Deuteronomy 30.19: I have set before you life and death, blessings and curses. Choose life. There are now relatively few people among us who remember the outbreak of war in 1939; I am one of the younger of them; I was 12 at the time. None of us knew what to expect; the Government feared the Germans were going to bomb London that day, and all of us had our gas-masks ready and carried them about all the time in cardboard boxes. The Government was, of course, mistaken, about the timing and the gas, but not about the bombing. London was destructively attacked by the Germans the next year, and Dresden more destructively, later still, by us.
In a few years’ time, there will be none left here who can recall the Second World War, but there will still be memories of later conflicts, and rulers may still think that killing people is a good way of getting what they want, whether an increase in their power or a reduction in the power of others, or simply to curry favours from people stronger than them.
It is not easy for Christians to cope with the problems that war evokes. I sympathize with those who wish to support their country through thick and thin; I devoted my professional life to doing so. I also feel particularly for those soldiers and others who are poisoned in the field by depleted uranium weapons deployed by their fellows or who are shattered by friendly fire; I have been a soldier myself, though not in battle. I comprehend politicians who see war as an easy answer to their problems, but in 1974, when the Greek authorities mounted a coup in Cyprus and this country was invited to join in a Turkish invasion, in accordance with our treaty obligations, I recommended that we should break our word and refrain from fighting; it did little to help Cyprus, but it prevented the conflict from spreading. Such choices are disturbing, and, afterwards, there is no way to be sure what would have happened if a different choice had been made. I accept that sometimes war can be the lesser of two evils; we were right to go to war in 1939; I did not think the war in Vietnam justified; it is difficult to support obvious failures.
For Christians, war brings opportunities as well as tragedies. The feeling of solidarity and comradeship, of courage and readiness, is something we could all benefit from in peacetime too. War can bring a sense of common purpose; the ideal of putting the interests of the community above those of the individual is inspiring at the time and after, on such days as this. The two world wars did much to foster the social freedom and influence of women, and the influx of refugees enriched our society, notably in Hampstead. War can also induce that spirit of living for the day and not worrying about tomorrow of which Jesus spoke.
But the main purpose of war is killing people, or at least destroying their physical capacities. We are at war at present, against ‘Iraqis whose views differ from those of the American and British Governments. Some Americans assert that God inspired their country to invade Afghanistan and ‘Iraq; I fear they only read the bloodier sections of the books of Exodus and Joshua, I am not persuaded that Old Testament nationalism or the ecstatic visions of the book of Revelation are a guide to Christian obligations today. We need to be inspired by a clear picture of God as Jesus knew him. How could the God who loves us all want any of us to be killed? I know religion has been cited over and over again as a justification for war, but I do not understand how people who call themselves Christians can assert that killing is in accordance with the will of God or condone killing in the name of God.
I do not want to suggest that, for individuals, dying is a great disaster. People ought only to believe that when those they leave behind are going to suffer for it. I do not believe that being dead does one any harm. If it brings one closer to God it must be a benefit. But that doesn’t mean that for anyone to kill other people is right. The destruction war brings must also be an evil in principle. It is worst in primitive societies like Darfur where people have hardly anything and are yet robbed of all they have, but in advanced societies, too, where, as I have seen, a bomb can suddenly strip a house of its intimacies, it is difficult to face the loss, not simply of property, but of an important part of one’s identity. The Christian should look for ways to avoid or to prevent war, however difficult the task may be. What Christians have to do beyond this is, in mourning the dead, to thank God for their sacrifice and to ask him to care for our present armed forces. It is our job to seek peace and induce our leaders to pursue it, however keen to stir up war their friends may be. The European Union is a remarkable example of the coming together of former enemies for peaceful cooperation and constructive activity; whatever the difficulties of the job. Even though those difficulties become greater as more countries join the Union and the Union inevitably becomes weaker thereby, yet it has so far maintained the constructive ideals on which it was founded.
Meanwhile, this is a special day on which we should ponder our country’s past mistakes and seek the forgiveness of God for them. We mourn all those, in each country, who have suffered in conflicts of every kind, including with particular affection current and former members of this congregation; we remember with gratitude those who have died; and we pray for peace, not just here, but throughout the world, remembering in particular our armed forces, our leaders whose duty it is to pursue peace, and those regions where there is no peace today.
Amen
Alan Goodison