Vision: A Journal for Church and Theology

From the editorial:

We live in a world where military conflicts seem to be intensifying. After the end of the Cold War in the 1990s, there was much optimism that the world had become a safer place, but since then wars have been on the rise—with an increasing number of soldiers and civilians dying and millions of people experiencing loss of home and necessities of life. In looking to the future, it seems that the best that we can hope for is to muddle through and try to avoid the worst of catastrophes.

Christians have frequently insisted that war is terrible and wrong but have often pointed out that it may be a necessary evil and that under certain conditions it is justifiable. Anabaptists, along with other peace churches, have countered, arguing that all of life is sacred, and, because of the incarnation, cross, and resurrection, war is always wrong. Christians must practice nonresistance and work actively toward building peace. The Christian life is about following Jesus, imitating Christ, living a life of discipleship, and holding firm to Jesus’s teachings and example—the one who called on his followers to not resist evil (Matthew 5:39).

Peace traditions have not always been clear about what a peace witness entails, and since the mid-twentieth century attitudes in some Mennonite circles have evolved. There has been a shift away from an ethic of quiet nonresistance toward an emphasis on engagement with the world and a commitment to active peacebuilding that includes resisting evil while maintaining an ethic of nonviolence.

In recent times, Mennonites have begun to deal with violence closer at hand and have sought to address issues related to racism, domestic violence, and sexual abuse in the context of work, school, church, and home. Considering these issues and the conversations that have ensued, the question arises: Do Mennonites have new insights about what it means to work for peace, both at home and abroad? A few of the articles in this issue begin to shed light on this question.