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A Pastoral Letter on the Iraq
War From the Collegium of Officers of the United Church of Christ
Written by Collegium of Officers
June 22, 2007
Call for an End to the Bloodshed: Sign the
Petition to End the Iraq War
"God
expected justice, but saw bloodshed; righteousness, but heard a cry."
(Isaiah 5.7)
The
war in Iraq is now in its fifth year. Justified as a means to end
oppression, this war has imposed the new oppression of terror on the people
of Iraq. Justified as the only way to protect the world from weapons of
mass destruction, this war has led to the massive destruction of communal
life in Iraq. Justified as a means to end the rule of terror, this war has
bred more terror. Every day we look for justice, but all we see is
bloodshed. Every day we yearn for righteousness, but all we hear is a cry.
Thousands of precious American lives have been lost; thousands more have
been altered forever by profound injuries. We grieve each loss and embrace
bereaved families with our prayers and compassion. Tens of thousands more
innocent Iraqi lives are daily being offered on the altar of preemptive war
and sectarian violence. They, too, are precious, and we weep for them. In
our name human rights have been violated, abuse and torture sanctioned,
civil liberties dismantled, Iraqi infrastructure and lives destroyed.
Billions of dollars have been diverted from education, health care, and the
needs of the poor in this land and around the world. Efforts to restrain
the real sources of global terrorism have been ignored or subverted. Trust
and respect for the United States throughout the world has been traded for
self-serving political gain. Every day we look for justice, but all we see
is bloodshed. Every day we yearn for righteousness, but all we hear is a
cry.
We
confess that too often the church has been little more than a silent witness
to evil deeds. We have prayed without protest. We have recoiled from the
horror this war has unleashed without resisting the arrogance and folly at
its heart. We have been more afraid of conflict in our churches than
outraged over the deceptions that have killed thousands. We have confused
patriotism with self-interest. As citizens of this land we have been made
complicit in the bloodshed and the cries. Lord, have mercy upon us.
In
the midst of our lament we give thanks - for pastors and laity who have
raised courageous voices against the violence and the deceit, for military
personnel who have served with honor and integrity, for chaplains who have
cared for soldiers and their families with compassion and courage, for
veterans whose experience has led them to say, "no more," for humanitarian
groups, including the Middle East Council of Churches, who have cared for
the victims of violence and the growing tide of refugees, for the fragile
Christian community in Iraq that continues to bear witness to the Gospel
under intense pressure and fear, for public officials who have challenged
this war risking reputation and career. The Gospel witness has not been
completely silenced, and for this we are grateful.
Today
we call for an end to this war, an end to our reliance on violence as the
first, rather than the last resort, an end to the arrogant unilateralism of
preemptive war. Today we call for the humility and courage to acknowledge
failure and error, to accept the futility of our current path, and we cry
out for the creativity to seek new paths of peacemaking in the Middle East,
through regional engagement and true multinational policing. Today we call
for acknowledgement of our responsibility for the destruction caused by
sanctions and war, thereby, we pray, beginning to rebuild trust in the
Middle East and around the world. Today we call for repentance in our nation
and for the recognition in our churches that security is found in submitting
to Christ, not by dominating others.
To this
end may we join protest to prayer, support ministries of compassion for
victims here and in the Middle East, cast off the fear that has made us
accept the way of violence and return again to the way of Jesus. Thus may
bloodshed end and cries be transformed to the harmonies of justice and the
melodies of peace. For this we yearn, for this we pray, and toward this end
we rededicate ourselves as children of a loving God who gives "light to
those who sit in darkness and the shadow of death, to guide our feet into
the way of peace."
Signed by:
John H. Thomas, Linda Jaramillo, Edith A. Guffey, Jose A. Malayang, Cally
Rogers-Witte
pastor john’s comment:
The United Church of Christ has launched an ambitious
campaign to gather the signatures of “100,000 People for Peace” before
October 7 and have them hand-delivered to leaders of Congress by the Rev.
John H. Thomas, the UCC’s general minister and president. I have already
added my name, and I am hoping you will do the same. Please join me and
other opponents of the war in Iraq by joining this important effort today.
You may do so by going on-line:
http://ga3.org/campaign/100kforpeace.
Or, sign the petition at church and I will forward your
signed petitions to the Rev. Thomas.
When empowered by God’s Son, the Prince of Peace, you
can make a difference. Act now in the Spirit of Christ, the Spirit of Peace.
Still In One Peace ~
pastor john
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