SPIRALS OF VIOLENCE AND RETRIBUTION

Like many of you, I have been horrified by the escalating war between Hamas and
Israel. There are moments when the degree to which our world is awash in
violence leaves me overwhelmed with despair and fear: Hamas and Israel; Ukraine and Russia; civil wars and coups across a wide swath of African nations; Haiti where all semblance of order has collapsed amid gang violence and intimidation. This past weekend’s reality of Jews being senselessly murdered and taken as hostages will not soon leave my mind and must be condemned in the strongest possible terms. Equally heart-breaking is the suffering of Gaza’s residents as power and food are cut off beneath a barrage of Israeli rockets and bombs.

At times like this, each of us processes what is happening in our own way; and we need to show empathy for one another as well as those Jewish or Palestinian neighbors around us.

The first story after the Fall and expulsion from the Garden of Eden is Cain’s violent murder of his brother Abel. (Genesis 4) Humankind seems inevitably drawn to violent retribution. And we’ve certainly seen endless cycles of it in the Mideast. Paul warns against this very tendency to see vengeance in Romans 12:12-21, “Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave room for the wrath of God, for it is written, ‘Vengeance is mine; I will repay, says the Lord.’ Instead, ‘if your enemies are hungry, feed them; if they are thirsty, give them something to drink, for by doing this you will heap burning coals on their heads.’ Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.” Jesus consistently teaches that we treat each other with respect even when we disagree or mutual pain has developed between us.

Jesus lived in a time as violent and brutal as our own. Yet he warns his followers that those who live by the sword will ultimately die by the sword. He invites his followers to resist the endless, ever-escalating spiral of violence. “You have heard it said, ‘An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth.’ But I say to you Do not return violence for violence. (Matthew 5:38) No-one – neither Palestinian nor Israeli – should live in fear of attack or kidnap; yet brutality and violence will only lead to more death and destruction. Violence and retribution are never a long-term contribution to peace.

So in these days of escalating conflict in Gaza, Israel, and the surrounding region, we are invited to pray for peace and to re-commit ourselves to the hard work of peace-making in our families, in our congregations, our communities, and our world.

We are also invited to pray for all church and humanitarian workers seeking to bring Christ’s light and healing to those who have become collateral damage in a struggle for dominance among regional groups with conflicting interests and agendas. Just today, for example, the Middle East Council of Churches’ Department of Service to Palestinian Refugees announced that their center in Gaza has been badly damaged, reducing their ability to provide medical and other assistance; and five of their employees have already lost their homes due to Israeli bombing.

We are invited to pray for regional and world leaders that they might be guided by a greater wisdom in seeking the just and peaceful resolution of a conflict that has already lasted for too many generations and caused so much suffering and sorrow for so many people.

Beyond our prayers, we need to be gentle with each other, treat each other well, keep our hearts and our minds open.

Pastor Thomas

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