Reflecting on Pacifism

In the beginning of reading Rudy Wiebe's Peace Shall Destroy Many, I was unsure about how this could be such a controversial book. Now that it's over, though, I think I get it.

The end of the book makes the reader think that a couple of good Mennonite boys, Hank Unger and Thom Wiens, went out and joined the army. How could that be?!

Being raised in the Mennonite church, I sort of feel like pacifism is just a part of me--like it's engrained in me. And while I enjoyed this novel, I think that is why the ending made me feel a little uneasy. In all honesty, my uneasy feelings make me feel uneasy because saying these things makes me sound like some old person who hates change and is being overly protective of the Mennonite faith.

Anyway, part of me sort of thinks that the reader maybe could have predicted this situation. In chapter 2 we see a quote from Joseph that reads:

"Though Mennonites, because of their training, naturally abhor violence, yet they faintly admire it, somehow, in someone who without thought 'hews to it'! And if Germans are involved, this unconscious admiration is even bolstered a bit by our almost nationalistic interest in Germany. After all, we are displaced Germans, at least ethnically, and because we haven't had a true home for four hundred years, we subconsciously long for one. It will take this war to knock any silly German ideas out of our heads"(27).

While this is not the ending that I would have expected from a Mennonite writer, and while I do have unresolved feelings toward the book, I am so thankful that Rudy Wiebe did invoke those feelings for his readers. Too often, we get stuck in our Mennonite bubbles and forget what people in other parts of the world, or even people from our very own religious tradition, have to face on a daily basis. I'm sure that there have been many Mennonites who have grappled with the idea of pacifism and I am grateful to Wiebe for exposing the other side to us.

Gadfly

Last weekend, as I walked into Umble Center, I thought I knew what to expect from the play "Gadfly: Sam Steiner Dodges the Draft." However, I was actually rather surprised by what I saw.

Okay, let’s be honest, I didn’t do any research on the play. I just assumed that the story we read in class about the “Menno-Pause” publication was going to be the content of the play and the “draft-dodging” was just some unexplained aspect that I didn’t understand. 

Even though I came in with odd, incorrect expectations, I still greatly enjoyed the play. I found Sam’s story to be moving, inspiring, and also somewhat relatable. Now, I can’t say that as a Mennonite, I have ever had the desire to go and enlist in the army. But, I think that at some point in many of our lives, we have all wanted to rebel a little. My rebellious phase was when I decide to attend a non-Mennonite state school in the heart of Nebraska.  Considering the fact that I’m now studying here at Goshen College, the outcome of that phase is pretty predictable.

Anyway, I found Sam’s passion for peace and equality to be greatly inspiring. I also think the fact that he stood by his beliefs and chose not to apply for CO status because he refused to apply on religious terms is somewhat admirable. 

The aspect of the play that I really enjoyed came in the question and answer time with some of the cast, Sam, and one of the musicians. I loved hearing the audience members stand up and ask questions. Some remembered the whole incident; some knew Sam or Sue—Sam’s wife—and one woman was even in the car when her family took Sam to Canada. I loved hearing the different aspects of the story that people remembered. 

Even though the play portrayed a rather unfortunate time in Goshen College’s history, I still think that the story of Sam Steiner is one that Goshen should be proud of.