War and Peace

Today's Readings: 2 Chronicles 5-7, Psalm 98 .

If you haven't heard my bit about the early Jewish community being "henotheists" and not "monothesists" you really are missing out on an important but snore-inducing segment of biblical interpretation. I offer, in short, that way back when the Israelites believed that there were many gods but that theirs was the most powerful. The way you knew your God was the most powerful was determined many ways, but referenced perhaps most often in scripture by military strength.

Theology obviously has changed a little bit since then, but a remnant of this thought remains. One need only think back a few weeks to the Super Bowl, wherein the victors claim that they would like to thank God for making this happen. Certainly one would not critique thanking God for things, but what do we say about the losers? Was their god not powerful enough?

I should hope we evaluate and give thanks to God differently today. There is no god but God, and rather than give thanks for where God enters and triumphs in war, we give thanks for where God brings about peace. We pray for conflict everywhere to end, whether in ongoing wars that will have impact long into our futures that happen in Iraq and Afghanistan; or whether it be for the rifts that happen within the boundary lines of our own household. May God make us agents of peace this day. Amen.