War and the Christian

An audio link, a few comments and movie references....


This was quite an interesting listen. In no way does it demean the soldiers of the Second World War, but it provides some different angles to the overall story.

http://www.npr.org/2013/06/17/189275754/wwii-deserters-stories-of-men-who-left-the-front-lines

People will take away different messages and lessons from this. For me it's yet another demonstration of the ugliness of war, how it is mythologized in history and demonstrates once again the utter foolishness and even wickedness of finding some kind of glory in it.

I often find Christian responses to war to be the worst of all. Anything sceptical or cynical regarding war is immediately labeled as 'leftist' and thus anti-Christian.

They seem quite surprised when I suggest their views of war are in fact anti-Christian. Just War doctrine is usually produced at this point and then I'm met with astonishment when I dismiss it as a product of Christendom and one of the greatest travesties in the history of theology.

Dominionist theology (particularly in the American context) has also sanctified Free Market economics and more often than not has been blended with American patriotism. Thus any movies which deal either with war, economics or anything to do with American foreign policy that doesn't praise America and its policies is labeled as leftist and thus secular and godless.

As I've often said the Left often asks the right questions, they just don't have very good answers. The Right is often incapable of even asking the salient questions. Militarist Nationalism is laden with protective thought mechanisms which cannot even entertain certain questions.

It's also interesting that when a movie violates this rule I find Christian websites will label it as 'morally offensive'. And yet Zero Dark Thirty despite the violence and language (which greatly 'offends' them when they don't like the movie)...in this case because the movie presents a message and narrative they like, it receives an 'average' rating.

Syriana is rated 'offensive'

The International is rated 'offensive'

Green Zone is rated 'extremely offensive'

Blood Diamond is rated 'very offensive'

Ronin is rated 'very offensive'

And yet Zero Dark Thirty is rated 'average'?

All these movies except the last present narratives that are critical of the political and economic models they hold dear. These (including Zero Dark Thirty) are actually movies I would recommend. Yes, they're offensive and yet the world is offensive. I'm not watching them to be uplifted as a Christian nor do I expect the characters to reflect my values. That's not the point.

I can respect people who eschew movies altogether but if you're going to watch them and then claim that something like 'We Were Soldiers' or 'Saving Private Ryan' are movies that should be watched...then you can't say anything against these others. I'm speaking in terms of the content...violence and language. None of the above movies have any sex in them.

If the violence and language can be overlooked because of the message, then I still wouldn't recommend something like 'We Were Soldiers'...that has a dubious message. 'Saving Private Ryan' is (to me) less about the morality of what they're doing and more about the context. It's portrayed in a rather stunning fashion.

And yet ironically Zero Dark Thirty is a movie with mixed messages that some on the Right find very offensive. Some thought the movie was critical of torture, others thought the movie vindicated it. Some found the ending uplifting and others thought it clearly demonstrated the moral futility of the hunt for Bin Laden. For in their quest for vengeance the hunters themselves abandoned all morality.

It's interesting how the politicization of the gospel even trickles down into movie reviews. Nuance isn't helpful. Wisdom is reduced to political points and goals. In fact once you grasp this you realize when you listen to Christian radio and listen to the after Church discussion on Sunday morning...at times it seems like that's all their spirituality consists of...politics. They are political creatures bent on the acquisition of power.

Certainly I write a lot about political issues and so perhaps I could be accused of the same. But there's a difference. Nowhere in my writings am I suggesting we should be trying to acquire or make use of political power. Quite the opposite. If the Church was being the Church, then I wouldn't have to write about it at all.