Defense

I've been mulling over my last post since I posted it yesterday, and feel the need to clarify one thing:
I believe in the right of persons to defend themselves. I believe defending oneself is backed by scripture and the best minds of the Christian tradition. I also find myself wondering, however, when violence will end unless the enlightened stand up against it.

For me, the message of the cross is the futility of violence. Jesus had meted out against him pain beyond comprehension, through capital punishment of the greatest power the earth had then known; and in response, he said, "Do your worst, your most violent, and I will show you the power of God's love to overcome."

Not on wooden crosses but the crosshairs of rifle scopes do the enemies of our way of life find a final end. I hate that this is so; and with the earth, I cry out over humanity's sins. When, O Lord, will we lay down our weapons of war for peace?

What would such a world look like, where peace comes from love instead of force? God help us to find a better way, to be willing to pay the price--a much higher price than we pay for defense.

Liberty

I'm on my first liberty, and am so tired I'm almost falling asleep as I type this. In the first time since my Army basic training in 1998, I fell asleep standing up, and almost busted my face as my body went limp and I fell forward.

It's not all bad. Sometimes I can't believe that they're paying me to be here! Accommodations include a room overlooking the beautiful Narragansett Bay; every morning I get a personalized wake up call; I have a personal trainer who is really good at motivating me; I get three meals from a galley which has signs saying that it's award winning; and, I got to go on a $2k shopping spree, buying a whole new wardrobe. Overall, I can't remember a more memorable trip.

The first day started out slow, but the next morning the chiefs came in at 4am screaming and yelling. I did so many pushups and other exercises that I almost passed out. Since then, we generally have gotten up around 4:15. Nights usually end from 10pm (if I'm lucky) to 1am if I have a uniform inspection or something else the next morning. This last few days the chiefs have let us get up on our own, which is nice--but we still have to get up early.

We get punished for not following instructions, which is daily. My prior military experience has been very useful, but it's like learning a second language: I have to translate everything from my native tongue of Army into Navy.

Yesterday, my chief, anticipating my conflict of wanting to proclaim peace while a military officer, stated: "You don't kill people; you fix people. But the people you fix are going to go out and kill the enemy, and you've got to realize that." Reading it simplistically, he's right. But where does ministry stop and complicity start?

Hear the word of the Lord:

Matthew 10:28
Fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul: but rather fear him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.