Pleas for Peace
“Pray for Ukraine” is not enough.
The acts of loving one’s enemy and peacemaking are terribly difficult and complex both in our personal lives and in our global context. While I can never claim to fully know the right action in response to the violence in Ukraine, there are manners in which we might posture ourselves against violence.
Many have been posting, “pray for Ukraine” or “my thoughts and prayers are with Ukraine.” While I believe prayer is important and meaningful, prayer is not the solution for the crisis in Ukraine, unless those praying become the actual response to their articulated pleas for peace.
It seems those praying, or calling for prayer, desire peace. I share that longing and I, too, find myself in prayer, grateful for moments of peace, longing for peace and the safety of everyone involved in or effected by violence, and asking, “what can I do?” The cry, “pray for Ukraine,” seems to be a response to the question, “what can I do?” It may seem like there is nothing we can do. We feel hopeless so all one can do is pray. Some may say, “how dare you question the power of prayer?” Some may even say, “prayer is singularly the most important thing.”
I do not believe prayer is singularly the most important thing. Clearly, God does not unilaterally resolve horrific violence. If God could immediately bring peace and if prayer directs God to act a certain way, the invasion into Ukraine should have never happened. If petitionary prayer requesting divine intervention is the way to alleviate suffering and is the way toward peace, why is God not intervening to stop the tragedy in Ukraine?
I believe that God can intervene, but God does so through humanity. We, all of us, can be agents of peace. So, what can we do? With a humanitarian crisis actively emerging, we can open our homes to orphans and refugees. We can do that all the time! We can send supplies to neighboring countries that may be under-resourced and overwhelmed with refugees. We can send online messages of hope and life to our friends in Ukraine, offering emotional support so that in the midst of attacks and displacement, they know there are people present to support them. We can speak kindly about Russians, remembering that many, perhaps even most, oppose the tragic violence incited by their authoritarian government. We can elect our own non-authoritarian leaders who oppose all forms of violence, who welcome immigrants, who oppose the death penalty, and who promote policies of care for those who are victims of their circumstance in society.
While some of these things may not be immediate solutions to the violence in Ukraine, we need to be thinking about how we posture ourselves as a people of peace. If we truly long for peace, we should embody peace and non-violence every moment of our lives, laying down our own artillery, whether that be our weapons or our words.
Yes, if you are someone who values prayer, pray for Ukraine. Perhaps more importantly, if you are someone who values life and desires peace, be a person enacting peace. Jesus himself said, “blessed are the peacemakers.” May we operate with a desire for peace so deep that we dismantle and dissolve all forms of violence, for God is not a god of violence. God is love.
