BAVINCK OOR DIE CHRISTENDOM EN DIE PROBLEEM VAN OORLOG
Inleiding
In die lig van die inval van Rusland in die Oekraïne, hoe moet gelowiges, hoe moet die kerk van Christus dink oor die ‘probleem van oorlog’?
Herman Bavinck het in 1914, na die uitbreek van die Eerste Wêreldoorlog en daarna, die volgende twee artikels (asook ander) oor oorlog geskryf, wat hier volledig gelees kan word:
“Het probleem van den oorlog.”(1914)
“Christendom, oorlog, volkenbond” (1919)
‘n Gedeelte van die eerste artikel is ook in Engels vertaal en is hier beskikbaar:
Ek plaas hier onder ‘n paar aanhalings vanuit die engelse vertaling oor oorlog in die lig van die Skrif (opskrifte en beklemtonings is bygevoeg). Onder die artikel is ook ‘n paar verdere bronne oor die etiek van oorlog.
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Ons benodig ‘n christelike etiek van oorlog
“It is therefore surely worth the effort to try and answer the following questions: What attitude is Christian ethics going to adopt towards war? Does war have a place in the Christian world-and-life view? Or must war at all times and in all places be condemned and opposed as a crime? Does war make any ‘sense’, or is it never anything but gruesome injustice, brute force and a work of the devil?”
Die unieke heilige oorloë in die Ou Testament
“Now ancient Israel lived in circumstances completely different from those of the Christian community in the days of the New Testament. Hence its history cannot simply be our directing principle or example. Nevertheless, the Old Testament propagates the view that war is not of itself unjust and unlawful in every case. Moreover, in God’s hands it can serve as a means toward higher goals, towards the coming of the Kingdom of God. Furthermore, war is temporary and at the coming of the Messiah it shall immediately make way for the kingdom of eternal peace.”
Oorlog in die Nuwe Testament
“The New Testament ethical standard is so high that in practice it seems to be in no way applicable. These words of peace and the gruesome reality of war stand in such sharp contrast that reconciling them seems to be impossible. Christ commands us not to resist him who is evil and to love our enemy, but in war the very opposite is required: murder, burning, plunder, destruction and everything that contributes to the enemy’s ruin and downfall. The antinomy has been felt in the Christian church since ancient times and has led to varying attempts to solve the problem. Some have dismissed the world as the domain of Satan and have, either in isolation or in small groups, sought to apply the fundamentals of Jesus’ teaching. Others have reversed this and have rejected his teaching as thoroughly impractical and—at least in public life—have denied its value completely. Still others have struck a compromise by distinguishing between higher and lower ethics, between counsels and commands, between clergy and laity. …
[Bavinck then gives historical examples of movements and men who held to an uncompromising pacifism and of others who extolled the virtues of war. Of the former he names the Anabaptists, the Quakers and Tolstoi. Included in the latter group are men such as Hegel, Spencer and Bismarck.]
Neither of these sentiments, however, can be harmonized with Christianity. The champions of peace do indeed at all costs like to appeal to Jesus’ utterances in the Sermon on the Mount. Yet by so doing they forget other truths which also find expression in the Gospel. The Sermon on the Mount is not to be equated with Christianity, and the problem of war is not so simple that it can be resolved by an appeal to a single text. It is much rather part of a wider issue which touches on the relationship of Christianity to natural life as a whole, to the entire sinful world and all it contains.”
Christen is nie van die wêreld nie, maar in die wêreld
“But it is all the more striking that Christianity is devoid of all asceticism and from its very beginning took on a positive relationship to the world at large. This fact is principally found in the statement that God loved the world and that Christ came not to destroy the world but to save it. From this focal point lines are drawn in all directions to indicate the place Christians are to occupy and the attitudes they are to have in this sinful world. They must not withdraw from the world, but being in the world they are to keep themselves from the evil one. Nothing is unclean of itself. All God’s creation is good and nothing is to be rejected if it be accepted with thanksgiving.
Marriage is honorable among all. The government is God’s servant and is entitled to obedience and respect. Whoever becomes a Christian is to remain in the calling to which he was called. The prayer of Jesus’ disciples is that God’s name be hallowed, that His kingdom come, that His will be done on earth as it is in Heaven. All this points, not to an avoidance, but to a sanctification of the world.”
Jesus oor die swaard
“In this connection it is significant that the New Testament never disapproves the military profession as such. The soldiers who came to John the Baptist did receive an order not to take money by force, etc., but not an order to leave the service [Luke 3.14]. Jesus expressed his amazement at the great faith of the centurion at Capernaum and healed his servant [Matt 8.5f]. Later the centurion Cornelius and his whole household were baptized and admitted to the church [Acts 10].
Without having any scruples about it, Jesus, in one of his parables, speaks about a king who before going to war sits down and considers whether he with ten thousand men is able to meet his opponent who has twenty thousand [Luke 14.31]. Similarly Paul takes pleasure in using military imagery to describe the life of the Christian [Rom 6.13; 1 Cor 9.7; Eph 6.10-18; 2 Tim 2.3, etc.]. Even more striking is the fact that Jesus explicitly forbids the use of the sword for his defense, as the weapons of believers’ warfare are not of the flesh, but mighty before God [Matt 26.52; 2 Cor 10.4]. Yet he is just as definite in affirming that he has not come to bring peace on earth but a sword, that is, to cause discord between people, even between the members of one family [Matt 10.34,35]. Therefore, when the disciples are presently to go out into the world to preach the Gospel, they are to expect persecution and hate from the world. Then they will not only need a purse and a bag but also a sword, i.e., they must be completely ready to engage in spiritual warfare against the world, Luke 22.36. …
His kingdom and his righteousness must therefore be sought above all things [Matt 6.33]. For the kingdom of heaven is a treasure and a pearl of great price [Matt 13.44-46]. Thus a man is worth more than the whole world [Matt 16.26], the soul more than the body, life more than food, the body more than clothing [Matt 6.25]. These spiritual and material goods are not necessarily mutually exclusive. They can be possessed and enjoyed together. Yet in this present world they may clash and collide with one another again and again.”
Liefde en oorlog
“The mercy of Christianity goes much deeper than pity; it is not the single, dominant virtue, but the disposition and expression of love in a particular direction with a view to the need and misery in the world. Love goes back much further, love extends much further. To begin with, it has God and all His virtues as its object.
Moreover, it also directs itself to all His works and creatures, not because they are lamentable, but because it is in God that they live and move and have their being. Likewise, Christian love is basically different from the free love whose praises are nowadays so frequently sung. This free love is really nothing but lack of discipline and the emancipation of sentiment and passion. Christian love is rather the fulfilling of the law, is decreed by God’s will and is man’s duty which binds him by conscience. This love is neither arbitrary nor a matter of personal choice. It does not lie within us to determine whom or what we should love. We must love God as He reveals Himself and not as we imagine Him to be. We must love the neighbor whom God places next to us, and not the one we choose. We must love the man, woman, parents and children God gives us and not another man or woman. We must love all that is true, righteous and pure. We must hate sin and avoid it, no matter how beautifully it may present itself.”
Valse liefde en valse vrede met die bose moet verwerp word
“There is therefore a true, but also a false, unreal and counterfeit love. Likewise there is a good peace for which we must strive and seek to maintain with all men, but there is also a false, sinful peace which should be broken. If with lies and injustice— by way of concession and for the sake of peace—we make a treaty or quietly permit what is wrong, then we are being spineless and denying truth and virtue. Over against such false peace [cf. Jer 6.14] Jesus placed the claim that he had come to cast fire upon the earth [Luke 12.49]. There are powers in this world with which we can never live on peaceful terms. There are truths and rights, spiritual possessions and invisible treasures for which we must be willing to sacrifice everything—peace, quiet, respectability and reputation, yea even love for our family and our own life.
Conditions in this incomprehensible world may be so serious and complicated that love itself may compel us to break peace and engage in battle. Prophets such as Jeremiah would much rather have remained silent and spent their days in peace and tranquility, but they could not, nor were they allowed to. They spoke because they believed and they struggled against their nation because they loved it. By his great love for God and man Jesus himself was moved to resist all evil forces even unto death.”
Liefde is vir individue en volke wat die Here daargestel het
“This morality, of course, primarily refers to individual persons, but it also has significance for world powers. A nation is certainly not a mass of souls brought together by men within an arbitrary piece of land but a living organism which has its roots far back in the past and which is animated with a living patriotism in its every bone. Some people take pleasure in splitting the threads of this love into factors such as climate, soil, history, custom, etc., and then displaying it in its foolishness. But so superficial an undertaking is self-condemning and is completely powerless in the face of the reality of this love. Love—even for one’s country—always has a mysterious character. It comes up out of the depths and is fed by hidden springs. For a time it may slumber and sleep, but then it reawakes with such irresistible power that even the coolest cosmopolitan is carried along with it. It then shows itself to be so enthusiastic, lofty and disinterested that it renders one prepared for and capable of making the most demanding sacrifices.
This points to the fact that when the Most High separated the sons of man, He gave the nations their inheritance and set the boundaries of the peoples [Deut 32.8], He ‘determined their appointed times, and the boundaries of their habitation’ [Acts 17.26], and gave each of them a place and a task in the history of humanity. In this respect it makes no essential difference whether a nation be great or small. Lloyd George and James Bryce have rightly reminded us that relatively small nations have contributed to the increase of the most noble cultural traits as much as—if not more than—the larger nations. Therefore it is no arbitrary matter, but rather one’s calling and duty to defend these characteristics, sword in hand if need be.”
Die bergrede se oproep om die wang te draai en te vergewe vervang nie regverdige selfverdediging en oorlog nie
“It is true that in the Sermon on the Mount, namely in Matthew 5.38-42, Jesus calls his disciples to a spirit of forgiveness which, we would do well to recall, stands in direct contrast to the demand of retribution, and is not susceptible to any quantitative computation [cf. Matt 18.22].
It is equally certain that Jesus is here speaking to those who understand, and not formulating a law that has to be observed to the letter; he is merely stating a spiritual principle which demands a different application in accord with the differing circumstances of life. Jesus himself acted in this way [John 18.22, 23], and Paul who preached the same spirit of forgiveness [Rom 12.17-21; 1 Thess 5.15; cf. 1 Peter 3.9] appeals to his rights as a Roman citizen [Acts 22.25].
Personal insults can and must be forgiven, but when truth or justice is assaulted in one’s person, then, according to Christian principles, which place the Kingdom of God and His righteousness above all else, it is one’s duty to defend and give evidence. This obligation is contained even within the Christian virtue of self-denial. For when the latter demands that for the sake of Christ and the Gospel we should forsake everything, at the same time it presupposes that all the things which we must abandon have value in and of themselves, even though it be a subordinate one. For whatever is worth nothing and does not cost us anything requires no self-denial when we have to forego it.
For example, life is a possession that may and must be defended if it is not in conflict with higher concerns. In case of need every man has the right and the duty to defend his life, weapons in hand. An intruder into any house may be withstood with violence. Similarly the authorities which are called to maintain justice do not bear the sword, even the sword of war, in vain. If necessary, in the case of an emergency, they must use the sword both at home and abroad. Truth and justice are worth more for a man, for a nation and for humanity as a whole than are life, peace, prosperity and tranquility.”
Die kerk oor die algemeen deur die eeue verwerp nie soldate en oorloë opsigself nie
“It is thus noteworthy that the Christian church in all its divisions has never condemned the warrior and war. The church herself of course may never go beyond preaching the Gospel of peace and fighting with spiritual weapons. A ‘holy war’ for the propagation of truth has been forbidden her by what Christ said to Peter. Yet she has never disputed the authorities’ right to wage war in case of need. Pacifists have resented her for this, but they would probably have reproached the church more strongly had she taken the liberty to mingle in state affairs and, without further ado, denied war its raison d’être in this dispensation. The church may and must not do so. It is her calling, according to the word of Christ, to render to God the things that are God’s and also to render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s.”
Konklusie: daar kan goeie en regverdige oorloë wees
“Christian ethics therefore allows no other conclusion than that there can be good and just wars. Perhaps they are very few in number, and even much fewer than we think. In every war, even the most just, many things take place which both Christianity and humanity very strongly condemn. Yet neither the Scriptures nor history give sufficient grounds to censure every war unconditionally. A war can be good and just provided that it comply with the demands of higher principles, serve the maintenance of justice and only then be undertaken in the case of most dire necessity. Its justification then does not lie in the right of might nor in the virtues of patriotism, heroism, patience, steadfastness, unity, readiness to make sacrifices, etc., which it may engender; even less in the consequences liable to be brought about by victory such as a broadening perspective, an expansion of culture or even of Christianity; and least of all in the philosophical conviction that all that exists is reasonable and that war constitutes an indispensable and precious moment in the development of the human race.
If a war is to be defended it must itself pass the strict test of justice. Even then it resembles the disasters and adversities of life in that it remains an evil [malum physicum] which may in God’s holy hands nevertheless be used for the edification of the human race. The end and purpose thus remains peace, the eternal peace of the Kingdom of God.
Byvoeging: Bavinck oor die selfregverdiging van oorlog, ook (Louis) Botha in Suid-Afrika
Maar alle oorlogvoerende volken, tot zelfs Botha in Zuid-Afrika toe, beweren, dat zij een rechtvaardigen oorlog voeren, in het belang van beschaving, vrijheid en vrede. Soms maken zij er zelfs een heiligen oorlog van, van Christus tégen den antichrist, van God tegen den duivel, stellen de vijandenals Hunnen en Vandalen voor, en meenen Gode een welgevallig werk te doen. Allen zijn overtuigd van het rechtvaardige van hun zaak, maken God tot hun partij, en rekenen vast op de overwinning. Geen der volken doet daarin voor het andere onder. Zij werpen alle schuld van zichzelven af en schuiven ie geheel op den vijand; zij zeggen alle, dat zij tot den einde toe den vrede hebben willen handhaven en dat de oorlog hun opgedrongen werd. En van verootmoediging en schuldbelijdenis wordt weinig vernomen. Hetwelk alles te droever stemt, wijl deze oorlog, naar het hun, die van de gepubliceerde bescheiden kennis nemen maar daarmede nog niet in de geheimen zijn ingewijd, toeschijnt, met een weinigje meer vertrouwen en met wat minder overhaasting gemakkelijk had vermeden kunnen worden.
Zoo gaat deze oorlog dus niet om een groot geestelijk of zedelijk goed, maar om belangen, voorrang en macht. En al mag ook van deze de waarde niet worden miskend, verheffend werkt een oorlog, om zulke redenen ondernomen, althans op den buitenstaander niet. De vele pogingen, om hem te rechtvaardigen met edeler motieven, hebben alleen dit verblijdende, dat zij alle uitgaan van de gedachte, dat een oorlog dienstbaar moet zijn aan de gerechtigheid, en dat de publieke consciëntie eene macht is, waarmede gerekend dient te worden. Alverder doen de schrikkelijke ellenden, die deze oorlog veroorzaakt, de vraag opkomen, of de belangen, waarvoor men strijdt, inderdaad zoo ontzettende kosten van goed en bloed waard zijn.”
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Verdere bronne oor die etiek van oorlog:
Boetnner, L. The Christian Attitude toward War.
Charles, JD (ed.), War, Peace, and Christianity: Questions and Answers from a Just-War Perspective
Christendom en Oorlog: gereformeerde stemmen over het oorlogsvraagstuk.
Clouse, RG (ed.) War: Four Christian Views
Frame, John. The Doctrine of the Christine Life.
Holmes, Arthur F. (ed.) War and Christian Ethics: Classic and contemporary readings on the morality of war.
Morey, Robert A. When is it right to fight: looking at peace, freedom and responsibility.
Van Wyk, JH. Etiek in Eenvoud: gesprekke oor morele vraagstukke.
Enige gereformeerde etiek boeke, kyk veral by die verklaring van die 6de gebod sake.
Nog Pro Regno artikels van of oor Bavinck
PRO REGNO 
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