The readings this Sunday share a theme of weariness. We ourselves might feel weary reading about yet another Old Testament War Lord, Moses, who fends off weariness so his warriors can fight in yet another war and steal what they can. Jesus too attempts to fend off weariness but in disciples so they can persevere in peacemaking, “pray always without becoming weary” to “see compassion done.”
Perhaps we felt weary recently over coverage of a War Lord whose wars and theft are hidden behind castle gossip and royal finery. The British Empire has long waged war across the world stealing all it can. It steals the jewels and creativity of artists, the culture and land of people – of which it still owns and occupies vast acreages. In India it stole the lives of 35 million people; in Ireland 1.5 million; across the Ottoman Empire 2 million, in Africa so many millions their lives cannot be numbered. But was not the Queen’s handbag charming and the Prince’s war uniform dashing and the funeral queue dignified. We are likely weary of yet another War Lord fighting in yet another war and stealing more territory in Central Eurasia. The Russian War Lord has stolen the lives of 60,000 Ukrainians and plans to kill and steal more. The sociopath is threatening a cataclysmic death toll with the use of nuclear weapons. Might we feel weary of yet another War Lord closer to home whose wars and thefts are hidden behind self-serving speeches and facades of democracy. Speaking recently before U.N. pageantry, the U.S.’s War Lord spoke of Russian atrocities and war crimes, warning, “if nations can pursue their imperial ambitions without consequences, then we put at risk everything this very institution stands for.” He did so while the death toll from the U.S. invasion of Iraq continues to climb. The U.S. warlord tells humanity we are in a “contest between democracy and autocracy,” – while his imperialist party and its corporations support autocratic policies. Granted, they are less extreme than the fascist GOP, its former president, and MAGA cult followers (police militarization, immigrant rejection, warfare ethics). Will the world weary of War Lords and their wars? It is difficult given we are routinely entertained by them in newscast and social media communications. War Lords start entertaining us at a very young age, primarily through war games. How will our children ever weary of war when War Lords wage unrelenting war against them in such an entertaining manner? War Lords steal not territory from these children but their imagination, creativity, character, and indeed their very soul. War Lords recruit children through touch screen war games and F-35 fighter simulators, via the usual JrROTC, school recruitment campaigns, and interactions at school and professional sporting and e-sporting events, as well as through its military-entertainment complex producing such movies as the Top Gun revival and the entire Marvel series, through the war game divisions at Sony, Apple, Microsoft, Nintendo, through recruiters setting up booths at conventions for Comic-Con, Career Fairs, and the Penny Arcade Expo (Pax), via ubiquitous ads including on Facebook, Hulu, and Netflix, and interacting with young people on streaming platforms like Reddit, BuzzFeed, and Twitch – the military is waging unrelenting war on our children. Like all war, the gaming war is lucrative, providing $1.1 billion in revenue yearly. Like all war, the gaming war has victims, children whose vulnerability is exploited and innocence is destroyed.
Veterans for Peace, soldiers who have known real war and now devote their lives to peace, have formed the group Gamers for Peace. These peacemakers commit to not wearying in the face of War Lords and their business of war. Their activism is directed toward 4 channels for making peaceful change. They are streaming peace and anti-war gaming content, building anti-war E-sport teams, establishing face to face and online anti-war mentorship programs, and are engaging in direct action campaigns with military recruiters. These ex-soldiers know War Lords begin toying with us when we are young. They know War Lords exploit the vulnerabilities of children for money. They know War lords especially capitalize on the vulnerabilities of disadvantaged children and render career misinformation and duplicitous consent arrangements to hit their recruiting targets. Children deserve healthy childhoods and not to be bombarded with the sick business of war, real and virtual. Veterans for Peace are not weary of being witnesses for peace. They are energized to “see compassion done.”
Prayer: Beautiful Spirit, let us never weary of encouraging peace.
Question: How might I be de-sensitizing young ones to violence?
October 16, 2022 Gospel Luke 18:1-8 Twenty Ninth Sunday in Ordinary Time