Rev.
Ann C. Fox
(508) 992-7081
RevAnnFox@aol.com
Unitarian Universalist
Society of Fairhaven
Peace Consciousness and Our Principles
a sermon by Rev. Ann C. Fox
March 4, 2007
Note: A reading is attached, which you might like to read first.
It is possible that the most powerful country on earth can become the most peace-loving county and model this to the rest of the world if it develops “peace consciousness.” Our nation began in part to do this in the recent past by participating as peacekeepers with other countries in United Nations-sanctioned missions in the former Yugoslavia and in African nations. Our soldiers were then soldiers of peace.
Unitarian Universalists love peace and justice and this is why three of our seven principles support peace in some way. The Second Principle calls us to promote “justice, equity and compassion in human relations.” (It is hard to have compassion and go to war.) The Sixth Principle calls us to promote “the goal of world community with peace, liberty and justice for all.” (Surely it is better to work for diplomatic solutions with the United Nations in times or conflict.) The Seventh Principle calls us to promote “respect for the interdependent web of all existence, of which we are a part.” People are a part of that web.
While counseling us to peace, our principles may prompt us in the face of oppression to take on conflict for we are not pacifists. Pacifists believe that war under any circumstances is morally wrong. Quakers are pacifists. During the Civil War, Abraham Lincoln wrote to a prominent Quaker, “Your people, the Friends, have had, and are having a very great trial. On principle and faith opposed to both war and oppression, they can only practically oppose oppression by war….” (Smith, p.85) Our Civil War was considered a “just” war because it was fought to overcome oppression. Quakers were conflicted and split in their opinion again in World War II, which is also considered a “just” war to overcome the oppression of Nazism.
Just War Theory has been around a long time. Cicero was the first to introduce the concept in Rome in the third century BCE. St. Augustine expounded upon it in the fourth century of the common era (CE) and Thomas Aquinas refined it in the middle-ages. These are some of the components of Just War Theory:
· Just Cause. War can be a just response to an act of aggression.
· Legitimate Authority. War with just cause initiated by a leader who has the support of his or her people.
· Probability of Success: A leader should not enter a conflict knowing that his or her people will be devastated.
· Proportionality: The force used should not be more than necessary. (The bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki was sharply criticized as unnecessary force in World War II.)
· Last resort: War should be embarked upon only if every effort for a diplomatic solution has been exhausted.
Going to war to spread democracy or to secure energy supplies or to bring down a dictator is not necessarily just. Nations must evolve in their own way. We can help them do that much better by making a “place for them at the table” and dialoging with them. The alternative puts us in a never ending round of conflict, the cost of which is very high indeed and not just in money.
Some of us recently watched the movie “The Ground Truth.” It is a documentary made by soldiers who have come back from Iraq and Afghanistan. They are missing arms, legs, eyes, and other part of their bodies; they have smashed spines, and badly burned faces. But it is in their minds that they suffer the most. Because there is no official “army” that they battle in Iraq, the lives of hundreds of thousands of innocents are lost before their eyes. These particular men and women are broken, angry, confused. Some have turned to putting energy into a peace movement. They could have been soldiers of peace. The Iraq war will eventually end less because of opposition at home and more because of the fatigue of our soldiers for their task. With proper care, they will no doubt heal. However, by all accounts, adequate psychological care is in very short supply. Returning soldiers who are not healing are often labeled as having a “personality disorder.” This means that they had this when they went into the service so it is not the military’s business to be fixing them now.
It is time for a humor break: The new army recruit was given guard duty at from midnight to 8 AM. He did his best for a while, but at about 4 a.m. he nodded off to sleep. He awakened to see the boots of the officer of the day standing before him. Remembering the heavy penalty for being asleep on guard duty, this smart young man kept his head bowed for another moment and looked upward and reverently said, “Aaahmen!”
I believe that as a nation, we are losing our stomach for war, not from cowardice but from courage and compassion. We would like to solve problems quickly but when other countries are concerned, we must cultivate patience, deep listening, and diplomatic techniques. We develop peace consciousness by studying peace, thinking about peace, talking about peace, and taking peaceful action in our lives at home, in the community, and then on the world stage.
In reviewing my sermons since 2001, I was surprised to find that I have preached on peace in 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006 and now 2007. I believe I am following a trend in our denomination and I am simply raising up the obvious that is already amongst us: war is not the way to peace. Peace IS the way. Last year, the delegates at our 2006 General Assembly in St. Louis, selected “Peacemaking” to be the 2006 through 2010 Congregational Study/Action Issue (CSAI) of our Association. Following the 2006 vote, they created a timeline for this study. The first thing was to create a Peacemaking Study Guide by November 2006. I have downloaded this Guide and have some copies available for you. At our 2007 General Assembly in Portland, Oregon, there will be many workshops on peacemaking. The denomination hopes that we will study peacemaking and do public witness for peacemaking in our communities for the next few years. There are several ideas in the Resource Guide for reading and activities and there are also questions for us to ponder. Here are a few interesting ones:
· Should we adopt a specific and detailed “just war” policy to guide our efforts in peacemaking?
· Should we reject violence in any form?
· How do we open our hearts to divergent views about peacemaking?
· What are the hallmarks of peaceful cultures?
· How can we honor and support the challenges of military and law enforcement personnel and their families?
There are many other insightful questions.
The UUA Resource Guide has many suggestions in the areas of Interpersonal Conflict and Peacemaking, Inter-Community and International Conflict, UU Philosophy, Theology and Ethics of Peacemaking, Being Effective Peacemakers, and so on. We could form congregation wide Peacemaking Ministry with groups pondering and working on different areas of interest, including prayer and meditation. We could become a Peacemaking Sangha (a Buddhist word for religious community). In this way, we could raise our peace consciousness in a very deep and also practical way. If you wished, you could work with our Worship Associates to offer your own sermon on some aspect of peace consciousness. At the same time, we could work on diverse views amongst us.
“Consciousness” is a state of awareness. What better way to raise our consciousness about peace than in our religious community. Perhaps our shared effort may open us to understandings that we could never have imagined. Perhaps such a Peacemaking Ministry study would change us forever and render us knowledgeable to help others raise their peace consciousness. Of course, what we would be doing also is opening ourselves to compassion for the world and we would be living according to our principles. We would be walking the talk!
In hopes that some of you will be interested in embracing this Peacemaking Ministry, I have put a sign-up sheet out in the Parish Hall. We could have a first meeting and find out what areas we are interested in and form study and discussion groups, which could be fluid as people change their direction and join other groups. It could start with articles we read on aspects of peace and we could have discussions about them. We might read a few of the suggested books in the Resource Guide. A group might like to take some action. It could be a very enjoyable effort for us that we could do in a leisurely way or with great enthusiasm. I’ll put some copies of the Resource Guide next to the sign-up sheet for you to browse. If we run out, I’ll print some more.
Today, after the service, there will be a special congregational meeting to vote on carrying our church banner in public events. I would like it if we can carry the banner in a peace gathering in Boston on Saturday, March 24th. Our meeting today ties in very nicely with the subject of this sixth sermon on peace.
In the reading today, Thich Naht Hanh said, “Looking deeply together is the main task of a [religious] community…” I look forward to doing this with many of you.
References
Hanh, Thich Nhat. Living Buddha, Living Christ, New York, N.Y.: Riverhead Books, G.P. Putnam’s Sons, 1995.
Smith, Robert Lawrence. A Quaker Book of Wisdom, New York, N.Y.: Harper Collins, 1998.
The reading is called “Looking Deeply”
from Living Buddha, Living Christ by Thich Nhat Hanh [Tick Nat Han]
“We often think of peace as the absence of war, that if the powerful countries would reduce their weapons arsenals, we could have peace. But if we look deeply into the weapons, we see our own minds—our prejudices, fears, and ignorance. Even if we transport all the bombs to the moon, the roots of war and the roots of the bombs are still here, in our hearts and minds, and sooner or later we will make new bombs. To work for peace is to uproot war from ourselves and from the hearts of men and women…. Looking deeply together is the main task of a [religious] community…”
© The Rev. Ann C. Fox