The News of War

It is with interest I note my emotional response to reading the news of war. It often begins with horror. How could humans indiscriminately bomb, kill, or take hostages like they have? Then, it might graduate to morbid fascination. How many people died today? What further atrocities have been committed?

At times, there is side-taking and wanting the good guys to win. Has Ukraine made further advances? At times, my response is compassion. How might the relatives of hostages feel? What would it be like to be in a hospital with no power, no medicine, and under attack? What do the mothers and families of soldiers make of the sacrificing of their sons?

Across the world, there are protests and rallies. This is another way people are responding to the injustice and horror of war.

Perhaps most often, it is emotional fatigue. I see the headlines and think, “I cannot bring myself to read more. It is depressing, and I am unable to do anything.”

Behind this mixed bag of thoughts and feelings sit some deep assumptions. War is wrong, human life is invaluable, atrocities ought to be stopped, and justice and prevention must re-assert itself.

Contrast this with the news of Julius Caesar and his defeat of the Gauls (French). According to some historical accounts, Caesar slaughtered one million Gauls and enslaved another million. Then Caesar has his press secretary boast about his achievements. The conquest and plundering of France was great PR for Caesar’s desire for power in Rome.

In classical Rome and Greece, life was cheap, and people were fodder to be exploited for personal and national gain.

Our assumptions about the horror of war and the sacredness of human life are not universal and not shared across history. Instead, they are a consequence of the Christian view of life. God has made all humans in his image. Jesus shared our human condition. That is why we value every life.

By Rev. David Rietveld