Just Peace

In 1985 a United Church of Christ Synod called upon the UCC to be a Just Peace Church.  The General Synod defined "just peace" as the interrelationship of friendship, justice and common security from violence.  Our church has during its history actively supported justice issues and peace issues.  But in 1987 we voted to be a Just Peace Church.  Since then we have had difficulty defining "Just Peace."  I will take stab at it.

Justice is easy to understand.  It means seeing that everyone is treated fairly and gets an even chance at opportunity economically, legally, in education and in the job market.  Usually justice is spoken of in legal terms, and strictly speaking, when legal specifics are applied without compassion, fairness in human terms is often the loser.  Before DNA testing innocent people were often convicted by unreliable eyewitnesses.  The job market is often unjust to women and minorities, and office politics rather than merit are often the deciding factor in hiring and promotions.

Peace can mean freedom from anxiety, tranquility, freedom from war or from violence in the community, although it is usually spoken of in terms of the absence of war or civil conflict.  It can also refer to the warmth of feeling we get when we are with loved family members or friends or when we experience a beautiful sunset or sunrise.  In California we can experience a feeling of peace when viewing the ocean, being in the mountains or in the desert.  In a religious context, inner peace can mean the experience of God within us.

The term "Just Peace" was consciously chosen rather than peace and justice and came out of the concept of a "Just War."  I have learned that there are specific rules about Just War.  They include having a just cause, assuring that noncombatants will not be killed or injured, using no more force than necessary, ending it as soon as possible and finally establishing a just peace.  It does not seem to me that, using these rules, humanity has ever engaged in a Just War.  Violence has always been met with more violence.  To begin with, the idea of a "just cause" is almost by definition a subjective thing.  Both the Israelis and the Palestinians today believe they have a just cause.  Deciding on a just cause must be carefully thought out, and, I believe, is a difficult task.  In every war I know of the concept of the use of force has been to use more force than your opponent, which assures escalation . Rather than avoiding civilian casualties, civilians have often been targets and not just "collateral damage."  Not only did the Nazis target London with their bombs and rockets and the Japanese target civilians in their conquests, but the United States fire bombed Dresden, Germany, Tokyo and other Japanese cities, and used the ultimate weapon, the atomic bomb, on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, all centers of civilian population.  A Just War approach would have mandated that no more force than necessary be used, but would have eliminated these cities as targets.  This is not to say that the Second World War was not necessary, it was,  but that it was not a just war.

In a Just Peace people work for a society that will no longer find war necessary and assure that every human being has the right to be free from terror.  A Just Peace Church is a creative church working for creative ways to avoid war and establish a just society by working for peace and reconciliation.  We can do this by avoiding the use of terms like "good" and "evil" which assure a subjective interpretation, avoid self-reflection and make it unnecessary to negotiate with the evil ones because by definition they have no validity.  A Just Peace society is one that is responsible to all its members and works for the best for each in the context of what is best for all.  In a just peace all members of society are valued without categorizing them, and differences are discussed with reconciliation arrived at wherever possible.  Agreement and reconciliation are the highest priorities.  In a just peace nations respect and cooperate with each other without trying to get a better deal than their neighbors every time.  There will always be differences and disagreements, but they need not lead to war.

Our church will always support peace and justice issues, but in a Just Peace we see these things in a larger context.  A context that unites us but does not superimpose preconceived thought, which negates creativity and appreciation for other points of view.  When we use the terms "peace," "justice" and "just peace" be aware that they have separate meanings.

--Bob Nofer, for the Just Peace Committee

For more information, read "A Just Peace Church" on the national UCC website.