Christians and War

by Neil Tumber,
Member of The Church of St. Michael and St. George, Clayton

How should Christians pray during times of conflict, such as the current situation in Ukraine? The Brotherhood of St. Andrew at The Church of St. Michael and St. George in Clayton held a lively and thought-provoking discussion about that topic on Thursday, March 10.

It is so tempting to pray for “peace” or “for the people of Ukraine” but what do we really mean when we say these things? Do you mean for the fighting to stop? In what way? For the aggressor to win? For a successful defense? And then, what about the people? For them to be safe? To get their homes and livelihoods back? The more we are specific in our prayers, the more we can take action in support of our prayers. See the letter of James 2:14-25 – “Faith if it is not accompanied by action, is dead” NIV

We also looked at Nehemiah 4:9 – “But we prayed to our God and posted a guard day and night to meet this threat” NIV. The message seems to be that God wants us to act to be part of His work on earth.

If you want an insight into how wicked people view the world and their actions, read Psalm 36, particularly verses 2 to 4. The leaders of any action to bully or make people bend to their desires become lost in their wickedness. Firm action that meets the aggressor with power that they understand is needed. With children, it may be enough to put your arms around them to restrain them but how to do that with an army facing you? The Old Testament gives us many examples of when God was with the Israelites in battle and some of us are called to be warriors.

We agreed that we need to pray that soldiers have the moral and physical courage to do their duty. In some cases, for example when given an unlawful or immoral order the soldier must refuse even if this might mean death for them. If you have courage to stand up for the weak and powerless maybe you will save lives. 1 John 3:16 – “This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers and sisters.” NIV

Finally, we considered Ezekiel 22:30 – “I looked for someone among them who would build up the wall and stand before me in the gap on behalf of the land so I would not have to destroy it, but I found no one”. NIV God is calling us to stand in the gap. The gap between His Will, His Love and the actions of men. Fill the gap with your prayers and with action: lobby politicians; give money to appropriate organizations; be ready to help those who reach out to you personally for support.

This discussion was led by Neil Tumber, a member of the congregation at the Church of St Michael and St George who is also a veteran of the British armed forces. If you would like to hold a similar discussion for your community, please contact Neil at [email protected]

Episcopal Relief & Development is supporting Action by Churches Together (ACT Alliance) as it provides critical assistance to support people affected by violence in Ukraine. Working through ACT member Hungarian Interchurch Aid (HIA) and other local organizations, ACT Alliance is providing emergency assistance such as food, shelter, water and basic supplies to refugees and people displaced within Ukraine.

Read the March 9 press release.