In the wake of the 9/11 terrorist attacks, Attorney General John Ashcroft, a prominent advocate of the war in Iraq, wrote a song called “Let the Eagle Soar.” It was a deeply patriotic song, which included the following lyrics: “Like she’s never soared before, from rocky coast to golden shore, let the mighty eagle soar . . . Oh she’s far too young to die; You can see it in her eye; She’s not yet begun to fly.” In typical God-and-country fashion, Ashcroft sometimes sang the paean at morning prayer meetings at the Department of Justice.
Mahatma Gandhi considered Jesus the most active person of nonviolence in the history of the world. He was dismayed, however, that so few Christians understood or embraced Jesus’ nonviolence.
Did you know that Pentecostal denominations have not always been militaristic? For example, during WWI, Pentecostals widely professed pacifism, the active promotion of peace, and resisted participation in warfare.
by David Swartz
PCPJ 