Podcast 15: A Theology of Nonviolence (Sean Finnegan)

Here’s the original paper in pdf form.

I presented this talk at the 18th Theological Conference held near Atlanta, GA.  In it I present a case for the radical practice of loving our enemies.  Whether you believe Christians can and should use violence to defend themselves or others or if you think more along the lines of Christian pacifism, this talk will familiarize you with the main reasons why some Christians hold to nonviolence.  Essentially, my case finds its roots in taking Jesus’ command “love your enemies” literally along with the apostles instructions to never return evil for evil.  My case is couched in proleptic ethics such that Christians are now, even before the kingdom arrives in all of its magnificent glory, embodying the kingdom in whatever ways we can.  In other words, I believe God calls us to live the way we will live then now as a testimony of what is to come.  Lastly, I tackle the issue of early Christian history and demonstrate that the writings we have from the first few centuries testify that the church was nonviolent.  Please do not judge my position on this as liberal or cowardly (the two most common charges), but realize that I’m basing my beliefs on the testimony of scripture and that it takes a heck of a lot more courage to love one’s enemy than merely reciprocate violently.

Below is the paper that went with this presentation along with a detailed set of responses to common objections.

Introduction

Is it right for Christians to volunteer in the United States’ military?[1] Should followers of Jesus join the police force? Can one who has been redeemed find employment as a security guard? Should disciples keep a loaded gun in the house in case an intruder enters? Is there ever a time when violence is justified? These questions and many like them, for Christians, center on whether or not we interpret the New Testament teachings to prohibit violence or permit it. This work seeks to provide a clear biblical theology for this critical subject.[2] From the title it is clear that my perspective falls on the side of those who see Jesus and the Apostles as teaching something new—the idea of nonviolent enemy love.

Now, I realize that the moment I suggest that violence is wrong for Christians, a whole slew of questions and “what ifs” come to mind. Let me start by saying that these types of questions have good answers and we have collected a number of answers to difficult questions on our website.[3] However, it would not be prudent to handle all of the “objections” prior to laying out the case for nonviolence biblically, logically, and historically. Therefore, it is my intention to present both the clear biblical teaching on this subject and the theological framework into which this teaching fits.

Though adherents to nonviolence are still unquestionably in the minority, as of late more and more leaders from non-Anabaptist[4] traditions are beginning to speak up. As I have researched this subject, in an effort to gain answers to the tough questions that face Christian pacifism, I have been surprised to find how central kingdom of God theology is to this topic.[5] It’s as if one cannot talk about nonviolence without talking about the kingdom. But, what is it about the kingdom of God that inspires peace-making rather than war-making? In order to see how Jesus understood and applied the kingdom of God theology to his life and ministry, we need to first look at how the kingdom was understood in the Hebrew Bible.

The Kingdom of God in the Hebrew Bible

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