Uncivilized War
Group A invades the territory of Group B, not recognizing the rights of the people of Group B to exist as a separate people, a separate nation. Who are these groups? They could be any since mankind first populated this Earth in any significant numbers. One group has resources the other group wants, perhaps needs, or think they need. When Group B resists invasion, Group A escalates the violence, destroying homes, killing the inhabitants. Group A justifies the violence saying Group B is inferior, or that Group B was the cause of the violence. People in Group A who weren’t there choose to believe the leaders of Group A, people they know and can’t imagine would lie about their motives and justifications.
Over the millennia, those who consider themselves civilized have made agreements with other leaders they see as their civilized equals about how wars should be conducted. Treaties and conventions are drawn up and signed, hopefully by people who represent the others in their respective groups. While defending oneself and one’s loved ones from attack has been agreed to be justified, invading another’s home or territory and theft of resources is not.
Yet, when winning or losing is at stake, agreements often get set aside, at least behind the scenes, and warfare returns to what works, or seems to have worked, in the past. Genocide against the “other” may result in less resistance from the “other” in the future.
We see the results in the power and resources held by those who win the wars. Everyone likes a winner, right? Or wants to be one.
Peaceful people, those who resist war and who put their energy into trying to build positive relationships, don’t do well when those on the other side of the conflict are willing to use non-peaceful methods to get what they want. Why share the pie with the meek when you can just steal the whole pie, even if you must kill the pie owners to get that which you believe you are entitled to. Entitled by your sense of superiority.
No world or regional power is blameless. As long as power is something one has over another, violence, even atrocities, are how one maintains that power. What is the alternative? Has anyone ever shown us one?
Jesus Christ is one of many who has walked among us and shown us alternatives. While the Old Testament of the Bible tells us of entitlement of one group to dominate others and take their land as “promised” to them by their God, Jesus preached that we should turn the other cheek (Pacifism) and treat our neighbors (the other) as we want to be treated. In fact, every major world religion holds these same tenets. Every single one.
Colonists in the land that eventually became the United States believed that God granted them this land, given them the right to claim the land, even if it meant extinguishing those who resided here before their arrival. The Church had told them so through the Papal Bulls and the Doctrine of Discovery. The colonists and founding fathers really believed themselves to be good Christians (followers of Christ) when they issued edict after edict to remove the Indigenous People by any means necessary, even placing bounties without restriction as to age or gender, paid by the number of scalps turned in for collection.
Many of us are watching in horror as Vladimir Putin’s Russian army indiscriminately bombs civilian homes to weaken and remove the resistance to his takeover of Ukraine. Some are even moved to go to Poland and enlist in the Ukrainian army.
We are also seeing the leaders of Israel bombing hospitals and refugee camps, indiscriminately killing innocent men, women and children to try to kill off all resistance to their oppressive occupation of Palestine. Many of us also want Jewish people to have a safe homeland after their survival of pogroms and genocide. Don’t both Israelis and Palestinians deserve safety and self-determination?
So, why do wars still happen? Why do atrocities against those determined to be “other” still occur? The other may be someone across a border, or someone inside the border that we have decided is less worthy of life, or liberty or the pursuit of happiness. When and how can we live up to those ideals we claim? What gets in the way?
I do not claim to have the answers. I hope that we can continue asking questions of ourselves, our leaders, our representatives. To what extent have we excused atrocities committed on our behalf, or by our own military and police? To what extent do we choose to believe the comforting propaganda that might allow us to look the other way?
