While we are in the Remembrance Day season, it is an apt time to reflect on the sacrifices and horrors of war, especially with the brutal reality of conflicts and loss of human lives currently taking place around the world, including the Israeli-Gaza conflict, the Russian-Ukrainian war, the situation in Darfur, the insurgency in northern Nigeria, Myanmar civil war, to name a few.
As theologians, we grieve for all who find themselves plunged into the horrors of war and we lament the brutal loss of human lives. We pray for just and lasting peace around the world – one achieved through the conscientious work of dialogue, truth, reconciliation, and accountability. We honor those who strive for peace.
The following Scripture verse and sentiment, which I had shared on Remembrance Day, a couple of years ago, recently popped up on my social media feed as a timeline memory, and I thought it was fitting to share at such a time as this:
“The Lord will mediate between peoples and will settle disputes between strong nations far away. They will hammer their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning hooks. Nation will no longer fight against nation, nor train for war anymore.”
Micah 4:3
A vision of peace, where weapons of war are fashioned into instruments for livelihood. A vision that might not be fully realized this side of eternity. Nonetheless, may God’s Holy Spirit inspire us, as people of God, to live out and promote this vision via our own unique spheres and circumstances.
Respectfully
Maureen Ononiwu
TGSA President
