Baptist News Global
Sections
  • News
  • Analysis
  • Opinion
  • Curated
  • Storytelling
    • Faith & Justice >
      • Charleston: Metanoia with Bill Stanfield
      • Charlotte: QC Family Tree with Greg and Helms Jarrell
      • Little Rock: Judge Wendell Griffen
      • North Carolina: Conetoe
    • Welcoming the Stranger >
      • Lost Boys of Sudan: St. John’s Baptist Charlotte
      • Awakening to Immigrant Justice: Myers Park Baptist Church
      • Hospitality on the corner: Gaston Christian Center
    • Signature Ministries >
      • Jake Hall: Gospel Gothic, Music and Radio
    • Singing Our Faith >
      • Hymns for a Lifetime: Ken Wilson and Knollwood Baptist Church
      • Norfolk Street Choir
    • Resilient Rural America >
      • Alabama: Perry County
      • Texas: Hidalgo County
      • Arkansas Delta
      • Southeast Kentucky
  • More
    • Contact
    • About
    • Donate
    • Associated Baptist Press Foundation
    • Planned Giving
    • Letters to the Editor
    • Advertising
    • Ministry Jobs and More
    • Transitions
    • Subscribe
    • Submissions and Permissions
Donate Subscribe
Search Search this site

Nonviolence and a different future with God

OpinionMolly T. Marshall  |  July 19, 2016

Marshall_Molly_cropped_web-150x150“Deliver us from evil.”

Most Sundays we pray these words, but rarely do they sound the resonance we hear in these anarchic days. Evil seems unrelenting, incapable of exhausting its ravenous power. Who can withstand its voracious appetite for destruction?

More police shootings in Baton Rouge, a careening truck driven to kill as many as possible, an attempted coup in Turkey — these headlines scream the turmoil in which we live. Evil is seeking to devour at every turn.

And it is not just these violent episodes. Systemic and structural racism, economic exploitation, and gender disparity are protracted manifestations of evil. Even religion cannot get a pass as certain expressions of faith construct templates of oppression.

It is instructive that the Lord’s Prayer separates sins/debts/trespasses from evil:

And forgive us our sins as we forgive those who sin against us.
Save us in the time of trial and deliver us from evil.
— From An Inclusive Lord’s Prayer by Richard D. McCall

Sin and evil are not the same thing, although our sins contribute to the vacuum evil inhabits. Evil speaks of a twisting, demonic power that is larger than any individual’s transgression, abhorrent though it may be. While evil is not a rival power to God in the sense of a “good God” and a “bad God,” it nevertheless threatens and distorts God’s purposes for creation, humanity included.

Walter Wink has sought to help us reconsider the meaning of the demonic in a demythologized epoch. In his thinking, the demonic does not refer to personal spiritual beings but rather to social realities-systems that oppress and exploit people. They are “violence-prone systems of power and domination.” They are beyond human sinning, for they are not the products of human decisions but a larger force of malevolence.

While many of us are not comfortable with the language of “spiritual warfare” because we have seen too many charlatans, Wink believes it to be social action that names and unmasks the powers as destructive forces in our world. Liberation movements are an example of spiritual warfare, and I would argue that the contemporary Black Lives Matter movement would fulfill his criteria.

The prayer Jesus taught us is unflinching about the reality of evil and our need for deliverance. Of course we must resist evil at every turn; however, there is also need for a sober recognition that we are engaging more than flesh and blood; we battle “powers and principalities” (Eph. 6:12-13). In other words, we are punching above our weight if we believe that we can conquer evil in our own strength.

Yet, God does not choose to defeat them without our participation. Wink encourages persons to practice Jesus’ “third way” of nonviolent engagement. In his fine text Engaging the Powers, he cautions against “becoming what we hate.” In other words, contending against evil holds peril, especially if our resistance mirrors what we oppose.

I fear that the present battle with radical Islamic forces portends the possibility that we as a nation will become what we collectively hate. Our methods of eradication will escalate the confrontation; this is what Wink calls “imitative resistance.”

Overcoming evil with good will require a coalition of persons who simply will not give up on the proposition that this world can be put better to rights than it is. This coalition also confesses that God’s powerful Spirit must contend for and with them if deliverance is to come.

Last evening at the annual gathering of the Hymn Society of the United States and Canada, we sang our response to our fear of the evil encroaching upon our lives. In songs of lament and consolation, we put our trust in God to light the way against the powers of darkness. Singing together heals the brokenness inflicted by the reality we call evil. It is a form of protest, and I was grateful to be in the company of gifted musicians and liturgists.

Many are sick of hearing about “thoughts and prayers” being with those who are presently suffering, but I believe Wink is correct in saying “the struggle to be human in the face of suprahuman Powers requires it.” The act of praying — or singing our faith — is one of the indispensable means by which we join with God in the hard work of healing the diseased spirituality caused by the “contagion of evil.”

The prayerful conversion to nonviolence prepares us to craft a different future with God. As Wink observes, “history belongs to the intercessors, who believe the future into being.” So we pray, “deliver us from evil.” And then we make common cause with others who follow Jesus.

Share this:

  • Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)
  • Click to print (Opens in new window)
  • Click to email a link to a friend (Opens in new window)
  • More
  • Click to share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Tumblr (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Pocket (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Telegram (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on WhatsApp (Opens in new window)

OPINION: Views expressed in Baptist News Global columns and commentaries are solely those of the authors.
Tags:Walter WinkHymn Society of the United States and CanadaEngaging the Powersspiritual warfareRichard D. McCallAn Inclusive Lord’s PrayerNiceBaton RougeDallas policeTurkeyLord's PrayerevilBlack Lives MatterMolly MarshallNonviolenceracism
More by
Molly T. Marshall
  • Get BNG headlines in your inbox

  • Featured

    • She was the only Baptist and only woman delegate at a Vatican synod

      News

    • Darius Rucker dedicates this one to the faith of his mother

      News

    • ‘Useful idiots’ won’t end the Israel-Hamas war, and neither will a cease-fire

      Opinion

    • Virginia church took the grief group outside the church

      News


    Curated

    • Africa’s Wall Street Quiets Christian Worship

      Africa’s Wall Street Quiets Christian Worship

    • Houston’s Hindu youth will soon have a summer campsite of their own

      Houston’s Hindu youth will soon have a summer campsite of their own

    • The challenges of being a religious scientist

      The challenges of being a religious scientist

    • Tens of thousands march against antisemitism in London including UK ex-Prime Minister Boris Johnson

      Tens of thousands march against antisemitism in London including UK ex-Prime Minister Boris Johnson

    Read Next:

    The Psychedelic Renaissance needs a Christian counterculture

    AnalysisKaleb Graves

    More Articles

    • All
    • News
    • Opinion
    • Curated
    • Ministry jobs and more

      NewsBarbara Francis

    • What happens when the snow melts? Humanizing victims of the war in Gaza with The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes

      OpinionMallory Challis

    • The enduring legacy of C.S. Lewis 60 years later

      AnalysisTodd Thomason

    • She was the only Baptist and only woman delegate at a Vatican synod

      NewsJeff Brumley

    • Hamas’ ‘sexual pogrom’ in Israel

      OpinionJonathan Feldstein

    • Darius Rucker dedicates this one to the faith of his mother

      NewsMaina Mwaura

    • ‘Useful idiots’ won’t end the Israel-Hamas war, and neither will a cease-fire

      OpinionErich Bridges

    • The blood of Advent

      OpinionJulia Goldie Day

    • Virginia church took the grief group outside the church

      NewsPeggy Haymes

    • Five truths about church committees and their work

      OpinionMark Wingfield

    • Support for Trump is cultural more than theological, author says

      NewsJeff Brumley

    • The Psychedelic Renaissance needs a Christian counterculture

      AnalysisKaleb Graves

    • Amanda Held Opelt has a story to write as well

      NewsMaina Mwaura

    • He’s got a Rice business degree; now he’s focused on finding the best use for church buildings

      NewsMark Wingfield

    • Rosalynn Carter: ‘There are not enough accolades to describe how wonderful she was’

      NewsMaina Mwaura

    • Tell me about your Christian tattoo

      OpinionMadison Boboltz

    • Amidst global chaos, ordinary South Africans are emblem of Muslim-Jewish co-existence

      NewsNyasha Bhobo

    • A generational torch passes at Bubba-Doo’s

      OpinionCharles Qualls

    • Once again, faith and humanitarian groups decry Texas’ latest approach to ‘border security’

      NewsJeff Brumley

    • Remember to give thanks for the things we don’t know to remember

      AnalysisHarold Ivan Smith

    • The desire for retaliation is a fool’s errand

      OpinionJohn Carter

    • Archives reveal timeless messages from Dallas clergy days after JFK assassination

      NewsJeff Hampton

    • Knowing what we see and remembering what we know

      OpinionWendell Griffen

    • Christian groups lament and repent role religion played in allowing Israel-Hamas war

      NewsJeff Brumley

    • Two roads diverged in a cold food court

      OpinionBrad Bull

    • Ministry jobs and more

      NewsBarbara Francis

    • She was the only Baptist and only woman delegate at a Vatican synod

      NewsJeff Brumley

    • Darius Rucker dedicates this one to the faith of his mother

      NewsMaina Mwaura

    • Virginia church took the grief group outside the church

      NewsPeggy Haymes

    • Support for Trump is cultural more than theological, author says

      NewsJeff Brumley

    • Amanda Held Opelt has a story to write as well

      NewsMaina Mwaura

    • He’s got a Rice business degree; now he’s focused on finding the best use for church buildings

      NewsMark Wingfield

    • Rosalynn Carter: ‘There are not enough accolades to describe how wonderful she was’

      NewsMaina Mwaura

    • Amidst global chaos, ordinary South Africans are emblem of Muslim-Jewish co-existence

      NewsNyasha Bhobo

    • Once again, faith and humanitarian groups decry Texas’ latest approach to ‘border security’

      NewsJeff Brumley

    • Archives reveal timeless messages from Dallas clergy days after JFK assassination

      NewsJeff Hampton

    • Christian groups lament and repent role religion played in allowing Israel-Hamas war

      NewsJeff Brumley

    • U.S. evangelicals continue to unite behind Israel but are less likely to mention Palestinian victims

      NewsSteve Rabey

    • Ministry jobs and more

      NewsBarbara Francis

    • Following the Star Advent devotion will begin December 3

      NewsBNG staff

    • Arizona judge rules church leaders are not responsible for reporting sexual abuse

      NewsMallory Challis

    • Pressler’s former law partner, accused of knowing about abuse, is running for Texas House

      NewsMark Wingfield

    • Pastor indicted in Georgia election case is ‘American hero’ to conservative Christians

      NewsSteve Rabey

    • Three years later, historic facade of Middle Church begins demolition today

      NewsJeff Brumley

    • Transitions for the week of 11-17-23

      NewsBarbara Francis

    • Grand Canyon University president calls massive DOE fine ‘government overreach’

      NewsJeff Brumley

    • Three weeks later, four SBC entities are standing by their legal brief against a sexual abuse survivor

      NewsMark Wingfield

    • Baptist congregation in Tbilisi dedicates space for Jewish synagogue

      NewsJeff Brumley

    • Lawsuit says True the Vote sought voter intimidation, not ‘election integrity’

      NewsSteve Rabey

    • ‘Detransitioners’ file lawsuits against doctors and groups involved in transgender treatments

      NewsSteve Rabey

    • What happens when the snow melts? Humanizing victims of the war in Gaza with The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes

      OpinionMallory Challis

    • Hamas’ ‘sexual pogrom’ in Israel

      OpinionJonathan Feldstein

    • ‘Useful idiots’ won’t end the Israel-Hamas war, and neither will a cease-fire

      OpinionErich Bridges

    • The blood of Advent

      OpinionJulia Goldie Day

    • Five truths about church committees and their work

      OpinionMark Wingfield

    • Tell me about your Christian tattoo

      OpinionMadison Boboltz

    • A generational torch passes at Bubba-Doo’s

      OpinionCharles Qualls

    • The desire for retaliation is a fool’s errand

      OpinionJohn Carter

    • Knowing what we see and remembering what we know

      OpinionWendell Griffen

    • Two roads diverged in a cold food court

      OpinionBrad Bull

    • What are you wearing to Thanksgiving dinner this year?

      OpinionMallory Challis

    • Did Thomas Jefferson say the president should attend church as an example?

      OpinionWarren Throckmorton

    • Between Hamas and Boko Haram

      OpinionAnthony Akaeze

    • Why the Black church must account for and attend to its own marginalized

      OpinionChristian Ingram

    • Speaker Mike Johnson betrays core Baptist value

      OpinionJennifer Hawks

    • Prison tables and the Lord’s Table

      OpinionChris Caldwell

    • The spiritual practice of friendship

      OpinionMallory Challis

    • What is digital chaplaincy, and why do we need such chaplains?

      OpinionEileen Campbell-Reed

    • Why did Paige Patterson write a book on ‘biblical’ counseling?

      OpinionRodney Kennedy

    • Advice for churches on navigating the political climate of the coming election

      OpinionPatrick Wilson

    • My Old Kentucky Prayer

      OpinionBrett Younger

    • ‘Vermin’: Trump crosses fully into Nazi territory

      OpinionRobert P. Jones

    • The good graduate student: A modern parable

      OpinionArthur Wright Jr.

    • ‘Do you think I am still a Christian?’

      OpinionMartin Thielen

    • A passionate appeal for life vs. death in Gaza

      OpinionRaouf J. Halaby

    • Africa’s Wall Street Quiets Christian Worship

      Curated

      Exclude from home pageBNG staff

    • Houston’s Hindu youth will soon have a summer campsite of their own

      Curated

      Exclude from home pageBNG staff

    • The challenges of being a religious scientist

      Curated

      Exclude from home pageBNG staff

    • Tens of thousands march against antisemitism in London including UK ex-Prime Minister Boris Johnson

      Curated

      Exclude from home pageBNG staff

    • Why George Santos’ lies are even worse than the usual political lies – a moral philosopher explains

      Curated

      Exclude from home pageBNG staff

    • The Democratic Republic Of The Congo Works To Improve Religious Freedom For Christians

      Curated

      Exclude from home pageBNG staff

    • Timekeepers no more, rank-and-file Jehovah’s Witnesses say goodbye to tracking proselytizing hours

      Curated

      Exclude from home pageBNG staff

    • This ‘wind phone’ helps grievers feel connected to the loved ones they’ve lost

      Curated

      Exclude from home pageBNG staff

    • Why People Switch Churches And The High Hopes That Come With Such Changes

      Curated

      Exclude from home pageBNG staff

    • For this group of trans women, the pope and his message of inclusivity are a welcome change

      Curated

      Exclude from home pageBNG staff

    • Carlton Pearson, influential Oklahoma megachurch founder who rejected hell, dies at age 70

      Curated

      Exclude from home pageBNG staff

    • Amid Economic Crisis, Ministry And Music Propel Cuban Minister Devoted To Sharing Bread Of Life

      Curated

      Exclude from home pageBNG staff

    • Supreme Court Denies Florida’s Request To Reinstate Its Anti-Drag Law

      Curated

      Exclude from home pageBNG staff

    • Nicaragua’s exiled clergy and faithful in Miami keep up struggle for human rights at Mass

      Curated

      Exclude from home pageBNG staff

    • ‘None Of Us Knows Anything For Certain’: Christian Apologist And Prominent Atheist Debate God’s Existence

      Curated

      Exclude from home pageBNG staff

    • Judge rules against tribes in fight over Nevada lithium mine they say is near sacred massacre site

      Curated

      Exclude from home pageBNG staff

    • Free Speech Victory for Finnish Politician and Bishop Who Said Homosexuality Is Sinful

      Curated

      Exclude from home pageBNG staff

    • To remake church power in Francis’ vision, synod calls for changes to canon law

      Curated

      Exclude from home pageBNG staff

    • Skeptical of Politicians and Parties, Gen Z Isn’t Pumped for the 2024 Race

      Curated

      Exclude from home pageBNG staff

    • UK archaeologists use metal-detecting hobbyists’ finds to study medieval faith

      Curated

      Exclude from home pageBNG staff

    • Bishop T.D. Jakes helps launch online hub to aid faith leaders with mental health tools

      Curated

      Exclude from home pageBNG staff

    • Ousted Texas bishop rallies outside US bishops meeting as his peers reinforce Catholic voter values

      Curated

      Exclude from home pageBNG staff

    • Dept. of Education issues reminder, offers new tools to federally funded institutions to address and protect against hate-based incidents on campus

      Curated

      Exclude from home pageBNG staff

    • Church of England synod moves forward with a test of prayers for same-sex couples

      Curated

      Exclude from home pageBNG staff

    • Jewish protesters and allies stage sit-in at California federal building demanding Gaza cease-fire

      Curated

      Exclude from home pageBNG staff

    Conversations that Matter.

    © 2023 Baptist News Global. All rights reserved.

    Want to share a story? We hope you will! Read our republishing, terms of use and privacy policies here.

    • Facebook
    • Twitter
    • Instagram
    • LinkedIn
    • RSS