So, Mary left this morning for Daytona, FL for the weekend [she is working on the planning stages of Christian Women Connection's 2014 convention] then early this afternoon I met Mary's parents and nephew in Fort Wayne so that Henry could spend the weekend with them. So here I am, home alone, just a little bit worried that I may have to booby trap my apartment in case of late night thieves. In honesty I am sitting at home watching Band of Brothers. If you haven't seen it, it is a 10 part series about Easy Company, a troop of Airborne soldiers during WWII. I have seen it at least three times already, which is actually kind of odd, considering that I am a pacifist.
Did you know that about me? I would guess not. It's not that I hide the fact, it is simply that I don't have cause to mention it all that often, at least not until someone starts a conversation about war with me. Since that rarely happens it is one of my beliefs that most people don't know about me. I realize that there are a lot of different views out there on war and a lot of people I know and care about have different beliefs, which is fine. For me it pretty much comes down to a question of who would Jesus kill, I would suggest that he wouldn't kill anyone, and since my main goal in life is to try to be more like Jesus I also believe that I shouldn't kill anyone. Logic follows that if I feel that I shouldn't, I in turn would rather no one else have to do it for me, hence pacifism.
I come from a church tradition that, at times, have embraced the idea of being a peace church. Unfortunately, by and large, we do not anymore, save for the Peace Fellowship of the Church of God. I still believe that it is important to hold the view. At the same time I do not believe that people who disagree with me are evil, nor do I believe that men and women who serve in the Armed Forces are bad people, I just wish that they didn't have to do what they do. I pray for a day when people will solve disputes without resorting to violence of any kind, unfortunately I do not believe that day will come this side of Jesus' return.
There are people who would argue that since it won't happen then we should just live life in the world that we have. I would argue that we need to live life the way we want it to be, rather than accept it the way it is, to be the change we wish to see in the world. So I will continue to hope for peaceful resolutions during conflicts. I will continue to pray for the day when this too shall pass, when the lion will lay down with the lamb, and when all people will realize that all people are sacred creations of a loving God.
So, why do I watch Band of Brothers? Because I am a student of the human condition. Because when men and women are in extreme situations we find out who we really are, both good and bad, and the men of Easy Company are some of the bravest people I have ever learned about, they lay down their lives for their brothers, and they are a group of men who answered a call that I would not be able to. But ultimately I watch Band of Brothers for moments of depth, like when the chaplain walks through a midst of bullets so that he can give last rites to the dead and dying, and for the following quote from Richard Winters [Damien Lewis] "That night, I thanked God for seeing me through that day of days and prayed I would make it through D plus 1. I also promised that if some way I could get home again, I would find a nice peaceful town and spend the rest of my life in peace."
Peace and Love,
Pastor K
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