Back in seminary I had to have two required ethics classes.  So, I signed up for what turned out to be an excellent ethics class on Peacemaking.  The attitude of the class was that we are Christians, so of course, we are peacemakers.  The instructor said something like, "What if there was a minor attack on some remote island in the Western Hemisphere?  If you had the power, would you strike back?  What if there was an attack on the North American continent?  Would you strike back?  What if the attack was in the United States?  What if the attack was in your state?  What if the attacker was in your home?  Sooner or later, the whole class had the hard decision of at what point would we strike back?  Turning the other cheek as Jesus said (Matthew 5:39), was a lot harder than we thought.  We soon discovered there weren't many purely pacificist students in the class.  The class also discovered there were times we were ready to go to war, and peacemaking was a lot tougher than we first thought.

At the General Synod 26 of the United Church of Christ, a pastoral letter was presented by the five executive ministers of the denomination.  The letter called for an end to the Iraq War.  This letter was endorsed by the UCC Conference Ministers and UCC Seminary Presidents.  This letter included the statement, "...too often the church has been little more than a silent witness."  You can read the entire pastoral letter at the ucc.org web site.  Go to "Big Things" and "A Pastoral Letter on the Iraq War From the Collegium of Officers of the United Church of Christ."  If you agree with the letter (or agree with more than you disagree), you can sign the letter that will be delivered to our elected leaders in Washington by the denomination's president the Rev. John Thomas.  I've already signed my name to the letter.  I was also invited by President John Thomas to have others sign the letter, too.  You can sign your name to this letter at the UCC.org web site.

Our partner denomination, the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ), also spoke out about the Iraq War at their denomination's gathering called a General Assembly.  The Christian Century reported (August 21, 2007), "After keeping a collective silence in 2003 and 2005, the majority of delegates to this year's biennial General Assembly of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) expressed moral opposition to the U.S.-led war in Iraq."

After five years of war, there are those of us who can no longer keep silent.  We casually sign our name for a charge card for new shoes or a home repair.  We don't even think about signing our name to a check for groceries at the supermarket.  Now, we might want to think about signing our name to this letter calling for peace.  Some will jump at the opportunity to sign their name.  Some others will not be so excited to sign their name.  It turns out that following Jesus in some circumstances, like turning the other cheek, is a lot harder than we ever imagined.

Your partner in ministry,

The Rev. Dr. William R. Nirote