Jesus encourages looking at ourselves truthfully when tempted to be critical of others, “Why do you notice the splinter in your brother’s eye, but do not perceive the wooden beam in your own?” “You hypocrite!” “Remove the wooden beam from your eye first; then you will see clearly to remove the splinter in your brother’s eye.” Doing so makes us fruitful for others and for our communities, “For every tree is known by its fruit.”
The blinding beam in our eye could be to act as a supremacist and not be fruitful with communion, to inflict suffering and not be fruitful with love, to violate others and not be fruitful with creative healing power. When early hypocritical rulers like Paul and Augustine helped soldiers like Constantine and others turn a blind eye to Jesus’ encouragement to be truthful and thus fruitful, they started an institution. They modeled it on the religious institution surrounding them, Militarism – a cult of ranked supremacy, a creed of justified abuse, and a code of sanctified violence. Thus, institutional christianity has in its eye the blinding beam of a cult – supremacist priesthood; the blinding beam of a creed – justified abuse on a cross; and the blinding beam of a code – the just war tradition. These blinding beams result in sighted people wisely departing from an unfruitful institutional christianity. But, oddly, people do not always depart its unfruitful parent religion – Militarism. Militarism set the beams that blind self-titled Christians who can be criticized as hypocrites. The beams blind all soldiers, police, wardens, guards,… U.S. citizens likely do not criticize these U.S. warriors as hypocrites. U.S. citizens likely see the blinding beams clearly in the eyes of other soldiers and criticize them for their supremacy, abuse, and violence. For example, we do we not laud but criticize Russia’s soldiers when they dominate, abuse, and violate Ukrainian citizens. We likely do laud Ukrainian soldiers when they fight back. In this universe of soldiers, U.S. citizens have seen U.S. soldiers dominate, abuse, and violate Afghan and Iraqi citizens. Did we laud the invading U.S. soldiers? Did we laud the Iraqi soldiers when they fought back? The U.S. Empire and its soldiers have, for centuries, been operating with the same blinding beams of supremacy, abuse, and violence here in the U.S. U.S. soldiers operating this nation’s continuing reservation system and plantation system and colonial system are making us blind with Militarism’s beams of supremacy, abuse, and violence. Soldiers in the U.S. see splinters in the eye of the modern Civil rights movement, in poor people’s vices, and in puritanical woke practices. Rarely, if ever, do soldiers see the beams in their own eye of Militant white supremacy, Militant capitalist wealth, and Militant warrior practices. Are we who want to be peacemakers part of this universe of soldiers with beams in our eyes who see fit to criticize others for the splinters in theirs? If we claim sight it is because we have removed the beams of supremacy, abuse, and violence and are fruitful with communion, love, and creative healing power.
“He’s five feet-two and he’s six feet-four He fights with missiles and with spears… Been a soldier for a thousand years He’s a Catholic, a Hindu, an Atheist, a Jain, a Buddhist, and a Baptist, and a Jew And he knows he shouldn’t kill And he knows he always will Kill you for me, my friend, and me for you And he’s fighting for Canada He’s fighting for France He’s fighting for the U.S.A And he’s fighting for the Russians… And he thinks we’ll put an end to war this way And he’s fighting for Democracy He’s fighting for the Reds He says it’s for the peace of all… without him How would Hitler have condemned them… Without him Caesar would have stood alone… And without him all this killing can’t go on He’s the Universal Soldier and… His orders come from far away no more They come from here and there and you and me And brothers, can’t you see? This is not the way we put the end to war” (The Universal Soldier – Buffy St. Marie. edit – born Beverley Jean Santamaria)
Prayer: Spirit, help me see.
Question: How am I a soldier? How am I a peacemaker?
February 27, 2022 Gospel: Luke 6:39-45 Eighth Sunday in Ordinary Time