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When the war in the Ukraine started it was mere weeks after
Brad Wilcox gave a controversial speech. I noted with irony and anger that many
commentors wrote more often and more passionately about the supposed racism and
sexism of Brad Wilcox than the actual deaths in Ukraine. Here you see at least five articles, from
February 8th to the 15th, attacking Wilcox in strong
terms. Russia invaded Ukraine on February 24th, and you see two
tepid articles about the war in Ukraine. Both are rather generic that talk about
food storage
and the impact on missionaries, and another that reposted the church’s
statement on peace
followed by some grousing about the church’s position. Eventually, they talked
about refugees,
and the church in a time
of troubles. Even over a longer time frame they produced fewer articles
with none of the emotion that Wilcox inspired.
I sardonically noted at the time, maybe if Putin
gave a speech about "the blacks" and "the gays" then
American liberals and isolationists will start to give a damn about his
slaughtering innocents. In a moment of dark humor, after I noticed the inconsistent
pattern to Wheat and Tare bloggers they posted a three part series about the
dangers faced by homosexuals
in Eastern Europe!!!!!
Fast forward a few months and no one really cares about
Ukraine anymore. Even though this week the Russians targeted a shopping
mall filled with innocent people we already read many that question the
need for continued
aid. The controversy of the day is
the abortion ruling, but I have a long memory and can compare different
reactions. With the tepid fight for Ukrainian life in my mind I read with
interest this person's
thoughts who seems ready to join the fight...to defend abortion.
The author of the article tried to summon their inner
Churchill and used the word "fight" a zillion times in addition to
rather vivid imagery about battle wounds. The use of the word “fight” is odd
coming from the same crowd that calls excommunication spiritual
violence and barbaric.
Putting aside the hypocritical use of violent rhetoric when it suits them, we
should consider the ends that rhetoric is used for.
Looking at their history on the blog,
the author of fighting for abortion had nothing to say about the slaughter of
innocents in Ukraine. Just a couple weeks after the war started, she did a three-part
post on domestic violence. That is important, but I think the wide scale
violence of war might be worth mentioning too. The author did say that
"silence is violence" regarding LGBT issues. Overall, they have lots
of passion and "fight" for the right to slaughter babies but very
little fight against the wide scale suffering in Ukraine.
To summarize from what I’ve learned in the Brad Wilcox
fiasco through the Russian invasion of Ukraine and overturning of Roe v. Wade:
gay people, “the blacks,” domestic violence, and the right to kill babies:
Those are fighting words, except when fighting words are used to excommunicate
liberals. The actual slaughter of innocent men, women, and children, including
babies in the womb: shrug. Lets talk about the impact on missionaries in
Eastern Europe or my pet passion for gay people.
Lives are important. (You might even say all lives matter if
that hadn’t been cancelled.) And when people being slaughtered through war or
slaughtered as a means of convenience to a better life and back up birth
control, it is wrong. (You’ll notice I left out cases of rape, incest, or life
of the mother. As a military
ethicist I recognize that while killing is wrong, sometimes, while still
regrettable[Alma
48:23], it is necessary
and just.)
The outrage that people show reveals their true intentions. Brad
Wilcox inspired outrage because he touched upon items that are vitally
important to some groups. Even though Putin’s invasion of Ukraine was the most
aggressive military action I’ve seen since World War II, very few felt
passionate about it, and fewer had those feelings long term. Though as I
pointed out at the time, the problems that led to war don't vanish in a just a
few weeks because there is something new and shiny to argue about. The
potential conflict requires more than your standard talking points but thoughtful and sustained
study that challenges your assumptions and demands your time even if it’s not
click bait in your news feed. The recent supreme court decision has become the
new shiny thing. But we must maintain moral perspective for all life and
recognize that some people have skewed priorities that make them care about a
poor speech from a church and killing babies more than truly Hitler like invasion
and slaughter.
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