Loud, thundering, irritating voices

While here in Austin I attended Trinity United Methodist Church for their morning service. I found it because it is a member of the Reconciling Ministries Network. Several UMC churches around the University of Texas are gay-friendly.

This church is small. As I approached it I passed a big Baptist Church, big enough that it built a parking structure.

We met in the social hall because the air conditioning system for the sanctuary wasn't working. The replacement unit had been delivered, but there was too much rain last Friday (yeah, in Austin) to get it installed. There were about 60 in the congregation and the service had a laid back style. Music was provided by piano, a few guitars, and a harmonica.

The sections of the service were titled in the bulletin with such things as “befriending creation,” “befriending letting go,” “befriending creativity” and “befriending compassion.” The speaker was Jim Harrington, a human rights attorney with nearly 4 decades of experience. He has done lots of work advocating for the poor and set up a pro bono legal clinic for them. Harrington said that Memorial Day is a good time to honor our servicemenbers and also to question war. Here is a summary of what he said. I couldn't take notes during the service, so asked if his ideas were online. He gave me his speaking notes.

Yes, it is appropriate to honor and commemorate those who have protected our country. Harrington told the stories of his father, uncle, and grandfather who served our country. But as we honor them and others who serve we should consider our country's propensity for war and whether those wars have been just. “To the living, we owe our respect. To the dead, we owe the truth.”

Harrington listed what makes a just war.

A war is just if it is waged for self-defense against imminent aggression or a massive violation of a population's basic human rights (such as genocide). This is about protecting human life, It is not about capturing things, material gain, maintaining economies, or punishing people who have done wrong.

A just war is last resort, self-defense, and not pre-emptive, and is waged after exhausting all peaceful alternatives. War must not be directed towards non-combatants caught in circumstances they did not create. Fighting must use minimum force to limit excessive and unnecessary death and destruction. Methods should not include mass rape or weapons whose effects cannot be controlled, such as nuclear or biological weapons.

The Iraq war was not just. Afghanistan was probably excessive and disproportionate. Several other war through history have been unjust.

Obama recently discussed his drone policy. For the first time a president discussed concepts of a just war. Whether or not he actually follows them is another question.

Harrington then turned his discussion to peace. There is no peace without justice. There are some principles of social justice.

All people are sacred. They do not lose dignity because of disability, poverty, age, lack of success, or race. People are more important than things.

Our dignity and right are in relationship with our community.

People have a fundamental right to life, food, shelter, health care, education, and employment. All have a right to participate in decisions that affect their lives. With that we have duties and responsibilities to respect the rights of others and to work for the common good.

The moral test of a society is how it treats its most vulnerable members and the poor have the most urgent moral clam on the conscience of the nation. Public policy decisions should consider how those policies affect the poor.

People have a right to decent and productive work at fair wages with economic initiative. The economy exists to serve the people.

We are one human family. Our responsibilities to each other cross national, racial, economic, and ideological differences.

We are called to care for creation, be stewards and trustees, not just consumers and users.

The church is amazingly quiet on these issues of war and justice. We should be the loud, thundering, irritating voices like Isaiah, Micah, and Jesus. But believing and talking is not doing. We are called to do. Are we up to it?