We are not permitted to forget our religious wars, particularly those associated with the Protestant Reformation. Mostly, these conflicts are behind us, with a few exceptions such as Northern Ireland, although of course we have the memories of past atrocities such as the wars between Christians and Muslims.
But it is hard to attribute most of the wars in the twentieth and twenty first centuries to religion. These are wars of exploitation, over the need for materials and human resources. The dominant ideologies behind these conflicts were not particularly religious. Indeed a study of the history of warfare has to ask to what extent ideologies, including religion, are excuses for struggles over power, land, slaves and material wealth.
Ecumenism is a choice the churches have made over the last century as they recognise warfare as an inappropriate and destructive way of doing theology. Most Christians today would not dream of using violence to prove their views are right, against fellow Christians or anyone else. Any who persist with warmongering are usually seen as exceptional and extremist.
In their commitment to reconciliation ecumenists have to face up to the radical challenge to love their enemies. The call to forgiveness, to a setting aside of centuries old prejudices, is the logical accompanist to ecumenism. More than that the challenge of oikoumene is to bring forgiveness into the middle of all politics; to name and befriend all enemies.
The ecumenical task is therefore one of compassion; a commitment to resolution of differences through conversation rather than warfare. Warfare destroys whilst conversation potentially generates new realities. We are led there by a God who is creatively engaged in a conversation with nature and particularly humanity.
The task is to uncover the real powers where fundamentalism, monetarism and materialist science collude.
Comments