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Monday, March 11, 2013

PREFERENTIAL OPTION FOR THE RICH---PROTECTED BY JUSTIFIED VIOLENCE?


Robbing Peter to pay Paul, for pre-emptive wars of destruction and debt.
 
 


pend greater than one half of our federal budget on war, borrow from Social Security for war, still rack up debt from unfunded war, create a new Department of Homeland Security as further backup for war.  Then bemoan the situation and demand gross cuts to social security, education, environment, infrastructure—anything that does not serve the interest of the war and security industries.  And this in the country that spends as much on these industries as do all the rest of the countries of the world combined.  This in the country in which its wealthiest 1% has become the class that controls more wealth than 40% of all the rest of its own people.  While the 80% of us on the lower and middle class ends, have only 7% of our country’s wealth [video - graphic representation].  A Wall Street Journal column contends the disparity is greater.  Yes there is class warfare. 
 
More important, this situation of the rich and powerful, detached from the needs of common people and the poor, here and worldwide, is deep social sin.  Jesus cries out loudly against this injustice.  “Woe to you who are rich” and He tells the devastating story of the rich man and Lazarus ultimately separated by the chasm between heaven and hell.  There is so much in the Gospel that warns against hoarding riches.  For the super-rich that’s a huge impediment to salvation.  Yet it’s a message for all of us who live in this richest country on the planet. 

  
To protect our wealth, property, privilege, we believe we’ve the right and responsibility to maintain the world’s largest war machine.  Nation states are designed to operate with the mentality of the war machine [it’s necessary to kill, to survive], but our Christian churches must operate on the faith taught by Jesus.
 














Church + society’s justified violence = the greatest impediment to the New Evangelization.   We continue to misconstrue the basic Gospel truth:  greater love than this no one has than to lay down their life for their friends {not the taking of life in defense of their friends}.   Jesus showed us this way so clearly—telling us to put away the sword, forgiving his enemies, as he died for all of us, on the cross.  Violence is the devil’s tool.  God is love.  Justified violence is the Deceiver’s most potent lie. 

 
If God sends His Son to tell you that the way to salvation is nonviolent love and mercy, why, as in our budget, would you spend more than ½ your resources on war and violence? – why would your church endorse even one farthing, or send even one member off in support of the justified violence of war?  It does not do so for the justified violence of abortion.
God will not be mocked can put off for a time--as when Jesus suffered the mockery of the cross.  But God, the creator and sustainer, will never long be successfully ignored.
 
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A past departing Pope understood completely the nature of our nonviolent merciful loving God.  The church and society wasn't interested in what he was saying.  On April 22, 2011, six years into his reign, Pope Benedict XVI proclaimed---
“It could be expected that, when God came to earth, he

would be a man of great power, destroying the opposing

forces; that he would be a man of powerful violence as an

instrument of peace. Not at all! He came in weakness.

He came with only the strength of love, totally without

violence, even to the point of going to the cross. This is

what shows us the true face of God: that violence never

comes from God, never helps bring anything good, but is

a destructive means and not the path to escape difficulties.

...This is Jesus’ true message: seek peace with the means of peace and leave violence

aside.” 
          For a remarkable insight into Pope Benedict's inspiration and recent decision, above and beyond the media controversies, see Fr. E. C. McCarthy's complete article.
 
 
 Illumination by Kathy Brahney

More ---
John Perkins, author of Economic Hit Man, on how wealth extends globally.
Ed Asner’s look at the crash of 2008--Tax the Rich An animated fairy tale. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S6ZsXrzF8Cc
What, and exclusive who’s is -- the plutonomy?
 
 

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