The title of this article refers to a verse from Filomena’s poem entitled Qiqajon. Never as in this moment does it seem cruel topical. To stop the war in Ukraine, the commitment of believers in Christ is needed.
The lack of preaching of evangelical love and peace among Christians is not a historical error only of Western Catholics and churches. This deficiency in the Roman Church was due to the fact that for many centuries, since the Middle Ages, the Bishops and the clergy did not teach and did not take to heart the pedagogical responsibility of uplifting the people. They were crushed by the riches they had to administer, more leaders than men of God, kneaded in the feudal jurisdiction born of the most pagan of selfishness.
Saint Bernard of Clairvaux, who “made himself uncrowned sovereign” of a Europe that he had dragged into the adventure of the Crusades, merged the monastic ideal with that of chivalry. He was decisive for the birth of the Templar order, for which he inspired the Rule and wrote the programmatic manifesto of the Tempio Liber ad Milites Templi de laude novae militiae; he justified armed violence and “holy” or “just” war, formulating the theory of “malicide”, arriving at the theological error of blessing weapons of war. In book III, 4 we read: «When he kills a criminal he is not rightly considered a murderer, but, I would dare to say, a” malicide “and avenger on the part of Christ against those who do evil, defender of the Christian people. … Of course, even infidels should not be killed if in some other way their excessive harassment and oppression of the faithful could be prevented. But in the present situation it is better that they are killed, rather than leave without escape the rod of sinners suspended over the fate of the righteous and so that the righteous do not push their actions to the point of iniquity ».
In August 2000, the document of the Jubilee Council of Bishops of the Russian Orthodox Church contains expressions not far from “malicide”, together with the sincere aspiration for peace. “While recognizing war as an evil, the Church nevertheless does not prohibit its children from participating in war actions, if it is a question of the defense of others and the restoration of trampled justice. War is then considered as an obligatory, albeit hateful, means “(VIII, 2). With a reference to St. Augustine, the criteria for defining the “just war” are established. There is no declaration of total rejection of the war. “In the current system of international relations it is sometimes difficult to distinguish a war of aggression from a war of defense.” For this reason “the support or condemnation by the Church of war actions requires careful examination on a case-by-case basis every time such actions begin or when such a danger looms”. Discernment on the methods used and on the attitude towards the adversaries is also important: “War must be waged with” just indignation “, but not with hatred, greed and concupiscence (1 Jn 2:16) and with other fruits of hell “. Peace is a gift from God: “The Russian Orthodox Church aspires to carry out its peace-building service both nationally and internationally, trying to resolve the various contradictions and lead peoples, ethnic groups, governments and forces to harmony policies. That is why it addresses its word to those in power and other influential strata of society, and makes every effort to organize negotiations between the opposing parties and to bring aid to those who suffer. The Church also opposes the propaganda of war and violence, as well as the various manifestations of hatred, capable of provoking fratricidal conflicts ”.
The Catholic Church finally rejects war. John XXIII, with the encyclical Pacem in terris, and the Second Vatican Council, with the constitution Gaudium et spes (chapter V), laid new foundations on this topic, inspiring the magisterium of all subsequent popes. The four pillars of authentic peace are: truth, justice, love and freedom. They appeal to all men of good will, and declare a “just war” unacceptable because it is “alien to reason”, refusing that in the atomic age it can be used as an instrument of justice. Pope Francis in his speech in Nagasaki in 2019 was lapidary: «Peace and international stability are incompatible with any attempt to build on the fear of mutual destruction or on a threat of total annihilation; they are possible only starting from a global ethic of solidarity and cooperation at the service of a future shaped by interdependence and co-responsibility in the entire human family of today and tomorrow “. Christians first of all must testify that “peace cannot be given without humility. Where there is pride, there is always war, always the desire to win over the other, to believe oneself superior. Without humility there is no peace and without peace there is no unity “(Homily 21 October 2016).
Opposition to the current war in Ukraine is a sign of credibility for us Christians, otherwise “faith becomes a profession”. «’Nobody touches Cain’, but someone stop him». The commitment of all men of good will is urgent. It is a moment of hope, because no one in the world hates the Russian people. People no longer accept extreme nationalisms. Indeed, many paying in first person are willing to shield themselves against the spread of evil. It is very nice to see that so many people in their fields, art, sports, communication, politics, economics, finance, etc., say no to war to protect the defenseless. Let us pray that all the Churches will express the “magisterium of peace” without hesitation. May the people of God “from below” build peace. Brothers all at no. 231 became prophecy and prayer: «Great transformations are not built at the desk or in the study. … “Everyone plays a fundamental role, in a single creative project, to write a new page of history, a page full of hope, full of peace, full of reconciliation” », to realize God’s dream: a new humanity.
* Don Paolo Scarafoni and Filomena Rizzo teach theology together in Italy and in Africa, in Addis Ababa. They are authors of books and articles on theology.