Jesus and the Roman God Mars Are Not Brothers

It’s all around us.

No, not spring pollen (yet). Rather, I refer to violence.

And it seems to be something regular these days in my homeland of America.

Nigeria. Venezuela. And now Iran.

Not to mention the constant shootings, whether by government agents or regular civilians.

Violence is truly all around us.

I think one of the more challenging things for me is when I find my Christian sisters and brothers championing such things. But I’m not so sure much of this falls in line with the Jesus whom we encounter within holy Scripture.

I’ve never been an American exceptionalist. I’ve never espoused some over-the-top patriotic call, though, in my early teens, I do remember somehow believing we were the great heroes of the Gulf War.

Yet, over the past few years, I’ve moved towards quite a different perspective about war and violence. Again, not that I’ve been some blood-thirsty devotee of past days who has gone through some major Damascus Road conversion to pacifism. Very few reach that blood-lust level. But something slowly changed regarding my outlook on war and violence.

And this is not so much about not holding to a particular position any longer. Rather it’s about being drawn into something, or someone, different.

Kind of like my new birth nearly 30 years ago. It’s not so much that I finally came to the conclusion that Kurt Cobain wasn’t a hero worthy of my following (Yes, it’s true. He was my “hero” in my mid-teens.) Rather I got a glimpse of someone else that asked me to follow him – Jesus of Nazareth. Jesus and Kurt were not ultimately brothers. What I saw in Jesus, or the little I did see of him at that time, compelled me towards laying down everything in order to follow him.

And, so, years later I became faced with what I believe is an even greater picture of who Jesus really is. One who actually means what he says when relaying words like:

Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy.

Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.

But I tell you, do not resist an evil person. If anyone slaps you on the right cheek, turn to them the other cheek also.

But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your Father in heaven.

Of course he truly meant these words, right? They were to take precedence in our lives, correct?

Read those words of Jesus again.

We believe God is more like Jesus than say, Mars, correct? Mars is the Roman god of war. Something tells me Jesus and Mars are not brothers.

Speaking of Mars, some years ago, I read the book A Farewell to Mars by pastor and author, Brian Zahnd. In the book, Zahnd contemplates this:

When did we accept vengeance as an acceptable part of the Christian life? How did violence and power seep into our understanding of faith and grace? For those troubled by this trend toward the sword, perhaps there is a better way.

In the book, Zahnd shares his own journey. He once held to the American way of defending freedom at all costs, even through war and violence. Even more, he shares of what he calls his “worst sins” – gathering around the tv with friends in anticipation of watching Operation Desert Storm and praying prayers of vengeance before a multiple congregation gathering following the heinous event of 9/11.

Yikes!

Zahnd truly believes those are his worst sins.

But a few years following 9/11, his life was turned on its head, culminating in a trip to the Rocky Mountains. He hit a point of profound change on the drive back, one that led to the penning of a poem entitled, Out of the Corner of My Eye.

His words resonate with me. Not as anti-America, by the way. But as looking to behold the fullness of Christ, not just a slice of him.

I, too, am convinced that Jesus is not a god of war. He has no relation to Mars.

Now, I’m not saying God is not just and that he will not fully and finally deal with wickedness and injustice. But remember this. Please remember this: to be just is ultimately about making things right. It’s not first and foremost about getting retribution on your enemies. And remember also that Jesus only teaches what he himself is willing to live: But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your Father in heaven.

God is committed to making things once again good and right, in all the cosmos.

But God is not one who empowers the empire, strengthens the oppressors, cheers on the violent, promote the powerful. He is one who lays his life down for not only the poor and weak, but for his enemies.

This is the Jesus I am beginning to notice more and more in the pages of Scripture. I’m convinced the trajectory of Scripture is that Jesus does not embolden his people to be violent and kill and embrace war.

Can you imagine Jesus turning to the twelve and saying, “Listen, those Romans, they are evil in their pagan worship and sacrifices. They pervert the true ways of God. They are a stench in my Father’s nostrils. I ask you, my followers, to take up the sword and put them to death. All of them. Every last one of them.”

Something sounds very un-Christlike about that. And for those who may want to quote Jesus’s words in Luke 22:36-38 – “and if you don’t have a sword, sell your cloak and buy one” – I ask that you read this post of mine and how we misunderstand those words in their context.

Jesus and Mars are not brothers.

But what about the Old Testament?

Yes, what about it? There are many ways in which Joshua and David mirror the true Messiah. But I’d also remind you that there are many ways in which they don’t. In the theological discussion around the progressive, or unfolding, revelation of Scripture, I think it plausible to say those folk of long ago were missing some vital insights of God’s revelation. Those would come to fruition in Christ himself.

Of course, there are great questions to reflect on: What of the direct Old Testament statements in the Old Testament that begin with, “God says...,” followed by instructions to slaughter people? These have been discussed for 2000 years (or more).

But, at the end of the day, the follower of Christ must read the Old Testament through the lens of Christ.

Jesus is like God, yes. But, also, God is like Jesus.

The full and final revelation of who God is, what God is like, is seen in the face of Jesus. And the only violence Jesus takes on is the violence he endures himself at the cross. Our God is one who suffers, who takes on the violence of even those created by God’s own hand.

At the cross, we hear: I, too, will love my enemies, even unto death. I will not retaliate.

Or as quoted by the biblical evangelist, Luke: Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.

How’s that for justice?

But as Brian Zahnd reminds us in his book: It seems we Christians have had a habitual tendency to separate Jesus from his ideas.

And separate him from his actions.

So, while Jesus and Mars are not brothers, it may just be that Jesus and Uncle Sam (a euphemism for America) are not either.

A final reason that grips me of why I believe the trajectory of Scripture is that of non-violence is when I look at the response of the early church (both recorded in Scripture and in early church history) as it endured massive persecution under Rome. Not one ounce of violent retaliation.

I can’t fathom this. Really, I can’t. And I’m certain most of us can’t either.

And there are still lingering questions. Is it ok for defensive war if attacked? What if someone was attacking my wife and kids? What about self defense in certain situations?

I’m not sure I would say I’m a teetotaler here, though maybe I should be. But I am convinced violence and war display nothing of the cross, which is the glory of God in Christ. I can embrace Jesus as non-violent, unwilling to empower people to take out the enemy.

Jesus: his life, teachings, and response to his crucifixion.

The early church: under grave persecution from Rome.

Both of these let me know what is the true impulse of our God.

This is why I believe Jesus and Mars are not brothers, nor Jesus and Uncle Sam.

I believe Love-Incarnate and War-Incarnate do not look like one another. At all.