By Sola Adeyegbe
Presently on earth, violence is part and parcel of politics! States unleash violence on internal and external enemies while insurgents use violence against states. Rival political forces do not hesitate to inflict violence on one another. Winston Churchill had good reason to declare in 1924 that “the story of the human race is war.”
In today’s world, there are wars all over and threats of war at the international and local levels. It would appear even from history that to constitute a state and maintain it, violence is required. Benjamin Ginsberg a professor of political science opined that the West’s global dominance for most of the past millennium is in large part a function of its capacity for violence and that force can be defeated only by force. And for those who say that violence is not the answer, they can be told that violence usually provides the most definitive answers to three major questions of political life: statehood, territoriality, and power.
It has also been argued that the tactics used by the proponents of non-violence —strikes, boycotts, demonstrations—are far from nonviolent. These tactics were designed to provoke violent responses from the enemy. For example, if a state attacks apparently peaceful protesters this might draw sympathy for the innocent victims and encourage powerful allies to intervene. This way, the proponents of nonviolence take advantage of the violence employed by their enemies. History almost seems to be telling us that whether we like it or not, violence often is the answer to our political problems.
But how should we respond to threats of war? What is the right attitude towards all the unrest we find around us? How do we protect ourselves? Where lies true liberation and redemption?
I would first like to refer to the scriptural account of the arrest of Jesus when one of his companions drew his sword and struck the servant of the high priest, cutting off his ear. It was recorded that Jesus told the companion to put his sword back in its place, with a warning that all who draw the sword will die by the sword. This is simply how Creation works!
Evil words and spreading news to generate ill will towards others will only produce bigger slanders, war only bigger wars, hate only hate, and murder only murder. But dignified words and actions, peace, light, and joy can in turn arise only from a dignified way of thinking, never otherwise.
Must we keep quiet and allow marauders overwhelm us? No! We must defend ourselves. But our defence weapons should not be like those of the marauders and war mongers. Our weapons are to be spiritual alertness, vigilance and harnessing the power of our thinking for defence. No matter the circumstances we must not allow hatred for others to ever arise within us. We do not have to put anger into Creation! We must not let evil conquer the good in us but we must conquer evil with good! In the material sense, we should take adequate security measures and precautions about our safety. We should not expose ourselves to dangers frivolously.
If we must speak out to others or to the authorities about what is of concern to us, we should speak out in a dignified way even if we must be severe. It is not for us to join the hosts of agitators who promote anxiety and distress in others through their utterances, writings, and actions in the knowledge that each kind of expression and attitude can only bring forth something similar.
I therefore urge you to be alert intuitively, and create out of your thoughts the invisible but effective Holy Spear which fights for the good, heals wounds and furthers the whole of Creation!
May we remain forever protected by the Almighty as we look up to Him in our prayerful thoughts filled with hope and confidence in His mercy, grace, and omnipotence!
