CHRISTIAN LEADERS AND THE EVIL OF WAR,

Part II

On Feb. 25, 2022, I posted a piece on this blog, "Christian Leaders and the Evil of War." Eleven days have elapsed now since the start of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. It is time to revisit the topic. How are Christian leaders doing in their reactions to this war?

First, before we talk about "the evil of war," it is useful to go back to the concept of good and evil and its corollary, moral and immoral. What do we mean by these terms? When we call something such as war "evil," what are we saying?

In my view, in its most simplistic sense, "good" is what was defined and described in the first chapter of Genesis. The word "good" appears in the KJV  chapter a total of seven times. At the end of each day, God looked around and called creation "good." At the end of the sixth day, in Verse 31, we read, "And God saw every thing that he had made, and behold, it was very good. And the evening and the morning were the sixth day." Each day was "good," but the totality was "very good."

Two points about this. Firstly, the term, "very good," in Verse 31, is unqualified. It is unconditional. Secondly, the concept of evil does not appear in the story of the creation in the first chapter of Genesis. God's creation is entirely and purely good.

So, when does evil appear and why does it appear? The word evil first appears in Genesis 2:9 in the description of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. Evil does not come from God but rather from humans who know the difference between good and evil and choose to do evil.

Now, for definitions. Following Genesis, I would describe "good" as that which defends, enhances, and promotes God's creation, all of it. "Evil" I would describe as the opposite, that is, whatever threatens, diminishes, and destroys God's creation.

Enacting these forces comes from moral and immoral behavior. Moral behavior would be acts that strive for the good. Immoral behavior would be choosing to do acts that promote evil.

War is a dilemma in the context of good and evil. Not all wars are evil. Since people have a right of self-preservation, a defensive war is not evil and waging it is not immoral (although there can be a fine line between what is defensive and what is offensive; e.g., was dropping two atomic bombs on Japan defensive?). All other kinds of war are evil because they are the wanton destruction of God's creation.

The choice to do good and evil is just that, choice. Even Jesus had to make the choice as we read in Sunday's Gospel lesson. Satan tempted him as much as he could and offered him all sorts of worldly benefits if he would follow evil. Every time, Jesus spurned the devil and rejected evil. Every one of us has to choose every day between good and evil.

Russia's present war on Ukraine is a flagrant, blatant case of an evil and immoral war. It is an unprovoked, unjustified, aggressive, and vicious war against a peaceful neighbor. It is evil in its most naked form because it is wholesale destruction of God's creation.

There is no need to describe here the events of this satanic war. We all see the sickening horrors on our televisions and computers. We all see in graphic detail the murderous attacks and the heartbreaking sufferings of the innocent people. Anyone with a shred of decency longs to help the helpless and innocent victims. In sum, the evil (so far) is: unprovoked and aggressive war, indiscriminate attacks on civilians, refusal to honor safe passages, and the shelling of nuclear power plants. These are all war crimes punishable under international law.

Having described good and evil, moral and immoral, and shown the Russian war against Ukraine to be evil, the question turns to how people who want to do good should react to evil. What should people of faith do now? I see two possible categories of reactions, passive and active. Passive would be a person calling on God to intervene and bring an end to the immoral acts of other people. Active would be a person taking direct action to defeat the evil and aid the good. The Scriptures give us both of these.

In the Gospels, the first active response that jumps to mind is Jesus' cleansing of the temple in Jerusalem. Seeing that money changers and merchants had made the temple "a den of thieves," Jesus made a whip of cords, poured out the money of the changers, overturned their tables, and cast out the pigeon sellers. John 2:13,16, Matthew 21:12-13. In other words, Jesus did not stand passively bewailing this evil and calling on God to change the hearts of the wrongdoers. He took upon himself to get rid of evil. This was active morality. Interesting to note that this was such an important event that it was recounted in all four Gospels. In fact, there is some speculation that this was so powerful that it stirred up opposition that led to Jesus' execution.

Thus, in regard to the war in Ukraine, good people can act passively and actively. We have had plenty of passive with countless prayers for "peace." The problem I see with calling on God to intervene is that God is not a puppeteer pulling the strings of human action. That would negate free will that is a central tenet of ethical religion. People must be free to make their own choices between good and evil and be held accountable for their choices. This is the lesson of Adam and Eve. If we put every event as God's choice, we would have to blame him for the Holocaust. God did not make the Holocaust, immoral human beings making evil choices on a colossal scale did.

While we are praying for "peace," what can we do actively to counter evil? Hard to tell since the situation is rapidly changing drastically. I would start by sending material aid directly to the victims of evil in Ukraine. Every bit of humanitarian goods should be rushed in by train and truck to wherever the deliverers can take it. The people who are suffering the most need our help the most. I am sure you can think of other ways of direct action for good.

As for direct action to make the Russian government stop the war, I cannot see it at this point. Diplomacy should be pursued as much as possible, of course. However, President Putin has shown absolutely no interest in scaling down or stopping this war, quite the opposite. The very heavy sanctions western countries have put on Russia will likely not move Putin.

So, back to the point of how Christian leaders are doing in response to the evil of this war. Overall, I would give them a "B," good but not great. The pope, the Patriarch of Constantinople, and the Archbishop of Canterbury have all spoken out forcefully condemning the war. Find the latest from the pope here , the Patriarch here , and the Archbishop here . Each is finding passive and active roles to play. The three leading figures in the Christian world today have been remarkably strong in their condemnation of this war, and for that we should all be proud.

Adding to the complication of the day is the fact that the church in Ukraine has a peculiar history and is now divided into three unfriendly parts. More than a thousand years ago, the people of Ukraine adopted the Eastern Orthodox version of Christianity from Constantinople. The Patriarch of Moscow came to control the church. Along the way, some Ukrainian bishops transferred their allegiance to the pope in Rome while keeping the Orthodox forms of worship becoming "Uniates," or Ukrainian Catholics. This remains an important force. After Ukraine became an independent country some thirty years ago, the Orthodox church pushed to gain independence from Moscow. In 2018, the Patriarch of Constantinople, head of the Eastern Orthodox churches, recognized the independence of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church. This is now the largest of the three branches. However, Kirill, the Patriarch of Moscow, refused to go along. He insisted on his primacy in Ukraine and recognized his own church under the Moscow patriarchy.

There has been speculation that Kirill encouraged President Putin to invade Ukraine as a way of his (Kirill) regaining control over the Orthodox church there. We do not know yet how much truth there may be in this. What we do know about Kirill does not dampen the speculation. Find a his recent statement here . In my opinion, any church official who would incite, or even encourage, a war for his own benefit would forfeit his right to represent the Prince of Peace.

The independent Orthodox patriarch in Ukraine has spoken out very strongly against the Russian invasion. Find his statement here . There has been a report that he called President Putin the "anti-Christ." Although the emotion is understandable, I do not think we need go that far while we condemn Putin's actions.

Interesting to note that Kirill's patriarch in Kyiv has also condemned the Russian invasion in no uncertain terms. Find his address here . If Kirill aims to restore his authority in Ukraine, he is not getting much help from his own people there.

The farther away from Ukraine one gets, the less interest there seems to be in addressing the war. I have been disappointed by the lackluster response of the Episcopal Church. An institution that has devoted its life to human rights for decades now seems lukewarm toward a most violent assault on human rights. To be sure, Bishop Woodliff-Stanley has issued appropriate statements in support of Ukraine. 

The Anglican dissidents seem even less interested in what is happening in Ukraine. I have seen no response at all from GAFCON which claims to be founded on principles of morality. There has been a mild response from the Anglican Church in North America. Find it here . I have seen no response at all from Bishop Lawrence or bishop-elect Edgar of the Anglican Diocese of South Carolina. Thankfully, someone among the beakaways is speaking out. The Rev. Al Zadig, of St. Michael's, Charleston, condemned the war as "evil." Find it here .

It has been gratifying to see practically the whole world uniting to condemn this war and support the victims. In a recent vote in the United Nations General Assembly, only 4 of the 193 nations voted with Russia against a resolution on the war. NATO and the European Union are resolutely united in support of Ukraine. Along with the Americans, they have imposed harsh sanctions on Russia for this war.

And in the midst of the horrors of this war we see amazing acts of grace, mostly from ordinary, everyday people who know the difference between good and evil and are choosing to do good. Just look at the countless thousands of average citizens in neighboring countries who have rushed to the borders to welcome in the desperate refugees. They are offering food, drink, clothing, rides, jobs, housing, you name it. If this does not warm your heart, nothing will. And, what about the heroic doctors and nurses staying behind to tend the sick and dying, at their own peril? God is with them. Too, as a big railroad fan, I want to give a shout out to the RR staff in Ukraine who are keeping the trains running 24/7 taking out thousands of people free of charge. Without the trains, these people would be left to suffer and die in this war. Anyone who thinks we do not need trains anymore should think again. Moreover, what about the thousands of ordinary Russians who are braving persecution and prison by speaking out against the evil of this war? Plus, what about the diminutive president Zelensky of Ukraine, "the Jewish Churchill"? He has arisen to the occasion.

All in all, we should all be inspired by the vast moral reaction to the egregious horror of immorality now transpiring in Ukraine. People all around the world are arising to denounce and oppose evil. In this dark hour, amazing grace abounds.