Beating Guns

by Shane Claiborne

  Martyr means “witness,” and the ripples that the martyrs’ deaths made are part of what spread the gospel of grace. They are not people who died killing but people who died loving and were slaughtered as they looked into the face of evil people and said, “God loves you.”

  In the South, we have a saying: “You are the spittin’ image (of someone).” One theory says that it’s shorthand for “spirit and image.” Spittin’ image means more than just that you look like that person. It goes beyond just appearance to include character and temperament. It means that you remind people of that person. You have their charisma. You do the same things they did. In the truest sense, Christians are to be the spittin’ image of Jesus in the world. We are to be the things he was. We are to preach the things he preached and live the way he lived. We are to follow in the footsteps of our rabbi so closely that we get his dust on us. We are to remind the world of Jesus. The criterion for whether something is a manifestation of the kingdom of God is the person of Jesus. Does it look like him? “Be imitators of God” (Eph. 5:1 NRSV)—that word imitate derives from the same word as mimic, like a mime.

  When you put metal in the forge, it starts to take on the character of the fire. Outside of the fire it is cold, dark, and hard, but as it draws near to the fire, it begins to get warm and to soften. It even begins to glow. Eventually you can hardly distinguish between the metal and the fire—they both burn bright orange. If you remove the metal from the flame and it gets too far away from the fire, it starts to turn a dull gray and grow cold. But as soon as it nears the fire, it lights up again. So it is with us. We are to stay near to Jesus, the light of the world, so that we begin to glow as he glowed. And we dare not stray too far from the source, or our hearts will grow cold. If we draw near to the light of the world, we begin to glow as Jesus glowed.

  Oh Lord, oh Lord, keep your hand on that plow, hold on

  Oh Lord, oh Lord, keep your hand on that plow, hold on

  Oh Lord, oh Lord, keep your hand on that plow, hold on

  —“Gospel Plow,” American folk song [Coe Burchfield]

  fourteen

  Unlearning Violence

  8,000: Murders seen on TV by the end of elementary school

  200,000: Violent acts seen on TV by age eighteen

  79: Percent of Americans who believe TV violence precipitates real-life mayhem1

  THE TOYS WE PLAY WITH growing up include guns. The games we play include battle games—cops and robbers, paintball, laser tag, Nerf battles. Childhood movies and games and sports events, even comic books, are shaping how we think about violence and how to live in a world full of violence.

  Those who say “guns don’t kill; people kill” often say we need to place the blame on Hollywood films and violent video games and all the ads and stories that shape our imagination in the way of violence. We think they are on to something.

  Even the news has a certain bias toward violence. As journalists often say, “If it bleeds, it leads.” Or as one reporter put it, “We don’t cover landings at the airport.”2 News covers the tragic stories, the murders, the crashes, the hate crimes. But we need some journalists to tell the good stories, to remind us how many planes landed safely at the airport, not just how many crashed.

  It’s not just the news. Pretty much all of the top-grossing pay-per-view events of all time are fights—Mayweather vs. Pacquiao earned $400 million.3 In 2009 the video game Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 made $310 million in one day, setting the record for video game sales—and it is a game designed to mirror the physical realities and horrors of war.4

  Violence sells, in a million different genres, including sports, video games, movies, and breaking news. Ninety percent of movies, 68 percent of video games, and 60 percent of TV shows depict some violence.5

  The first movie I (Shane) can remember seeing in the theater was Poltergeist (my mom has apologized profusely for this). I remember watching Rambo: First Blood Part II—and getting a giant Rambo knife with a saw, compass, and waterproof matches inside its hollow handle. At ten years old, I was ready to take on the world like Sylvester Stallone. I couldn’t convince my mom to get me the RPG-7 missile launcher, so I had to settle for the knife. Some of the first television shows I remember watching were reruns of the Wild West classic Bonanza and the war classic M.A.S.H. I watched them while sitting on my grandfather’s lap. Later on it was Miami Vice and The A-Team. And on and on. Though they vary in style, television shows from every decade have guns in common. We are inundated with violence and are trained to fear.

  No matter what era or generation, the heroes of our childhoods always had a gun. The new-school heroes, in movies from The Fast and the Furious to Denzel Washington’s The Equalizer to the Marvel comic-book movies to even the beloved Pirates of the Caribbean, almost always have a weapon. Even the most well-made, inspirational movies like Wonder Woman and Black Panther can endorse the myth of redemptive violence. The good guy or gal wins, but there is always blood.

  Things are even crazier now. We have video games like Goldeneye 007 and Grand Theft Auto in which you actually see blood splatter on streets and walls. In Grand Theft Auto you can earn points for things like assaulting an old woman or running over a prostitute. In Dead Rising 2, the killer-hero of the game guzzles booze to restore his health and vomits it up if he drinks too much. That’s what we are up against.

  THE LANGUAGE OF VIOLENCE

  (Note) big shot, on a hit list, shell shocked, hit the bull’s-eye, gun shy, standoff, a trigger, shotgun wedding, troubleshooter, son of a gun, going postal, we have a shot, pull the trigger, fast as a speeding bullet, shoot for the moon, hotshot, you call the shots, target audience, right on target, smoking gun, blew me away, she’s a pistol, notch in the belt, dodged a bullet, went ballistic, shoot from the hip, it’s a long shot, give it my best shot, lock, stock, and barrel, trigger happy, don’t jump the gun, pistol-whipped, stick to your guns, sure shot, politician under fire, shoot for the top, wrong end of the barrel, straight shooter, he’s the big gun, take a shot in the dark, bite the bullet, who’s riding shotgun, blew his brains out, blown to smithereens, explosive personality, arm like a cannon, bring out the big guns, shoot down an argument, fire away, got flak over it, shooting blanks, outgunned, shooting for gold, ammunition for my argument, shot it from every angle, we killed them, shoot me an email, look down the barrel of a gun, it’s a blast, bombed it, nuke ’em, nuclear option, I’ll cover you, bombarded, this is a land mine, let’s get fired up, I’ll kill you, aim to kill, fire when ready, straight shot to the city, it’s a booby trap, got you in the crosshairs, duck and cover, the silver bullet, rapid-fire questions, knock ’em dead, plan of attack, don’t shoot the messenger, took potshots, fry him, no magic bullets, shotgun approach, take a knife to a gunfight, more bang for your buck, young gun, bombs away, loose cannon, welcome to the gun show, I got ambushed, overshot the driveway, shoot yourself in the foot, I’m shot, got a good shot at it, drink a shot, open season, our plans blew up, kill the bill, he blew up, shooting duck, shooting gallery, killing time, my foot is killing me, dead or alive, stand your ground, blow this joint, shoot to kill

  We are obsessed, addicted. More than twenty-five billion hours have been logged on the video game Call of Duty.6 That’s 2.85 million years. In fact, Call of Duty players collectively log some 1,300 years of gameplay every day. Imagine the generative things that could be done with 1,300 years’ worth of time every day.

  We even have a president who said, “I could stand in the middle of Fifth Avenue and shoot somebody and I wouldn’t lose voters.”7 The craziest thing is, he is probably right.

  Violence is a disease. It does something to us. It changes the way we act and talk.

  It may seem like a stretch, but just think about the way our epidemic of gun violence seeps into our language, like a cancer. It might not be something we even notice without really deconstructing things. Many of our metaphors and verbs and images are shaped by it.

  The Power of Language

 
; Our words, our tongue, even our virtual language of tweets and Facebook posts, have power, for good or bad. Language has the power to heal or to wound. A comment can build someone up or tear someone down. Just as metal can be crafted to make a gun or a plow, words can bring life or destroy it. Words can comfort or hurt. They can disarm a situation or aggravate a conflict. They can open minds or they can close them. They can reveal truth or hide the truth. They can stop wars and they can start them.

  The Bible talks about taming the tongue (James 3) and says it can be used as a weapon. Jesus points out the power of language—and that we speak out of the overflow of what is in our heart (Luke 6:45). He goes so far as to say that if we call our neighbor “Raca,” a fool, then we have committed murder in our heart (Matt. 5:22). That’s pretty serious. So as we think about gun violence, it is important to think about not just the external forms of violence but also the internal forms. Just as when you look at a tree or an iceberg, what you can see with your eyes is only a little part of the whole thing. There’s much more going on underneath the surface. So it is with violence.

  Guns are not just a political problem but also a heart problem, and our exposure to guns begins early.

  Language experts have some important insight into the way culture shapes language—or, perhaps more often, the way language shapes culture.8 In English, when things are working normally, we say, “It’s running fine.” Your watch is running. The car is running. You’ve got to run to a meeting. The general pace of life reflects that language (we move fast). In Spanish, when things are working normally, the word used is walking. Your clock is walking. Your meeting walks well. Latino culture walks instead of runs. Similarly, English stands alone in the amount of violent language it uses in everyday speech. Many languages do not employ phrases like “I’m so mad, I could kill her.” It would be offensive and unthinkable.

  The experts are adamant—violent media has an effect on us. Studies consistently show that violent media leads to violent behavior.9 Our young people often learn to shoot a virtual gun in a video game before they shoot a real one. Their imaginations are trained to see shooting someone as a way to solve a problem. And the things they imagine in their minds begin to have real-life effects. Just look at interviews with mass shooters in America. People often learn to kill virtually before they kill in reality. Even the military uses video games to teach the use of real weapons in real conflict zones. And it does something to us: it desensitizes us.

  Memorial to the Lost

  EXCEL INDUSTRIES BUILDING, HESSTON, KANSAS (FEBRUARY 26, 2016)

  On February 26, 2016, after firing at multiple people in traffic, a gunman arrived at his workplace at Excel Industries and opened fire on other workers in the building using an AK-47-style semiautomatic rifle and a Glock 22 semiautomatic handgun. Three people lost their lives and multiple others were wounded. Though it is not one of the most well-known mass shootings, or the most deadly, it is a reminder that mass shootings are frequent, though they don’t all make the news. Many of them affect small rural towns like Hesston. Shane spoke about gun violence in Hesston just a few days before this shooting, talking about how gun violence is not just an urban problem. The town has a large Mennonite population (Mike’s denomination) that cared for the families of the victims and of the person responsible, to heal the wounds of the tragedy. Here are the names of those who died:

  Renee Benjamin, 30

  Josh Higbee, 31

  Brian Sadowsky, 44

  Other parts of the world are much more appalled by violence than we are in the US. When Americans think of X-rated films, we think of sex. In other places, X ratings also include pornography and sexual content but are just as much used to indicate violence. It’s worth noting that what we find explicit and intended only for adults is generally sexual. Many folks around the world find violence just as toxic and offensive as pornography. Americans are more disturbed by sex than by killing. We don’t want our kids exposed to sex prematurely, but we often have no reservations about exposing them to violence.

  One grandmother made her ten-year-old grandson return Grand Theft Auto. She was irate about the sexual content but apparently totally numb to the violence.10 I (Mike) played this game in college, and it’s the game that made me realize I’d gone too far. It’s a game where you play a car thief among rival groups of friends and enemies; you can also play in an open mode where you wander around town stealing cars. And you have weapons. You can get on a rooftop, and if you aim just right and fire, the head will fall off/disappear from your victim. If that victim happened to have weapons, you can now approach and possess them, accumulating your arsenal. Sometimes, if you don’t kill these people in the video game, they chase you and wound you. One of the ways to get “healthy” is to steal a car and drive until you find a woman dressed as a prostitute and pull alongside her. She would get in, the car would shake, and your “health” would improve so you could go on stealing cars and shooting people. Again, this was in a game mode where you were free to explore the city, steal cars, shoot people and cars, and drive recklessly, with zero regard for other drivers or pedestrians (there was incentive to hit pedestrians). Rockstar Games released a new version in June 2017, and in the promo video they say, “You want to make real money? A dirty little secret: it’s in arms!” and “Look up new and exciting ways to terminate people, then make a tiny profit and do your country proud.”

  At one point, the video game development company Electronic Arts linked to gun manufacturers’ websites on their video game websites. You were essentially two to three clicks away from playing with a gun on the screen to buying a real-life version. These links have since been removed, but the rise of online gaming and online shopping still keeps the two connected by only a few clicks. First-person shooter games are doing blockbuster business. In 2017, Call of Duty earned half a billion dollars in a single day.11

  Violence is something we learn.

  And it is something we can unlearn.

  It is something we are conditioned in.

  America may differ from the Roman Empire in many ways, but the two share the idea that power comes from weaponry and that freedom is maintained by violence. War is still the way of the world, but it’s not the way of Jesus. In the empire’s attempt to make disciples of us, we are taught the way of the sword rather than the way of the cross, and we are persuaded to kill our enemies rather than love them. We become convinced that violence is the only way to defeat the “bad guys” and right the wrongs of the world.

  Not everything is as obvious as video games and war movies, but the logic of power and might is prolific, and the allure of violence is everywhere. In his book America and Its Guns, James Atwood points to the sports arena. We don’t have the gladiatorial games today, but we do have the Super Bowl and professional wrestling and mixed martial arts (UFC). When you look at the things that entertain us, they often involve pain, conflict, and the possibility of someone getting hurt. We have a fascination, obsession even, with violence.

  Even the names for our sports teams are revealing, in contrast to the iconic image of Jesus as a lamb. You won’t find a professional sports team whose mascot is a lamb. It doesn’t exude power, might, or victory. The NFL has Lions, Titans, Bears, Bengals, Broncos, Jaguars, Raiders, Buccaneers, Chiefs, Vikings, Cowboys, Giants, and Redskins . . . but no Lambs.12

  Faith is crucial in a world so full of violence. The writer of Romans says, “Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind” (Rom. 12:2). It is not only metal that needs to be made new.

  We need to be made new.

  EARLY CHRISTIANS ON VIOLENCE

  (Note) We ourselves were well conversant with war, murder and everything evil, but all of us throughout the whole wide earth have traded in our weapons of war. We have exchanged our swords for plowshares, our spears for farm tools. . . . Now we cultivate the fear of God, justice, kindness, faith, and the expectation of the future given us through the crucified one. . . . The mo
re we are persecuted and martyred, the more do others in ever increasing numbers become believers.

  —Justin Martyr, Dialogue with Trypho 11.3, 11.4

  “And they shall beat their swords into ploughshares . . .” In other words, they shall change into pursuits of moderation and peace the dispositions of injurious minds, and hostile tongues, and all kinds of evil, and blasphemy. . . . Christ is promised not as powerful in war, but pursuing peace.

  —Tertullian, Against Marcion 3.21

  Evil ought not be repaid with evil. . . . It is better to suffer wrong than inflict it. . . . We should rather shed our own blood than stain our hands and our conscience with that of another.

  —Arnobius, Against the Pagans 1.6

  We cannot endure even to see a person put to death, though justly. . . . To see a person put to death is much the same as killing them. . . . How, then, . . . can we put people to death?

  —Athenagoras, A Plea for the Christians 35

  If we are enjoined then to love our enemies, . . . whom have we to hate? If injured, we are forbidden to retaliate lest we become as bad ourselves. . . . Better to be slain than to slay.

  —Tertullian, Apology 37

  The Creator puts his prohibition on every sort of man-killing by that one summary precept, “Thou shalt not kill.”

  —Tertullian, On the Spectacles 2

  To us it is not lawful either to see or to hear of human slaughter.