Category Archives: Pacifism

Pacifism: Fitting Government into the Story

We next approach the question from within the framework of the story (or narrative) of the Bible. In Genesis 3, man and creation were cursed because of sin. This curse brought forth pain in childbirth, strife in marriage, weeds in … Continue reading

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Pacifism: A Thought Experiment

Reflect back on the first few posts where we learned that Lipscomb and Yoder point out that the Bible says governments will be placed under Jesus’ feet, arguing that in a sense all governments — good and bad — are … Continue reading

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Pacifism: A Culture of Life, Part 2

Of course, merely having love as a motivation does not make things right. We need to act with an informed, intelligent love that is shaped and constrained by the gospel. The gospel tells us that it’s good to risk life … Continue reading

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Pacifism: A Culture of Life, Part 1

It’s become common for Christians to speak of the importance of a “culture of life,” a phrase popularized by Pope John Paul II and dealt with extensively in his Evangelium Vitae (Gospel of Life). John Paul II argues against abortion … Continue reading

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Pacifism: John Howard Yoder, Part 2

Christian subordination Yoder criticizes the positivistic view of government — that whatever government is in power is in power due to God’s will and therefore the government’s will is God’s will. The obvious counter-example is Hitler, and the argument against … Continue reading

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Pacifism: John Howard Yoder, Part 1

The late John Howard Yoder’s seminal The Politics of Jesus has had a dramatic impact on evangelical thought since its publication in 1972. I’ve read it twice and plan on reading it again. It’s that deep and that important. Yoder … Continue reading

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Pacifism: David Lipscomb and Civil Government

David Lipscomb was the editor of the Gospel Advocate for nearly half a century, from the late 19th Century and early 20th Century. As a result, he was perhaps the most influential man in the Churches of Christ that were … Continue reading

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Pacifism: The Early Church

The conventional pacifist argument is made by David Hoekema, executive director of the American Philosophical Association — The early Christian community understood Jesus’ commands to prohibit the bearing of arms. Christians refused to join the military, even though the Roman … Continue reading

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Pacifism: Introduction

I’ve been planning on studying pacifism since high school, I suppose. And I’ve just never gotten around to it. But it does keep coming up. I finished high school in 1972. The class of 1970 had draft lottery numbers for … Continue reading

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