The answer to this question I sought where the answers to the many of my questions I seek – in the Scripture.
Why war? Because the time for a war comes, when the evil accumulates, as pus under boil and once it must burst. Simply there is a “War time and peace time” (Eccl. 3: 8) as Wise Solomon in the Holy Scriptures teaches us. It is true that “wisdom is better than weapons of war” (Eccl. 9, 18), but there is, probably, the time when the wisdom is downtrodden, when it is not worth talking to someone but he must be differently brought close to a reason. “Any man is not afraid of God – says our people – only of the stick.”
Our people have found long ago among foes. For them, we would be the best when we would move ourselves from life in dusty historical books. If we do not provide resistance, that would have happened to us and dotage scholars would also be wagging about us like they do now over existent nations, Aztecs and Incas, which the merciless Vatican hand grabbed half a millennium ago. David says for himself, and we convey to the whole our nation: “I am in the midst of lions; I am forced to dwell among ravenous beasts– men whose teeth are spears and arrows, whose tongues are sharp swords”. (Ps. 57, 4)
I have read before this David’s lament but I have never been able to understand the truth behind the words of the tongue, that sharp sword. Now I see that tongue of the Vatican machinery lies ruthlessly slaughters us more than the sharp swords of their experienced slayers.
In another place the same man of God prayed to the Lord to preserve him from the evil and violent man “Which imagine mischiefs in their heart; continually are they gathered together for war, they have sharpened their tongues like a serpent; adders’ poison is under their lips.” (Psalm 140: 1 – 3)
Somehow, the answer to the injustices of their hands can be found, but the cure for the bite of the most venomous snake, which is in their mouth, cannot; We are skilful to the battle, not to the lies.
Why God does not prevent war?
This question is similar to the question “Why a doctor in one town does not prevent disease? – Bishop Nikolai says. There, the doctor prescribes a preventive protection of the disease and when the disease takes the primacy, the doctor prescribes medicament, so, he prescribes both, the protection and the medicament. The written prescriptions have been given to the people to use. That way, the doctor has done everything he could to prevent disease. On that way the doctor has done everything he could. But if people receive a prescription from a doctor and then throw it away, and do nothing to prevent disease and heal themselves, who is guilty then: a doctor or a citizen of that city. Undoubtedly, the doctor is not guilty”.
Also, it is not God’s fault for war.
God has prescribed extensive recipe against war. This recipe is written in the Old and New Testament, but people have received that God’s prescription against the war, received and rejected. Than who is guilty for war? Certainly not God.
When people replace God’s law with their own, and God’s will with theirs, God’s sense with their own, and then war must occur.
God could undoubtedly prevent every war with his power; at the same way that driver stops the car by pressing the brakes. But the God does not want to treat people as dead and unreasonable machines. God does not want to use the force to bring back the people to the right path “- says Bishop Nikolai.
Also, we are haunted by the thought how to align in ourselves Christian call to love our enemies and pray for those who persecute us (Matt. 5, 44) in the inevitability of war?
Certainly, we cannot justify iniquity and crimes which our people did too. Any excess defence measures for bare life will be return to us as greater evil.
But to find an answer to the question that bothers us, the one who has already taught us Christianity can help us: St. Cyril.
The Muslims have asked St. Cyril, how Christians can fight and in the same time maintain the Christ’s commandment to pray to God for their enemies?St. Cyril responded: “If there are two commandments written in the same law, and than given to the people on execution, which man will be a better executor of that law: the one who accomplish only one command or the one who accomplish both?
Undoubtedly the one who accomplishes both the commandments – answered the Saracens.
St. Cyril continued: Our Lord Christ has commanded us to pray to God for those who persecute us, and to do well to them too. But he has also told us: Greater love had no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends. (Jn. 15, 13) Therefore we endure insults that enemies make to us individually, and we pray to God for them. But, as a community, we are committed to each other and we lay down our lives, that enemy, who plunders our brothers, does not plunder their souls along with their bodies, executing both of them. “(Orthodox missionary, 6, 85).
Our people stood up to defend their bare lives despite the invasion of all evil and selfishness of this world. They made us to wear too tight measures and there was no other than snap and rip those chains. We believe that the God is with those who defend their lives; he is their dam and protection.
May the Lord protects and saves us. Let the God that soon dawn the day which will beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruninghooks: nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more (Is. 2: 4), thay will live in peace and prosperity.