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Contents
Fickle public, capricious peace; or Why I am irked by politicians, public and media now against the war
 I have vivid memories from a couple of years ago of watching on TV as people around the world flooded the streets in protest against the United States engaging in a war with Iraq. Never before in history had people been so quickly mobilized against a war.However, the images of the war protests would soon fade from our TV screens. I remember those who called for patience and a completion of the inspections for weapons of mass destruction (WMDs) in Iraq. People within the U.S. peace community didn't buy Secretary of State Colin Powell's case before the UN Security Council or the reports of WMDs or the Al Qaeda-Iraq connections. There were many people who were opposed to the war before it began. Information sources within the peace community told a different story than what the mainstream media presented. Our sources questioned the validity of justifications for going to war. They also told us that if we went to war, there would be large numbers of civilian deaths (currently estimated to be around 30,000, the population of a good-sized city). Politicians and military leaders played down, and continue to forget, these casualties of war. A preemptive war plan, which went against a long history of U.S. war engagement, was presented to the American public as a rational and self-protective strategy. If we did not take out Saddam immediately, we might find our nation under a mushroom cloud or choking from chemical weapons. Most politicians, citizens and the media bought the Bush Administration's case hook, line and sinker. That administration seemed hell-bent on going to war against a world of opposition but the majority of Americans and their elected politicians were willing to take up arms once again against a perceived enemy. I still remember the tanks rolling into Baghdad, the toppling of Saddam's statue and the president landing on the carrier U.S.S. Abraham Lincoln to announce "victory" in Iraq. I cannot soon forget the feeling of being alienated and frustrated by the political agenda and cultural environment after the war with Iraq began. While the death toll of U.S. and Iraqi soldiers and civilians mounted, U.S. citizens put flags on their cars. I heard rhetoric that sounded a lot like propaganda: "If you are not with us, you are against us"; "United we stand"; "God bless America." The media seemed to be "in-bedded." A tunnel-vision administration was determined to "stay the course," while daily images of car bombings and frightened hostages filled our living rooms. The few public voices of protest against the war were castigated as being "unpatriotic" or "un-American." The majority of the U.S. Congress, public and media seemed to be waving their flags and approving billions of dollars to continue a war that many saw as "unwinnable." I'm not sure exactly what it was that caused politicians, the public and the media to turn a corner on the war in Iraq and change its view of the current administration. Was it the sheer boredom of watching the daily chaos and destruction on the news coming out of Iraq? Was it the public recognition that WMDs could not be found and reasons for going to war were fabricated at worst and distorted at best? Was it the increasing body count of more than 2,000 soldiers, while their flag-draped coffins were hidden from public view? Was it Cindy Sheehan, who presented to the public the face of a grieving mother opposed to the war? Was it Hurricane Katrina exposing our own poverty, lack of domestic agenda and unpreparedness for disaster? Maybe it was all of these things that caused more and more politicians, the public and the media to take a different stance on the war with Iraq. And that's what irks me. Only after billions of dollars have been spent (wasted, in my opinion), countless villages destroyed, tens of thousands of people slaughtered, democracy hijacked, innocent civilians detained and imprisoned, truth assassinated, Christian faith compromised and no clear exit strategy presented do we see more political and public questioning and opposition to the war in Iraq. It's not that I'm disappointed that more people have become uncomfortable with the war. It just seems that this shift in the political winds appears so capricious in light of the ultimate cost of war. Why weren't most of these people against the war from the get-go? But then I realize that in general politicians, the public and the media do not follow the peaceful way of Jesus or nonviolence as an unconditional ethical principle. The longest night by Melanie Zuercher
 When I was younger, my favorite day of the year was June 21, the summer solstice, the day when there was the most daylight. But in the last decade or so, especially since I began to celebrate Advent more deliberately, my favorite day has become the shortest day of the year: Dec. 21, the winter solstice.In the Northern Hemisphere, the winter solstice marks "the longest night," the 24 hours in which there are the most hours and minutes of darkness and the fewest hours and minutes of daylight. So on Dec. 22, the pendulum begins to swing back. The tide begins to turn. The daylight begins to increase, and will do so for another six months. This season, there will be a worship service on the longest night at my Mennonite church here in Newton, Kan. The pastor learned of "Longest Night" services from the Presbyterians-like me, he has personal experience with that denomination, although this was not something I remember observing in either of the Presbyterian congregations I attended during my years living in eastern Kentucky. When I looked up the practice on the Internet, I found that churches of all denominations regularly hold these services on December 21-I found examples from United Methodist, Lutheran, Disciples of Christ and United Church of Christ as well as Presbyterian congregations. A worship service for the longest night is meant to recognize that at a time when our Western culture says we should be happy, joyful, festive, eager to bustle about and full of good cheer, many of us are anything but-and being surrounded by what seems like overwhelming evidence that "everyone feels happy but me" can make it even worse. For many, the reasons are deeply personal. We have lost a loved one and their face and voice will no longer be part of our traditional celebration of Christmas and New Year's (and I recognize that we may be missing a creature other than human, as I lost my beloved cat of 16 years during the holiday season five years ago). A cherished relationship has ended in estrangement or other permanent separation. We are watching the health of someone we love fail, or our own health may be deteriorating. We may be facing divorce, infertility, unemployment, homelessness, poverty, inability to provide for a family (especially children) in a way they need or expect. You can fill in the blanks yourself. In addition, the state of the world does not necessarily inspire great hope. We know that people are suffering in our own country, in Pakistan and India, in Guatemala and other parts of Central America, in southeast Asia, as the result of enormous natural disasters that have occurred in the past year. People are displaced by war all over the world. Children are forced to be soldiers or to sell their bodies on the streets for sheer survival. Women are raped and girls are denied education. Thousands of Muslims as well as Christians around the globe have been waiting and praying throughout this Advent season for the lives and freedom of four Christian Peacemaker Teams members. Two long-term CPTers, James Loney (Canada) and Tom Fox (United States), and two members of the CPT delegation that Loney was leading, Norman Kember (United Kingdom) and Harmeet Singh Sooden (Canada), went missing in Baghdad sometime during the weekend of Nov. 25-27. Their hosts call themselves the Swords of Righteousness Brigade. They demanded the release of all Iraqi prisoners held inside and outside Iraq by Dec. 10-which happened to be International Human Rights Day-or the men would be killed. But more than a week later, as of this writing, there has been no word from or about the four. Since Nov. 29, when the men's disappearance was publicly confirmed, there have been vigils held all over the United States and Canada and around the world, and thousands (probably tens of thousands) of prayers said, for these four men and for all who are held prisoner in Iraq and around the world because of how their consciences directed them to be and to act. How long the night must seem for the families and loved ones of prisoners like James, Tom, Norman and Harmeet. For Christians in this season of Advent, how endless the waiting. The earth still turns on its axis. For six months, it moves away from the sun. On Dec. 21, we in the Northern Hemisphere will know the longest night of the year. And on Dec. 22, the earth will continue to turn on its axis. Only now it will begin moving back toward the sun. "In him was life, and the life was the light of all people. The light shines in darkness, and the darkness did not overcome it" (John 1:4-5, NRSV). No matter how long the night, the light can never be extinguished. [Author's note: To read more about Tom Fox, Norman Kember, James Loney and Harmeet Singh Sooden and some of the statements made on their behalf over the past weeks, go to <http://www.cpt.org/iraq/response/resources.php>.] Otterville by Merrill R. Miller
 "Otterville" is copyrighted and is not to be reproduced in any form without permission. Contact Merrill Miller at <merrill@mph.org> A note from the publisher by Susan Mark Landis
As we go on-line on Dec. 20, we invite you to continue to pray for everyone living in Iraq-the people of Iraq, the occupying forces, the four Christian Peacemaker Team members gone missing (see "The longest night" by Melanie Zuercher) and their hosts. Pray that we as humans, and the institutions of our governments, learn that violence begets violence and that from the seeds the tree will grow. We at PeaceSigns believe that the only action that stops violence is undeserved love, modeled after the sacrificial suffering of our Lord, Jesus Christ. May our faith in Christ grant us each the strength and courage to daily step back from violence and choose peace.
Although it's just five days until Christmas, here are some ways to join in the spirit of the season and to pray for peace and act for peace: Christian Peacemaker Teams needs our support, perhaps now more than ever. For updates, visit the CPT Web site at <http://www.cpt.org>. The Peace and Justice Support Network Web site has resources and locations of prayer vigils for the missing CPT workers; see <http://peace.mennolink.org/articles/cptmissing.html>. This situation with the missing CPTers has cost, and will cost many, many thousands of dollars in phone bills and future plane fares. Donate on-line <http://peace.mennolink.org/supportcpt.html> or mail a donation (see <http://www.cpt.org/donate.php#addresses>). Mennonite Church USA is a founding and supporting denomination of Christian Peacemaker Teams, which is why we take this unprecedented action of inviting your contributions during this unexpected time of financial crisis for CPT. Celebrate the coming of the Prince of Peace with a gift that costs time instead of money. Some ideas for how to give something for nothing are just a click away:
A Christmas greeting
a day is coming
a day is comingwhen wars will cease nations will rejoice hope will spring forth a day is coming when death will be no more pain will be healed tears will be dried a day is coming when love will reign supreme joy will overflow peace will fill the earth a day is coming when the old will feel young the young will be wise and the wise will be heard a day is coming when guns will become shovels tanks become merry-go-rounds and the soldier and peacemaker will ride together a day is coming…
The spirit of Christmas present
 I am re-reading, as I do most years at this time, Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol. While not explicitly a Christian story, it is nonetheless a story of Christian love, joy and redemption. "Christian History & Biography," an internet site of Christianity Today, has an interesting and timely article about A Christmas Carol (see <http://www.christianitytoday.com/history/newsletter/2002/dec20.html>.This article points out that Dickens was a Unitarian and that "his God blessed all, his Christ was a very good man, his religion countenanced no creeds, and his Bible yielded only noble precepts for living." Strictly speaking, he was not a Christian. The article also includes this quote taken from The Life of Our Lord, written by Dickens and published after his death: "It is christianity [sic] to do good always-even to those who do evil to us. It is christianity to love our neighbor as ourself, and to do to all men as we would have them do to us. It is christianity to be gentle, merciful, and forgiving, and to keep those qualities quiet in our own hearts, and never make a boast of them, or of our prayers or of our love of God, but always to shew that we love him by humbly trying to do right in everything." Not bad for someone who is regarded technically not to be a Christian. 
The story of A Christmas Carol is one of redemption. Ebenezer Scrooge is "a squeezing, wrenching, grasping, scraping, clutching, covetous old sinner!" Following visits by four spirits, those of his former business partner Jacob Marley and then the spirits of Christmases Past, Present and Future, Scrooge's heart is softened, his humanity restored and his repentance and redemption obtained. As the story concludes: "He became as good a friend, as good a master, and as good a man, as the good old city knew, or any other good old city, town, or borough, in the good old world." A Christmas Carol has something to say not only of love and personal redemption but also of peace and justice. First, we must remember that peace, in the broadest, biblical meaning of the term, is not simply the absence of violence or war. Rather, it is a holistic, all-encompassing sense and presence of well-being. Healthy, right relationships between people and God, and people within themselves, with each other and with the whole creation, are what the Bible calls shalom.
Of course, this idea of justice flies in the face of the common notion that justice is about punishment, getting even or insuring that those who have done wrong will get what they deserve. God's idea of justice instead focuses on insuring that people (and the creation) get what they need, rather than what they deserve. The blind need to be able to see, the lame need to be able to walk, those in prison need to be free, those perishing in sin need redemption. Once again, Dickens seems to understand this biblical principle. Here is an excerpt from A Christmas Carol (Chapter 3: The Second of the Three Spirits): And at the same time there emerged from scores of bye-streets, lanes, and nameless turnings, innumerable people, carrying their dinners to the bakers' shops. The sight of these poor revellers appeared to interest the Spirit very much, for he stood with Scrooge beside him in a baker's doorway, and taking off the covers as their bearers passed, sprinkled incense on their dinners from his torch. And it was a very uncommon kind of torch, for once or twice when there were angry words between some dinner-carriers who had jostled each other, he shed a few drops of water on them from it, and their good humour was restored directly. For they said, it was a shame to quarrel upon Christmas Day. And so it was! God love it, so it was! "Is there a peculiar flavour in what you sprinkle from your torch?" asked Scrooge. "There is. My own." "Would it apply to any kind of dinner on this day?" asked Scrooge. "To any kindly given. To a poor one most." "Why to a poor one most?" asked Scrooge. "Because it needs it most." Why does the Spirit's favor apply to "a poor one most"? "Because it needs it most." Justice is done. Certainly, we are all aware of the many needs in our world and we are especially aware at the time of Christmas. Nonetheless, it is vital that we, like the Spirit, reach out to those who "[need] it most." It will not be too late when this issue of PeaceSigns arrives to add one gift (or more) to your Christmas list. Perhaps some of the following will be places to which you have already given or perhaps they will be new to you. Ask God, who has blessed us richly, to show you one more place to give and to enable you to do so. I am reminded of the quotation from Aristides, cited in Ron Sider's book The Scandal of the Evangelical Conscience (51-52): "He that hath, distributeth liberally to him that hath not… if there is among them a man that is poor and needy, and they have not an abundance of necessaries, they fast two or three days that they may supply the needy with their necessary food." Some of those who "need it most," 2005
Cranberry salad and connections
Finally everything is ready. We gather around the festive table for a holiday meal. In the pause while heads are bowed, I look around the table, celebrating my connections. Of course, there are the connections to family and friends, but what about the connections to the food, to the people who helped bring the food to me, to the people who raised the food, to the land on which it was grown?
Heads are raised and the quiet is over. Food, laughter and conversation flow. The cranberry salad is passed my way and suddenly I am transported to the bogs from which we picked the cranberries in early October. High on a mountain, we hike or bike several miles and there for the taking are spread millions of tiny cranberries half hidden in the gorgeous lush moss. Kneeling on the damp ground, we pick enough cranberries for our holiday feasts. Around us, the autumn colors are bright and the air is crisp and clear with that moist woods aroma. It is easy to feel connected here-to the cranberries, the mountains, the air, the people who have preserved this area as a national forest, and the Creator. But my cranberry salad also takes apples, oranges and sugar. The connection to the apples is easy enough: They come from the apple trees on our farm. However, oranges and sugar come from much further away. My connection to them seems weak, like a poor connection on the telephone. I'm not getting a full signal. However, there seems to be a connection to mass marketing, to long-distance transportation, to migrant labor, to pesticides, to questionable land use practices, to. . . Part of me is glad the connection or the signal is weak with regard to the oranges and sugar. But knowing the joy I have from the deep connection with the cranberries and apples, I'd like to experience that joy more often. I find that eating local seasonal foods makes strong, joyful connections and even makes for peace. (But that's a topic for another column.) For now, during this holiday season, celebrate the strong, joyful connections of eating local, seasonal foods. [Editor's note: Mary Beth Lind is the co-author, with Cathleen Hockman-Wert, of Simply in Season: Recipes that celebrate fresh, local foods in the spirit of More with Less (Herald Press, 2005). The cookbook is a helpful resource both for making connections and for preparing local seasonal foods; the cranberry salad recipe Mary Beth writes about here can be found on page 192. For more information on Simply in Season, go to <http://www.mph.org/hp/books/SimplyinSeason.htm>; the easiest way to order is through Amazon.com. Mary Beth will be writing an occasional "Earth Care" column while Kristi Bahrenburg Janzen is on maternity leave. For those who already have "Simply in Season" and would like to learn what others think of the recipes, read additional comments and ideas from the authors and/or join in the discussion on using local, seasonal foods, go to the "Simply in Season" blog at <http://simplyinseason.blogspot.com/>.]
Teach us to comfort
God,
I'm listening to the radio, and it's telling the news. News of change in the company pension. "Competitors pay less, and so will we," says the man. Employees are loyal although the boss needn't be. But someone won't have enough to last through old age. Where's the justice in that? I ask. "Comfort. O Comfort, my people," you whisper in my ear. I'm listening to the radio, and it's telling the news. News of tax cuts and subsidies for all but the poor. "Job growth needs a boost," says the politician. More money for yachts and designer gowns. No need for living wages for janitors and such. But someone will choose between heat and the rent. Where's mercy in that? I ask. "Comfort. O Comfort, my people," you whisper in my ear. I'm listening to the radio, and it's telling the news. News of a young man locked up for life. "No tolerance for new violations," says the judge. Neighbors need a safe place to raise a family. But he's freaking out, and no one's been raising him. Where's compassion in that? I ask. "Comfort. O Comfort, my people," you whisper in my ear. I'm listening to the radio, and it's telling the news. News of torture and secret prisons. "We're saving lives," says the woman. Citizens don't understand- extreme measures help keep us alive. But the nation's soul may be lost to stop an attack. Where's the salvation in that? I ask. "Comfort. O Comfort, my people," you whisper in my ear. So, God, I pray, teach me to comfort. Amen. advertisement
Annie Clark
North Manchester, Ind. Thank you for "Gobsmacked" (Road Construction, Nov. 15). It was exactly what I needed. Just a reminder to pick myself up and start over in caring for others. This paragraph was the most helpful: "I invite you during this holiday season first just to sit with the information. Don't stew in guilt... Listen with others to God's call to your congregation." It's like, Okay, I can do that. I can work out of a sense of "we do this because this is what we are to do" rather than guilt. Thank you. This was the meditation of the day. Keith Hamilton Australia In response to the 11/15/2005 issue of PeaceSigns: I just want to compliment you on a great magazine every month. I especially found the opening article ("Gobsmacked") food for thought. Thanks. Brian Terrell Maloy, Iowa With respect toward Tom Beutel, Walter Wink and Wal-mart Watch (Balancing Acts, Nov 15), not all human structures are created by God and not all have a potential for good. Slavery, for example, is not an institution that God wants us to redeem or reform and war is one that God calls us to sweep from the face of the earth. This talk of reforming or redeeming Wal-mart sounds to me like those who earlier spoke for a gentler segregation. No. The God we worship hates Wal-mart. Of course, we must demand that Wal-mart treat its "associates" fairly, provide decent wages and health care and refrain from buying and selling the fruits of slavery and sweatshops. At the same time, we must remember that it is for and through these sleazy practices that Wal-mart exists. Without these ill-gotten, immoral and bloodstained advantages over the mom-and-pop stores, mom and pop are going to win. To seek the kingdom of God and its justice is to struggle for the day when there is no Wal-mart. Tom Beutel responds: In some ways, I could not agree with Brian more. God does hate Wal-mart. At least, I believe God hates the injustices that Wal-mart perpetuates and on which many of its successful business practices rest. However, I must take issue at several points with Brian's passionate response. First, I do believe that in his sovereignty, God at least permits all systems and structures (powers and principalities) and can and will use them for good. But the actions or practices of "systems" and the systems themselves must be distinguished. Plantation owners were the system. Slavery was the practice. Nations are systems. War is the practice. The systems can be redeemed. Their practices, if they cannot be reformed, may need to be eliminated. Frankly, living in a small town I have seen how some "mom and pop" businesses have oppressed the community. Being the "only game in town," these merchants can exact higher prices, living a fairly affluent lifestyle while their customers are scraping by. I'm not railing against small business owners, only saying that it is not only Wal-mart that may be unjust and oppressive. "All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God." Second, there may be a place for a redeemed Wal-mart in this world. There are many items that just are not available in our town except at Wal-mart. Some of these never were and probably never would be. So we must use fossil fuels, doing injustice to the environment and ourselves, to drive to places where these items are available. There is also a scarcity of jobs and Wal-mart employs many in the community. As with sweatshop labor in developing countries, the answer is not necessarily to shut Wal-mart down, putting people out of work. It may instead be to reform it so that people have jobs and also have decent working conditions, fair benefits, etc. Finally, Wal-mart is a symptom of the greed of the consuming public. If we did not seek "always the low price, always," Wal-mart would have to change or go out of business. And I particularly think of Christians who, in the name of "stewardship," explicitly and implicitly support the Wal-mart way of life. We have some degree of culpability in Wal-mart's sin. We can, and should, advocate in a variety of ways for changes in how Wal-mart does business. But we should, at the same time, look into our own hearts to see how we support Wal-mart's practices and ask God's grace in redeeming our own behavior. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
