Jeremiah writes of a War Lord, a Soldier Master, Yahweh, who claims to love his “chosen people,” and “will write his law upon their hearts.” But then the War Lord Yahweh says, “they broke my covenant, and I had to show myself their master.” The people are shown as holy for accepting enslavement, abuse, and violence from their ruling Soldier Master. They beg for mercy and the “Lord… forgives their evil doing.” This cycle is repeated constantly in the Old Testament; enslavement, abuse, and violence followed by mercy begged and sometimes granted. The Gospel shows freedom from the Soldier Master’s cycle, “now the ruler of this world will be driven out.”
Abusive earthly rulers invented the Old Testament’s Abusive Heavenly Ruler, Yahweh. The deity sanctifies their enslaving, abusing, and violating others. All abusers, like an abusive husband to a “chosen” wife, tell the abused, ‘If you leave the relationship no one else will want you, love you, or save you as I do. Beg for mercy and your master will forgive you.’ Abusers manipulate their abused “chosen” one into a deep attachment to them as master. The unhealthy relationship model is evident in families, work settings, religious orders, politics, and finances. Abuse is practiced in these relationships as a reflection and extension of its practice in the military. The military is based in a master sergeant’s enslavement, abuse, and violation of recruits. The recruits are trained across the U.S.’s military culture to become master sergeants, master husbands, master CEOs, master minds – all for the master class. The master class ensures soldiers are trained as slaves but believed to be heroes, treated abusively but believed to be cared for, fettered to violence but believed to be free. Armed soldiers in turn train civilians as slaves to be abused and violated through a normalized protection racket – we have demanded from us obedience and payment or we will be harmed. If we do not believe this truth about the master class’ protection racket, then, reject the glorified hero status of soldiers in fatigues, deny the war tax money demanded by soldiers in suits, work to replace their ethic of violence with Jesus’ ethic of healing – and watch the response. We will experience socially what the average abused wife experiences personally. Dissenters will be reminded of their slave status to a glorified master, be targeted with suffering, and be violated. These actions will be done to us by self titled ‘Chosen’ christians who have a deep attachment to the Soldier Master Yahweh and his ruling master class. They believe no one else wants them, loves them, or saves them like their Soldier Masters do; “If you love liberty, thank a soldier.” “America without soldiers would be like God without His angels.” “We sleep peacefully because soldiers do violence on our behalf.” Ironically, by worshipping the abusive soldiers in fatigues as heroes, the abused are helping further abuse the soldiers. The abused help confine the soldiers in fatigues to being enslaved, abused, and violated by the master class – soldiers in suits. Soldiers in suits using patriotic propaganda and masculine stereotyping abuse the “chosen” soldiers in fatigues. Suits tell fatigues, if they leave the “chosen” relationship no one else will want you, love you, or save you as we do. The fatigued soldiers are manipulated into a deep attachment to their suited soldier masters. Soldiers in suits keep soldiers in fatigues stuck in the abuse of war – all the while soldiers in suits keep themselves rolling in the dough that is the protection racket they call war.
Resurrection is a truth for all those enslaved, abuse, and violated. We are lifted up from the grave to which Soldier Masters consign us all, soldiers especially. Soldiers can be lifted up from the abuse of god-like hero worship to live the dignity of their common humanity; lifted up from the insufferable demands placed on their psyches and their lives to live free; lifted up from violence to live as healers.
Prayer: Spirit of Peace, guide us all ways.
Question: For what reasons do I support the troops being perpetually abused by war-plunderers?
March 21, 2021 Gospel John 12:20-33 Fifth Sunday of Lent