On Nov. 26, four members of Christian Peacemaker Teams were abducted in Iraq and held hostage by a group calling themselves Swords of Righteousness Brigade. The group claimed the hostages—Canadians Jim Loney of Sault Ste. Marie, Ont., and Harmeet Singh Sooden, formerly of Montreal, American Tom Fox and Briton Norman Kember—were spies and set a Dec. 11 deadline for them to be executed unless the U.S. and British governments released Iraqi prisoners. The deadline passed without news. As of press time, the hostages' fate was unknown.
This past Christmas we looked to Iraq, praying for a peaceful resolution of the situation of the four men being held hostage there.
They are among the myriad individuals and organizations putting themselves on the line because of their belief that peace must prevail. They are with the Christian Peacemaker Teams organization, which is committed to faith-based non-violent alternatives and to enlisting the whole church in conscientious objection to war and the development of non-violent institutions.
Fearing just such a situation, Tom Fox tried to prepare himself when he was in Baghdad in 2004. He and the other member of CPT serving with him prepared a statement. It says, in part: "We reject the use of violent force to save our lives, should we be kidnapped, held hostage, or caught in the middle of a violent conflict situation. We also reject violence to punish anyone who harms us. We forgive those who consider us their enemies, therefore any penalty should be in the spirit of restorative justice rather than violent retribution."
It seems to me that a human face on the commitment to peace is what makes personal sacrifice possible.
The four hostages have seen at close range the faces of people caught in the grip of terror, torture, imprisonment and upheaval, have seen the devastation and suffering of the Iraqi people and have documented the stories of prisoners held at Abu Ghraib.
Questions of fear, personal safety, worthiness, ability and relevance face an individual considering following the path chosen by peacemakers. That person has the option of making a choice. To someone caught up in the horrors and terror of violence resulting from conflict or public policy, no option is available. It is the plight of these people that moves the peacemakers to overcome their fears and concerns in response. Each one must find for themselves the answer to whether they want to lay their life on the line.
What does it mean to be a Christian and try to bring the peace of Christ to the world? I am not sure we can talk about bringing it to the world. If we each try to bring peace to those we meet, where ever we may be, perhaps that is the first step.
As we continue to think about peace, may our hearts and our prayers be with the peacemakers being held hostage and all peacemakers around the world and may the light of Christ guide them.
