The Weapons Are The Point

Last updated on: April 28, 2022 at 11:12 am by C. Don Jones

The Weapons Are The Point 2022-04-28T11:12:48-06:00 C. Don Jones

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

I watched a Senator the other day read from a list of weapons the US has given Ukraine. Russia’s invasion and war on Ukraine is a crime against humanity. When the Russian patriarch and Putin bring God into the discussion, it is blasphemy. But it is no virtue to claim, “we gave Ukraine the ability to shoot down aircraft carrying hundreds of Russian troops.” Something is wrong with our “aid.” The impolite question is not asked. So I will. Who is paying for the weapons?

In Guns We Trust

We love our weapons. When I hear the unmuffled sounds of helicopter or jet engines, I know it is a military craft. I go outside to see what is flying. A friend recently asked, what does that sound mean to other people? If I was a resident of Gaza, Sana’a, or Kyiv, I would not look to see what was flying. I would seek a safe place. The difference is security. I feel secure in my city. The same weapons make other people feel threatened. It is not the same as a hearing the engines of a vehicle delivering needed supplies.

We trust our weapons. The scariest time of a movie is when a gun jams during the fight with the bad guys. Otherwise, we look for the weapons to deliver us from evil. They are considered necessary tools to protect us. During the pandemic my home state decided gun shops were as great a necessity as grocery stores. Domestically, the strangest development has been the people who “open carry” their guns. Guns are easier to find in my town than pocket handkerchiefs. Men no longer carry pocket handkerchiefs. So, there are a lot of people who are able to blow another person’s head off but cannot blow their own noses. It is a strange way to be.

Weapons and Wealth

Who is paying for the aid to Ukraine? If they win, there is an assumption Ukraine will pay the bill. If the Russians succeed, the governments of the West will pay the bill. Manufacturers will not be “eating” the loss. They have already been paid. Despite everything Donald Trump did as President, his first impeachment came after he decided to withhold a weapons sale. Is this not a telling position of the then opposition?

Will Rogers observed, on the occasion of the United States officially recognizing the government of the Soviet Union, that America would recognize Hell if it thought it could sell pitchforks to the devil. It is sad to consider how much wealth is tied up in manufacturing and maintaining weapons. It has also been observed that instead of manufacturing weapons to fight wars, we manufacture wars to spend money on weapons.

The Spirit of Weapons

Priorities. A neighbor stopped by for a friendly talk. I heard a shotgun blast. It was the country. You sometimes hear them. We continued talking. A second blast caused me to look in the direction I heard it coming from. my neighbor said, “He doesn’t have a place to live. But he goes out to buy a new expensive gun.”

“Who?” I asked.

“My stepson,” He sighed.

I remembered then his stepson, the stepson’s wife, and new baby were living with him. This was not someone morally opposed to guns. He was concerned about why a grown person would decide the gun was a greater need than shelter for the family?

The self-image of the stepson was tied up in the weapon. The gun was the point. And this was the whole problem and has been for a long time now. It is the spirit of the weapon that says it gives power, confidence, and provides controlled danger. A modest house or apartment does not give a person these feelings. This is the message of most of our entertainment.

The Circus

Christians were once brought into the circus to be torn apart for the amusement of the crowd. Now Christians are the crowd and the entertainment. The weapons have changed. But they are still the driving force of the drama. Weapons consume us by providing a heroic identity. Violence is the way. Swift justice is redemptive. And only the determined souls who are ready to deliver these things are worth anything. The society has become the circus.

Violent force is the method of the fearful. The circus is the opposite of a just society. And weapons are not meant to be the fulfillment of the rights of humanity. The best images to come out of the war in Ukraine is the ones of tractors towing away tanks. There is an ancient message from God being repeated there. If we will only listen to it.

Gun Violence

Lies

Redemptive Violence Myth

Violence

Previous Post

April 25, 2022

Loving Wisdom

Next Post

May 3, 2022 Divorce: Church Style

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category Addiction Advent Afghanistan Anxiety Ascension Sunday Baptism Barack Obama Biblical Interpretation Bigotry Book Banning BSA Buddhism Choice Christmas Church Discipline Community Conscience Conspiracy theories COVID-19 Culture Wars death cults deconstruction Devotional Divine Judgment Donald Trump Earth Day Election Day empathy Environmentalism Evangelism Exploitation of the Poor Faith False Claims fascism Fear Forgiveness Genocide government Grace Gun Violence Halloween Hate Health Hillbilly Elegy Hindu Holy Communion Holy Week Homelessness Hope Identity Integrity Islam Joe Biden John Hagee Kamala Harris Labor Lent Liberation Theology Lies Love Love as action Neurological disorders Non-Christian Religions Online Worship Original Goodness Pandemic Peace Pentecost Philosophy Preaching Progressive Christianity Racism Redemptive Violence Myth Resentment Saint's Days Satire Sobriety social media Spiritual Self Care Spirituality Technology The Kingdom of God The United Methodist Church Theology Transfigurations Sunday Transgender persons Truth Uncategorized Violence Wesleyan Working Class

Select a Month September 2026 August 2026 July 2026 March 2026 January 2026 December 2025 November 2025 September 2025 July 2025 June 2025 May 2025 April 2025 March 2025 January 2025 October 2024 June 2024 May 2024 April 2024 March 2024 February 2024 January 2024 December 2023 November 2023 October 2023 September 2023 August 2023 July 2023 June 2023 May 2023 April 2023 March 2023 February 2023 January 2023 December 2022 November 2022 October 2022 September 2022 August 2022 July 2022 June 2022 May 2022 April 2022 March 2022 February 2022 January 2022 December 2021 November 2021 October 2021 September 2021 August 2021 July 2021 June 2021 May 2021 April 2021 March 2021 February 2021 January 2021 December 2020 November 2020 October 2020 September 2020 August 2020 July 2020 June 2020 May 2020 April 2020 March 2020 February 2020 January 2020 December 2019 November 2019 October 2019 September 2019 August 2019 July 2019 June 2019 May 2019 March 2019 February 2019 January 2019 December 2018 October 2018 September 2018 July 2018 February 2018 January 2018 August 2017 May 2017 November 2016 July 2016 June 2016 November 2015 May 2015 April 2015 March 2015 January 2015 November 2014 September 2014 August 2014 July 2014 June 2014 April 2014 March 2014 February 2014 January 2014 December 2013 November 2013 October 2013 September 2013 June 2013 March 2013 February 2013 December 2012 August 2012 July 2012 May 2012 February 2012 December 2011 October 2011 September 2011 August 2011 July 2011 June 2011 May 2011 April 2011 March 2011 February 2011 January 2011

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz

Which prophet predicted God would pour out His Spirit on all people?

Select your answer to see how you score.

Amos Micah Hosea Joel