Perspective 82
The Place of Non-Resistance in Our New World
Today I write on a living theme from the Sermon on the Mount. Its recent name is Non-resistance. Of course, it’s an ancient topic and has had many emphases over the centuries. Giving rather than loaning a cloak seems an old example of an enduring principle....it’s been called Non resistance and when applied to war or even military service it has even been cast as pacifism.
I’ve studied Non-resistance off (mostly) and on for decades. The military aspect was hot until the draft disappeared in the 1970s. Since then, it has appeared dormant. But now with the increased isolation of people intensified by such distinct social, coastal-flyover, super zip and social media silos it’s not only worse, but the rhetoric is mostly ‘resistant’. We can do better in the path that Jesus, in that famous sermon, described.
This is my effort to reframe the discussion rather than to give definitive answers. I write about three arenas where we might expand our thinking on Non-resistance. Never heard of it? Here’s a chance to explore with curiosity.
Thanks for reading.
The way of peace or non-resistance reflects Jesus’ teaching and example of not resisting violations of our personal rights or of our property as well as not using force to advance God’s kingdom. Yet after the Reformation the refusal of military service by Brethren and Quakers moved the focus to warfare.
While WW2 was popular and many Christians heartily volunteered, the world entered a new era with a new way of thinking about armed conflict after 9-11. World wars are still a threat, but regional wars and horrible events became prevalent. A new type of conflict prevailed after 2022 when Putin invaded Ukraine followed by Hamas’ atrocities against the nation of Israel and shelling by the Houthis and Hezbollah as Iran’s proxies. Drone operators have replaced many combatants. As Christians, we must come to grips with that reality and focus on applying our understanding the often forgotten personal and civil sides of non-resistance.
Let us think beyond the military to see non-resistance as having three levels: First, the personal, then the social, and finally the civil. It helps me to think of these in terms of concentric circles with the personal at the core, then society, and finally the civil. This approach treats combatant military service as a rare exception.
The Sermon on the Mount casts issues of resistance on the inner circle of interpersonal conflict. (The extra mile, the giving of your cloak). We must reflect on the Beatitudes about the meek and the peacemakers. We must see ourselves as citizens of heaven. We must see ourselves as actual parts of the Kingdom of God. These will help us evaluate the conflicts we face from a biblical perspective.
1—The Personal: A better perspective will lead to different and better personal behavior. Behavior that will make us peacemakers, negotiators, reconcilers, helpers, supporters, and friends. When Jesus said that he has given us the ministry of reconciliation, he meant, of course, salvation through the cross of Christ, but we would all agree that the gospel also impacts every area of daily life.
2—Society: When we think of nonresistance in the next circle, the circle of social relationships, we are struck by Jesus’ teaching here as well. We also think of exceptional people such as Mother Theresa, who behaved in a way that is different at the root from our society of productivity, efficiency, and pragmatic political and economic reasoning. She and people we knew like the Bill Burks in Brazil make us think that the barrier between the temporal/material and the eternal/spiritual spheres is a barrier that looks thinner when we are around people of peace. Social distances and grievances or resentments also get thinner when we apply non-resistance in the social arena. Humility, service, and forgiveness are important here.
This social circle of thinking includes neighbors or work situations. Anytime we gather in a community or for a project, we have opportunities for conflict just as we have opportunities to serve. And in all of these situations we must be people of peace even in our new era when outrage, especially on behalf of “other people” seems to settle all questions with highly emotional (and minimally rational) force.
3—The Civil Realm: Now we can move to larger groups, associations, churches, eventually to governments (local or any level) and finally to (4) war. Framing the question of how we are to understand non-resistance in this way makes war, as immense as it has been, shrink as a topic. Why? In addition to the change in combatancy, very few serve in the military today compared to 80-120 years ago.
Consider three simple applications of non-resistance for our new era.
First, we should be peacemakers at home and in our closest relationships. These are the relationships we take for granted, yet we get sloppy in using our interpersonal skills, and we keep much too quiet when we are offended. This is how resentment builds up and then we neglect to listen, to show kindness, to be generous, and to move toward those we are closest to. With God’s help we can do better.
Second, we should detox ourselves of the urgent and depressing…even panic-inducing…news of the day. We are being misled, lied to, and manipulated beyond our ability to recognize and defend ourselves. Rather than straighten it all out, we can move away from the agenda of gossip or news and focus on the biblical ideal of shalom or peace-harmony in all relationships. Of course, this is not practical, but that is the point. Being practical has led us down the non- and even the anti-shalom path.
Finally, we can apply this to the most difficult arena… a new arena. Social Media. It may seem absurd to try to apply the idea of non-resistance to social media, but we encounter that arena multiple times daily rather than once in a lifetime as with our response to military duty during war.
Think about these things: Jesus said to be generous with your cloak, to give more than is due, and to refuse to take advantage of a brother/sister. We do not wear cloaks, but neither do we go to war. We can find ways to honor God in ways we could put under the label of non-resistance if we focus on the inner circles of our actual lives rather than the outer circle of the unique draft-driven call to combatant military service.