7 minute read
Service to God in the Military
By John C. Wohlrabe, Jr., Captain, Chaplain Corps, United States Navy
Since the terrible events of September 11th, our country is again at war. Is such killing and destruction justified? Can a Christian serve in the military and still be a Christian?
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An 18-year-old United States Marine who is a Christian has been inserted with his battalion into Afghanistan, near Kondahar, and soon he may be tasked with investigating the caves in that area looking for al-Qaida terrorists. He may have to shoot and kill the enemy if they resist. He recalls the Fifth Commandment. He remembers “We should fear and love God so that we do not hurt or harm our neighbor in his body, but help and support him in every physical need” (Luther’s Small Catechism). Can he carry out his duties with a good conscience?
At the same time, a 20-year-old female sailor, a Christian woman who has been trained as a Fire Control Technician in the United States Navy, is serving aboard a guided missile cruiser in the Arabian Gulf. She has been ordered to fire a tomahawk missile into Afghanistan. Even though she cannot see the result of her action because the missile will land hundreds of miles from the ship, she knows that this weapon has the capability of killing or wounding many people when it strikes. Can she, in good conscience, prepare the missile for launch and push the button that fires it? Similar questions could be raised by a Christian in the United States Army, Air Force or Coast Guard.
In December 1526, Martin Luther addressed this very issue in a treatise that he wrote entitled, “Whether Soldiers, Too, Can Be Saved.” Based on the clear teachings of Holy Scripture, Luther noted that there are two kingdoms which God has established in this world. Lutheran theologians call them the Kingdom of the Right and the Kingdom of the Left. The Kingdom of the Right is also known as the Kingdom of Grace or the Holy Christian Church. Here God works through the ministry of His Word and Sacraments to call people to faith and give them salvation through Jesus Christ, our Lord.The Kingdom of the Left, an extension of God’s Kingdom of Power, is what we refer to as the State or God-ordained civil government (see Romans 13:1ff; 1 Peter 2:13ff). To the government, God has given the sword or the power over life and death to protect the good, punish evil, and maintain peace. Luther put it this way, “For He [God] has set up two kinds of government among men. One is spiritual, through the Word and without the sword, through which men might become devout and righteous, so that along with this righteousness they might receive eternal life. This righteousness He administers through the Word, which He has committed to His preachers. The other is an earthly government through the sword, in order that they who refuse to be made devout and righteous unto life eternal shall by such earthly government be compelled to be devout and righteous before the world. This righteousness He administers through the sword. Though He does not reward this righteousness with life eternal, He nevertheless insists on it, in order that peace may be maintained among men; and He does reward it with temporal gifts.”
Thus, an individual human being may not take the life of another; but God is free to do so. And one way He does this is through the governments that He has ordained in order to maintain order, punish evil, and protect good in a fallen, sin-filled world. Those who have been given the office or vocation of working in the government (national leaders, judges, police, military personnel, etc.) are to carry out this important work as their God-appointed duty. They are not acting as individuals on their own behalf, but in an appointed office on behalf of all the citizens of their country, and ultimately, as God’s servant. To defend its people and punish evil, a government may, under certain circumstances, wage war. Sometimes the government cannot protect and defend its subjects against violence and injustice without using such force. War is therefore an extension of a government’s authority to punish outside its borders for the purpose of preserving peace against aggression or any such breaking of the peace like occurred on September 11. Understood in this way, even waging war is a work of love, and a military member can be “blessed”, that is, he or she can be and remain a Christian in his or her military service, even when this involves killing others.
In his 1526 treatise on the salvation of military personnel, Martin Luther also noted that the disposition or motivation of an individual soldier is an important factor. He writes, “The married state, also, is precious and godly, but there is many a rascal and knave in it. It is just the same way with the occupation or work of the soldier; in itself it is right and godly, but we must see to it that the persons who are in the occupation and who do the work are the right kind of persons, godly and upright.” Those soldiers, sailors, airmen and Marines that perform their important work out of a sense of duty to God and their country are maintaining a proper disposition and motivation. However, those who perform their duties motivated by hatred, revenge, or greed are not performing a godly and upright service.
Maintaining a godly disposition is a real challenge for us all, isn’t it? Even a Christian is susceptible to evil thoughts, words, and deeds as he or she struggles with the temptations of the devil and the pull of the old sinful nature. How many of us, regardless of our vocation, haven’t felt a sense of hatred toward terrorists since September 11th? A Christian Marine or soldier, who is serving out of a sense of duty to God and country, may be confronted with the gruesome death of a close friend in combat. Suddenly, duty is forgotten as revenge and hatred fill his heart and mind.The truth is that all of us, military and non-military alike, are poor, miserable sinners, totally dependent upon God’s grace in Jesus Christ. That is why Luther wrote this beautiful soldier’s prayer:
Could you, as a Christian, serve God and your neighbor in the military, even in times of war, even if you must kill another human being? Most certainly! This duty is indeed a loving act, intended by God for the protection of others. Thus, our Lutheran Confessions confirm, “It is taught among us that all government in the world and all established rule and laws were instituted and ordained by God for the sake of good order, and that Christians may without sin occupy civil offices or serve as princes and judges, render decisions and pass sentence according to imperial and other existing laws, punish evildoers with the sword, engage in just wars, serve as soldiers…” (Augsburg Confession, Article XVI).
Even if you do not serve in the Armed Forces of our country, nor have any inclination to do so, for not everyone is called to serve in this vocation, you can still pray for those who are currently serving in this important, God-pleasing work.
O Lord God of hosts, stretch forth your almighty arm to strengthen and protect those who serve in the Armed Forces of our country. Support them in times of war, and in times of peace keep them from all evil, giving them courage and loyalty and granting that in all things they may serve honestly and without reproach; through Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen. (Lutheran Worship, p. 130)
To God be the Glory
Chaplain John C. Wohlrabe is Command Chaplain for the Naval Air Station in Brunswick, Maine. He is a veteran with 28 years of military service. He and his family are members of Redeemer Lutheran Church, Cape Elizabeth, Maine. He is the father of three teenagers, all of whom are prayerfully considering military service as possible vocations.
