"But There Is No Peace"
The Rev. Dr. Maynard Pittendreigh
Sunrise Presbyterian Church
Jeremiah 8:10-11
It was not that long ago.
You remember where you were when you heard the news.
You will always remember. You will tell your children and your grandchildren where you were when you first heard about a plane crashing into the World Trade Center.
You will tell them how you felt when you heard about another plane crashing into the Pentagon. Or the second plane hitting the other World Trade Center’s tower. Or the news of how passengers stood up to the terrorists of a fourth plane and kept them from crashing into -- well, who knows? The White House? The Capital?
And you will never forget the rage you felt on September 11th.
But now the rage has passed and rational thought is returning. Advocates for peace are beginning to speak against our war against terrorist.
I’m reminded of my youth. When I was 18 years old, I signed up for the draft -- not a registration -- it was a draft back then. We were fighting a war in Vietnam. It was a war I’d grown up with. On the day I registered for that draft, I could not remember a time when the war had not been discussed around our family table each night while watching the evening news.
My generation protested that war. We sang songs about "All we are saying, is give peace a chance."
Now I watch a growing peace movement once again. And once again they are singing songs.
I serve the Prince of Peace, but I’m troubled by the words of Jeremiah. "There is no peace."
In the days immediately after the attacks, this church held several special prayer services. On the first Sunday after the attacks, our members met on our street corner and waved American flags and celebrated our patriotism. I’ve heard many of our World War II Veterans say how they wished they could sign up again.
But that was our immediate response.
As time goes by, however, it becomes easier for us to realize there is a great spiritual struggle.
We responded to the attacks with a cry for war, but upon reflection, our memories begin to recall something very important -- or rather someone. Christ. The Prince of Peace.
Christ -- who called us to turn the other cheek.
Christ -- who urged us to love all people.
Christ -- who commanded us to pray for our enemy.
So, as Christians, how do we respond to these attacks?
War has always been difficult for Christians. And rightfully so.
Many have personally experienced this struggle, and one of the most notable was a simple boy from the mountains of Tennessee.
He was a devout Christian, but he was called to serve in the army during the first World War.
He was filled with doubts as to whether or not he could actually kill another person.
His captain was well versed in Scripture, and the two of them entered a long discussion.
The soldier from Tennessee pointed out that the Bible said, "Thou shalt not kill."
The captain replied with a quote from Luke 22:36, "Jesus said to them, "But now if you have a purse, take it, and also a bag; and if you don’t have a sword, sell your cloak and buy one."(NIV)
Back and forth the two quoted Scripture to one another until the captain mentioned Ezekiel 33, in which God places a responsibility for defending one’s homeland.
"Son of man, speak to your countrymen and say to them: ’When I bring the sword against a land, and the people of the land choose one of their men and make him their watchman, and he sees the sword coming against the land and blows the trumpet to warn the people, then if anyone hears the trumpet but does not take warning and the sword comes and takes his life, his blood will be on his own head."
Ezekiel 33:2-4 (NIV)
With that verse, the young soldier from Tennessee began to understand that sometimes it is necessary for Christians to engage in warfare. His name was Sgt. York and he did indeed fight in a war. In one battle, he faced more than two dozen enemy machine guns all alone in the Argonne Forest. For that he was awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor.
We have lived at peace for many years.
That peace ended on September 11th, but in the time that has followed, many of us are struggling with issues of faith. These are struggles worth engaging. These are questions that need to be asked.
But as we ask them, let us be careful, lest we become more like the religious leaders of Jeremiah’s day: "They dress the wound of my people as though it were not serious. "Peace, peace," they say, when there is no peace." (Jeremiah 8:10-11)
Like it or not, there is no peace and we are at war.
Remember the speech Patrick Henry gave to the Second Virginia Convention in 1775? You’re immediate answer is probably "no," but there is a great line from that speech I bet you’ll recognize.
I’ll get to that famous line in a moment, but first, let me share one of the lesser known lines of Patrick Henry’s speech: "It is natural for man to indulge in the illusions of hope. We are apt to shut our eyes against a painful truth and listen to the song of the siren, till she transforms us into beasts..."
But no matter how much we would like to close our eyes and imagine it is as peaceful as September 10th, it can’t be done. Violence has been thrust upon us against our will.
It will also be easy to look at the nation of Afghanistan as an impossible place that hasn’t been successfully invaded for many centuries. It will be easy to look at the experience of the Soviets in their war with the Afghans years ago and say, "it was a Vietnam War for the Soviets and it’ll be another Vietnam War for us." We’ll look at ourselves and say terrorism is too great an enemy.
To this more of Patrick Henry’s lesser remembered words from his 1775 speech address us in our present age: "They tell us we are weak; unable to cope with so formidable an adversary. But when shall we be stronger? Will it be the next week, or the next year ... Shall we gather strength by irresolution and inaction? Shall we acquire the means of effectual resistance by lying supinely on our backs, and hugging the delusive phantom of hope, until our enemies shall have us bound us hand and foot? Sir, we are not weak, if we make a proper use of the means which the God of nature hath placed in our power... Besides, we shall not fight our battles alone. There is a God who presides over the destinies of nations, and who will raise friends to fight our battles for us. The battle, sir, is not to the strong alone; it is to the vigilant, the active, the brave... Gentlemen may cry peace, peace -- but there is no peace. The war is actually begun ... "
Patrick Henry knew his Bible well. He clearly was reflecting on our reading from Jeremiah.
Not once on September 10th, 2001, did it ever occur to me that I would look back on that day and want the rest of my life to continue as it had been in those 24 hours. All of us would like to continue to live our lives in air conditioned homes, going to movies, taking children to school, complaining about gas prices, and thinking the stock market is finally ready to start climbing upward once again. The lives we lived on September 10th were dear to us and in the weeks and months ahead we might think it easy to believe that we can simply live as if September 11th never happened. We will find our voices complaining about increased taxes to pay for the war. We will complain about military buildup. We will protest when our sons and fathers are sent to war. We’ll become angry when one of them dies. We’ll grieve over loss of income and dwindling retirement funds.
But remember those best known words from Patrick Henry’s speech -- the one phrase we all remember learning as children in school ... "Is life so dear, or peace so sweet, as to be purchased at the price of chains and slavery? Forbid it, Almighty God! I know not what course others may take; but as for me, give me liberty or give me death!"
