Violence and Ambiguity – What Can We Assert?

Last updated on: November 19, 2015 at 8:41 am by Rebecca Todd Peters

Violence and Ambiguity – What Can We Assert? 2015-11-19T08:41:17-04:00 Rebecca Todd Peters

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.

123rf

Dr. Ellen Ott Marshall

I teach Christian ethics in a theological school where my students and I have been talking about ambiguity this week. Ambiguity differs from confusion and wishy-washiness, though it relates to the former and regularly gets slammed as the latter. Ambiguity is, primarily, uncertainty. It is an emotional and cognitive response to experiences that are rapidly unfolding, complex, emotionally-charged, multi-faceted, and subject to the contingencies of perspective and interpretation. Ambiguity is appropriate and honest.

Ambiguity also stands in stark contrast to the dogmatic statements swirling around us since Friday. These voices of certitude claim the moral high ground and parade as true authority and strong leadership. In fact, dogmatic statements are most often an attempt to provide some security when security is illusive.

However, there is another kind of statement we can make, as people of faith. These statements name what we know and who we are without denying the insecurity or ambiguity that we face.

In the midst of ambiguity and very real insecurity, I still hold the following to be true:

Violence cannot stop terrorism.
Syrian refugees are more vulnerable than I am.
Fear should not determine how we treat people.
Brutality and terror are everywhere; and we must mourn them and resist them everywhere.
We resist brutality and terror when we insist on the inherent dignity of persons.
There is a difference between Islam and ISIS, and we should teach our children that.
Christianity is also used to justify violence and exclusion, and we should teach our children to challenge that.
We are all created in the image of God and called into relationship with one another.

These statements do not dispel or deny ambiguity; nor does the presence of ambiguity around the edges of each statement make them any less true. Situated within an honest reaction to the world we experience, these statements function like paving stones that provide a place to stand at a time when grief, frustration, violent acts, and violent rhetoric threaten to pin us down. And in these days when strident voices proclaim the steps necessary for security, ambiguity keeps us honest and striving to be better.

This is a guest blog by Dr. Ellen Ott Marshall, Associate Professor of Christian Ethics and Conflict Transformation at Candler School of Theology at Emory University. Her work focuses on contemporary Christian ethics. She is particularly interested in issues of violence and peace building, theologies of conflict transformation and nonviolence, and the dynamic relationship between faith, history and ethics. Her latest book is Christians in the Public Square: Faith That Transforms Politics.

Previous Post

November 17, 2015

Solidarity Ethics Offer an Alternative Pathway for Justice

Next Post

November 24, 2015 Thanksgiving, Banquets, and Hunger: Pausing to Consider Justice in the Midst of Plenty

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category book review christian ethics christianity college/higher education economics ecumenism environment feminism feminism and feminist theology justice motherhood parenting politics poverty public policy reproductive justice sexuality social change solidarity Uncategorized

Select a Month September 2018 July 2018 June 2018 May 2018 April 2018 March 2018 February 2017 January 2017 November 2016 October 2016 September 2016 August 2016 July 2016 May 2016 April 2016 March 2016 February 2016 January 2016 December 2015 November 2015 October 2015 September 2015 August 2015 July 2015 June 2015 May 2015 April 2015 March 2015 February 2015

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz

Which book records the walls of Jerusalem being rebuilt?

Select your answer to see how you score.

Haggai Malachi Nehemiah Ezra