Comments on: Pacifism: A Culture of Life, Part 2

By: Gary Cummings

Gary Cummings — Sun, 25 Oct 2009 05:49:51 +0000

Tim and Jay,
To me as a commited Christian pacifist, non-violence and pacifism are the same. I trust God for my defense and for the defense of my wife. Personally, I try to be consistently pro-life: no executions, no war, and no abortions. I own no guns, but would and have hunted for fod in the past. I have lived and worked in some rough spots, and God has always protected my wife and I. One time I was almost beaten to death while working in a state hospital for my CO work. I have made it a point to go with non-violent responses as my first and only resort. I say this after being raised in a military home and going through ROTC in high school. I know how to use weapons and chose not to do so as part of my discipleship to Jesus.
Peace is not a way of several for followers of Jesus, it is an intrinsic part of His way we are called to follow.

By: Jay Guin

Jay Guin — Sun, 25 Oct 2009 01:16:25 +0000

Tim,

There are all kinds of pacifists. Some reject all violence. Some reject all killing. Some approve defensive killing. Some don’t. Even here, pacifistic commenters vary considerably.

But I’m really not writing to attack a particular kind of pacifism or all kinds of pacifism. I’m doing what I said at the beginning: thinking outloud on the subject.

And that means the posts won’t be in a rigidly logical structure. Rather, the idea is to look for firm handholds and to then see where they lead.

By: Tim Archer

Tim Archer — Sat, 24 Oct 2009 17:47:47 +0000

Are pacifism and nonviolence always the same thing? I thought they were different, yet you seem to be treating them as the same.

For example, you’ve referred to Lipscomb’s views on war, yet Lipscomb believed in the use of force in personal self defense. To my mind he supports pacifism, but not strict non-violence.

I’m probably the one confused, so please help me out here.

Grace and peace,
Tim Archer

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Sat, 24 Oct 2009 13:47:31 +0000

I second that, excellent post Jay.

By: Alan

Alan — Sat, 24 Oct 2009 13:41:45 +0000

Excellent post.

Here’s a passage that illustrates a couple of your points. First, it shows a conflict between two different scriptural teachings (contrast to the commandment “Thou shall not kill.”.) Second, it shows that the ethical choice can depend on circumstances.

Ex 22:2-3a “If a thief is caught breaking in and is struck so that he dies, the defender is not guilty of bloodshed; but if it happens after sunrise, he is guilty of bloodshed. “