Now, a look at the cost of war from a spiritual perspective, but one which, I suspect, underlies Obama's thinking:

“In theological terms, war is sin,” writes Mahedy." (William P. Mahedy, a Catholic chaplain in Vietnam, is the author of “Out of the Night: The Spiritual Journey of Vietnam Vets") “This has nothing to do with whether a particular war is justified or whether isolated incidents in a soldier’s war were right or wrong. The point is that war as a human enterprise is a matter of sin. It is a form of hatred for one’s fellow human beings. It produces alienation from others and nihilism, and it ultimately represents a turning away from God.”

The young soldiers and Marines do not plan or organize the war. They do not seek to justify it or explain its causes. They are taught to believe. The symbols of the nation and religion are interwoven. The will of God becomes the will of the nation. This trust is forever shattered for many in war. Soldiers in combat see the myth used to send them to war implode. They see that war is not clean or neat or noble, but venal and frightening. They see into war’s essence, which is death.

War is always about betrayal. It is about betrayal of the young by the old, of cynics by idealists, and of soldiers and Marines by politicians. Society’s institutions, including our religious institutions, which mold us into compliant citizens, are unmasked. This betrayal is so deep that many never find their way back to faith in the nation or in any god.

Chris Hedges, "War is Sin," in TruthDig

It's good to see that Chris Hedges, former Vermonter, NY Times war correspondent, graduate of Yale Divinity School, and the author of "War is a Force That Gives Us Meaning," has finally cut to the chase and said exactly what he thinks of war. Exposing the hypocritical collusion between religion and political power is critical (even in Canada "Remembrance Day" is still observed, acting out in tear-jerking liturgy the formalized relationship between the Church, the military, and the heroic dead). But until the day when the message changes from every pulpit, as well as all the other religious and quasi-religious speaking platforms used to rally people and troops behind war-mongering governments, human beings will continue to believe in national exceptionalism, and use religion to justify war and view the death of soldiers as a heroic act. This is not to say - and Chris makes this point - that all wars and all killing are unjustified. But I suggest that we listen to the veterans Chris speaks of here, and see if their post-war God is also ours.

"Mahedy tells of a soldier, a former altar boy, who says to him: 'Hey, Chaplain ... how come it’s a sin to hop into bed with a mama-san but it’s okay to blow away gooks out in the bush?'' ...“How is it that a Christian can, with a clear conscience, spend a year in a war zone killing people and yet place his soul in jeopardy by spending a few minutes with a prostitute? If the New Testament prohibitions of sexual misconduct are to be stringently interpreted, why, then, are Jesus’ injunctions against violence not binding in the same way? In other words, what does the commandment ‘Thou shalt not kill’ really mean?”

I've always been driven crazy by this same thing, as old as Abrahamic religion itself, but taken to new heights by the puritans and their evangelical heirs, as well as Muslim and Jewish fundamentalists: the idea that sex (even between people who love each other but aren't in a church-sanctioned state of heterosexual matrimony) can send you to hell, but violence in the name of the Lord is perfectly OK. I would like to turn Mahedy's question back to every member of the clergy and every apologist for every religion, in particular to those Bible-toting Congresspersons outraged by Janet Jackson's breast, or gay marriage, but voting happily for funds that rain bombs on children, or send young poor kids into war: just what does "thou shalt not kill" actually mean to you?

When Obama speaks about every single child having a right to a future, that is an answer. To reiterate Chaplain Mahedy's comment: "...war as a human enterprise is a matter of sin. It is a form of hatred for one’s fellow human beings." The fact that war has existed as long as our species itself is not exactly cause for optimism, but we still must believe -- and act as if it is possible -- to eradicate this worst manifestation of our tendency toward territoriality, competition, power, and revenge.

I don't talk much about sin; like "evil," it's not a word I find useful or helpful. But in this case I agree with the simple point of saying, "this kind of killing is wrong and we must do everything to avoid it," as well as Obama's (to me, astonishing) refusal to engage in the "eye-for-an-eye" rhetoric that has blighted the heritage and perverted the essential message of all three Abrahamic religions, and given the word "terrorism" and "terrorist" so much weight, regardless of which side wields the word, the stone, or the bomb.

Comments

[Anne Gibert]

I just agree with every single word of this post. Every word.

[Joyce Sanchez]

My father was a war amp - he lost his arm on D Day on the beaches of Normandy. He hated everything about war and how it had shaped every day of the rest of his life. He despaired over the loss of life in the Viet Nam war - so much for the "war to end all wars".

I am my father's daughter. I pray daily for peace. I thank God for Obama. I pray that each one of us can be agents of God's peace.

Peace be with you...

[Marja-Leena]

Yes, yes, I too agree with every word, I too have "always been driven crazy by this same thing".

[Elizabeth]

This is amazing -- thank you so much for posting all of it.

[Kaycie]

Ah, Beth, you would have a difficult time in this part of the country. I think these things, but keep them to myself.

What a wonderful, thoughtful post.

[loren]

This was pretty much my reaction when I came back from Vietnam, though I really wanted nothing to do with chaplains even when I was there, because the Jesus I admired, the one I didn't believe in, but wanted to, would never have condoned war and killing.

[lucas]

Thanks Beth (and thanks Loren, for the personal testimony).

I do not believe in any of the imaginary sky gods. I don't like the concept of "sin" either. But I think a sense of sin can be valuable, and nothing seems more like sin to me than the callousness of state-sanctioned mass murder, i.e. war.

Obama still dismays me because he's an American warmonger (see Afghanistan), but I also recognize that his anti-nuclear proliferation stance, the relative humility of his rhetoric, and his willingness to work for peace make him, by a country mile, the best person to hold the office of US president in a long time. He's not a pacifist by any means, but he's the closest to it we've got. I admire him greatly, and I wish him luck.

People like to say actions speak louder than words. I don't know if that is true. The right words into the right ears can be irresistible. Actions can be much narrower than words. Words can resonate and proliferate and insinuate in all sorts of ways.

May the words we hear be about rejecting violence; may they be words against war.

[http://bookaholicblog.blogspot.com/]

Thanks for this very interesting post...war in all its forms is a product of human selfishness and greed. I haven't been in any 'war' situation but I have an understanding of what war can cause because I see it everywhere...but the question to ask isn't why war but why not peace? And I think the answer is few people profit from war (more people suffer from it) while in during 'peace', it's the other way round.

[hal lewis]

From what we have been used to from our President's, yes, Obama speech was a breakthrough. He is an excellent speaker and yes things need to be said, explained, and pointed in a direction. The question is what direction?

I have become very dismayed with Obama. He has made promise after promise and then without skipping a beat he goes the other way. The qestion I ask myself has he been telling us lies or as he enters the real political world begins to see things different?

A few quick examples, no immunity for the telcoms, but voted for it. Religion and his church is a mainstay but the right wing goes whole hog after Rev. Wright and he can't wait to leave that church and cut ties with Rev. Wright. Which is it? He now believes that he can hold a person, without trial or charges, forever. That is beyound belief. Criticised Bush for giving abassador posts to big donors and yesterday did the same thing.(Small but a flip) Promises to change rule on gays in the military and now can't seem to do it. He wanted the photos from the torture at Gitmo released but then changed his mind. And the largest and the worst is he refused to "look backward only forward" on the law breaking and crimes of Bush and his administration. My question is he telling lies to become president and how long does he expect to keep this up and keep the respect of the people who elected him? This is only the short list it really goes on and on.

These are very important issues for me this is why I supported him but his steady drumbeat of flip-flopping is losing me. In the political world of the USA this leaves me no where else to go.

[Natalie]

Absolutely agree with this post, Beth, every word.

[Peter]

I like the way Obama keeps his remarks about difficult issues sharp, short, and simple. What a sophisticated speech. What a breath of fresh air.

It always feels stupid to me to praise a president (though I can't remember wanting to praise a president very often in the past). One feels as if one might be understood as praising every position he takes or as praising some benighted aspect of our country or its policy. Or he could do something foolish tomorrow.

What a president.