Either We Outlaw War Or We Will Perish By It

Some 70% of Gaza, smaller than Rockingham County, has been reduced to rubble, and an astounding number of men, women and children have lost their lives, many of their bodies unrecognizable and/or unrecoverable.

There is a widespread belief that human beings have gradually become more civilized over time, eventually passing laws against things like cannibalism, human trafficking, dueling, torturing, and other practices finally seen as barbaric.

Actually, the opposite appears to be true. In the past century we have become ever more sophisticated in our means of killing, maiming and dismembering people, along with inventing ever more efficient ways of destroying their habitat and the very earth on which we all depend.

Among the books I've read recently are Killing Crazy Horse--The Merciless Indian Wars in America, by Bill O'Reilly and historian Martin Dugard and A Long Way Gone--Memoirs of a Boy Soldier, by Ismael Beah. Each details recent examples in history of barbaric cruelty we tend to think humans are no longer capable of. But we are.

And we now have weapons that are infinitely more lethal than could have ever been imagined in the past. One small atomic or hydrogen bomb alone is capable of creating the kind of instant devastation pictured above, as demonstrated in Hiroshima and Nagasaki near the end of World War II. 

That war resulted in an estimated total of 50-85 million deaths, including millions of innocent civilians who died from starvation, disease, massive bombings and in extermination camps.

Most of us North Americans were spared this level of suffering. But World War III would be far worse for all the earth's inhabitants, and would undoubtedly result in the end of civilization as we know it. Thus there is no way for the world to survive other than through our beating our swords into plowshares and banning war forever as immoral, uncivilized and unthinkable. 

The 16th century reformer Menno Simons wrote, "All Christians are commanded to love their enemies; to do good to those who abuse and persecute them... Tell me, how can a Christian defend scripturally retaliation, rebellion, war, striking, slaying, torturing, stealing, robbing and plundering and burning cities and conquering countries? ...They (Christians) are the children of peace. their hearts overflow with peace; their mouths speak peace, and they walk in the way of peace... They seek, desire and know nothing but peace; and are prepared to forsake country, goods, life, and all for the sake of peace."