‘I never saw no military solution that didn’t always end up as something worse’
– Sting, from the song, If I Ever Lose My Faith in You
A week or so ago, two plus weeks into the Russian invasion of Ukraine, I was listening to one of my favorite podcasts. The hosts are Christians for whom I have the deepest respect. But I became troubled as they began recounting with pride the violent resistance being offered by Ukrainians. Please don’t get me wrong. What Putin and his armies are doing is evil. They are the aggressors, the Ukrainians the victims, and her resisters have shown remarkable courage over the past several weeks. Outmanned and outgunned, they have stood against overwhelming odds. I take nothing away from them in the bravery department. Moreover, I get why they are fighting back. No one wants to see their land, their homes, their national and cultural identity stolen from them. I understand the Ukrainian willingness to fight, the courage being displayed as they do so, and the natural response, even among Christians, to cheer them on.
But here’s the thing, Jesus told us not to.
I’ve written frequently about Jesus’ position on violence (e.g., check out my previous post on Ukraine). Suffice it to say he was against it. He commanded his followers to love their enemies. To turn the other cheek. To offer up creative nonviolent protest, as opposed to violent resistance, in the face of evil. When the powers came for him in Gethsemane, he refrained from calling on the angels of heaven (something he specifically said he could do) and commanded Simon Peter to put away his sword, adding, ‘anyone who lives by the sword will die by the sword’ (Matthew 26:52). At the cross, he really put his money where his mouth was by praying for, as opposed to fighting, his enemies, choosing to love them to the end (and, I might add, winning a couple of them over). Later, after his Resurrection and Ascension (ahem, proof of the wisdom of his approach), he revealed to his disciple John the importance of following the peaceable way of the Lamb rather than the violent way of the dragon (See, generally Revelation). And his disciples, Simon Peter included, threw away their swords forever, forsaking them to pursue the Gospel of peace.
So why would Christians advocate for violent resistance against the Russians? And why are so many seemingly chomping at the bit, increasingly with each passing day, to adopt policies that will only escalate the violence?
Well, again, I kind of get why. The atrocities we are witnessing are horrifying. It is callous, even cruel, to sit by and do nothing. That does not, however, mean that doing something requires violence. There are other options that do not require the sword.
In fact (again, see my previous post), many Ukrainians have been living out those other options. They have prayed and sang hymns. They have resisted nonviolently. They have stood in the way of tanks and made them turn around. They have blocked streets with cranes and cement blocks. They have removed street signs to confuse Russian troops. They have shown comfort and mercy to Russian soldiers. They have demonstrated their dignity and humanity to the oppressor. They have provided witness to the very sort of creative, nonviolent resistance that Jesus encouraged his disciples to engage in. The kind that, believe it or not, has worked repeatedly in history. In Gandhi’s movement for independence in India. In the candlelight vigils and non-violent protests that removed the Iron Curtain in Eastern Europe. In the actions of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and his allies during the American Civil Rights Movement of the 1950s and 60s. In the 2004 Orange Revolution in…wait for it, Ukraine!
So why aren’t we talking about that? Why are we not telling those inspiring tales? Why are we not talking about mobilizing a sustained non-violent effort against the Russian invaders?
The hard fact is that Putin and his forces are hell bent on taking Ukraine, and a martial response will gain nothing but death (as Edwin Starr sang, ‘war ain’t nothin’ but a heartbreaker/friend only to the undertaker’). People cheered in the days prior to the invasion as Ukraine armed grandmothers and children. Now grandmothers and children are dying. There is no viable military solution here. Strike back at Putin and the Russians, and they fire more bullets and drop more bombs. Get NATO involved, and there will be a broader war with even more bombs. Some of which may be nukes. I repeat: there is no viable military solution here, no way to take up the sword, that doesn’t both result in increased casualties (both military and civilian) and threaten a regional, perhaps even global, war the likes of which we have never seen. We may be able to understand why people would take up arms against an invader, but in the final analysis Jesus was right: those who take up the sword die by the sword even as they kill their enemies. Violence begets violence.
And here’s the bottom line for followers of Jesus (I presume most reading this post are): even if there were a viable military solution, that solution would be off limits for us. We can neither pursue nor champion such a solution, for we belong to the Kingdom of the Lamb. We must, instead, pursue and champion the long hard path of creative, nonviolent resistance.
That is our only option. Not to fight, but to love. Not to strike, but to pray. To wage war not as the world does, but as Christ has (See, 2 Corinthians 10:4).
Again, I understand why Christians are enthralled by the Ukrainian stand and why they want to do something to help. But all Christians, both those in Ukraine and elsewhere, must remember who they are. They, that is, we, must remain true to the Gospel call to creative nonviolent resistance and lift up such means as an alternative to war.
For that, as hard as it may be, is the way of Jesus.
Under Christ’s Mercy,
Brent