6.But when they [the Greeks and Barbarians] have come over to the school of Christ, then, strangely enough, as men truly pricked in conscience, they have laid aside the savagery of their murders and no longer mind the things of war; but all is at peace with them, and from henceforth what makes for friendship is to their liking.
1.Who then is He that has done this, or who is He that has united in peace men that hated one another, save the Beloved Son of the Father, the common Saviour of all, even Jesus Christ, Who, by His own love underwent all things for our salvation? For even from of old it was prophesied of the peace He was to usher in, where Scripture says: “They shall beat their swords into ploughshares, and their pikes into sickles, and nation shall not take the sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more.”
2.And this is at least not incredible, inasmuch as even now those barbarians who have an innate savagery of manner, while thy still sacrifice to the idols of their country, are mad against one another, and cannot endure to be a single hour without weapons:
3.but when they hear the teaching of Christ, straightway instead of fighting they turn to husbandry, and instead of arming their hands with weapons they raise them in prayer, and in a word, in place of fighting among themselves, henceforth they arm against the devil and against evil spirits, subduing these by self-restraint and virtue of the soul.Athanasius, On The Incarnation, LI, 6- LII, 3
The “Black Dwarf” as he was called makes a most excellent case against war, profiteering, and imperial expansion among the nations. He recognizes that behind government institutions, there are spiritual forces much like theologians such as Walter Wink argue. The conversion experience, for Athanasius, comes with the desire for friendship among all people groups. The lust for war, power, and bloodshed are pagan virtues that are unfit for the Christian life. The Christian Sabbath not only includes a day of rest, but a commitment to nonviolence.
Truth and Peace,
Rod
