Jesus or Caesar? The Way of Non-Violent Resistance

“Peace that comes through the annihilation of the enemy is no peace at all.” — Padraig O’Tuama

Peace through annihilation is the narrative of empire.

In Jesus’ day, the Roman Empire spread propaganda so that conquered people would pledge loyalty to Caesar. Caesar’s preferred term for himself was “son of God”, and every time a Roman army would conquer a people group they would manipulate them into believing the “good news” that they will be “saved” if they confess with their mouth that Caesar is lord. Notice how similar this is to Romans 10:9, which says, “If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.” This verse, read in this light, is a counter-narrative to empire, exposing the lies empire propagates. This verse begs the questions: “Who is my Lord—Jesus or Caesar?” and “Whose ways lead to salvation?”

Fear, propaganda, manipulation, and force are no means to bring peace. It’s a false sense of peace; a veneer that allows those at the top to remain in power. The empire’s sense of peace comes through force. It comes through having more weapons, more chariots, more war planes, and more nuclear bombs than any other nation. It comes through stockpiling resources for the benefit of those on top at the expense of exploiting those on the bottom. 

Walter Brueggemann calls this “pharaoh” economics, where wealth is hoarded, prosperity is individualized, and profits are accumulated at the expense of the poor, oppressed, and exploited. This is the system that the people of ancient Israel were delivered from; an entire nation who had suffocated under the boot of an empire that enslaved them. God delivered Israel from bondage, and intended them to be a people that practiced an economy of abundance. In this economy, resources were to be shared and everyone’s basic needs were to be looked after. They were to be a light to all other nations, putting into practice a particular concern for the poor, widow, and immigrant. At the heart of their economic system was the Year of Jubilee, where every 50 years all land was returned to the original owners, all debts were cancelled, and all slaves set free.

One of the first things Jesus did when He began His ministry was proclaim that the “Year of the Lord’s favour” is at hand (see Luke 4:17-21). The Year of the Lord’s favour was a direct reference to Jubilee. Here’s the catch: Jesus was the fulfillment of Jubilee! He’s taking it to its logical conclusion: Jubilee is here, now, every year.

The Way of Jesus is non-violent resistance to empire. It is standing up for the rights of the poor, in solidarity with those being exploited by the empire and systems that prop it up. It is radical neighbourly love that includes loving one’s enemies. The Way of Jesus is an invitation to humbly lay down our personal “rights” and pick up our own cross and follow Him.

Here is where a distinction must be made. Jesus teaches His followers not to resist an evildoer violently. Resist they must, but without using violence. This is not Jesus guiding His followers into docile passivity; rather it is an invitation into what Walter Wink calls a “third way”. For example, Jesus instructs His followers, “If anyone strikes you on the right cheek, turn the other also” (Matthew 5:39 NRSV). Regarding this passage, Wink asks:

Why [does] Jesus reference the right cheek specifically? The answer is both challenging and enlightening. Jesus lived in a right-handed world where left hands were reserved only for unclean tasks. Therefore, we can assume that the person doing the hitting would have used their right hand. The only way to strike someone on the right cheek with your right hand is a backhanded slap. Such a blow connotes an insult, not a fistfight, and was a normal way to reprimand someone over whom you had power (e.g. masters to slaves, husbands to wives, Romans to Jews). To strike your equal in such a manner was socially and legally unacceptable, carrying with it a huge fine.

https://cpj.ca/defiance-not-compliance-turning-the-other-cheek/

In a Greco-Roman context, turning the other cheek gave subversive power to the offended, for it meant that the offender, who was lording power over the offended, was being challenged by the offended to strike again, this time with their (unclean) left hand (which would prove the injustice of the offender’s actions if acted upon). This “challenge” granted the offended person power over the offender in that moment. Rather than cowering away or submitting in fear, the offended now has regained their humanity and reclaimed some of their dignity. In this way, Jesus creatively gave His followers (colonized Jews living under Roman occupation) back their dignity, empowering them to act non-violently toward their oppressors in a world that continued to exploit and dehumanize them. In this way, third way non-violent resistance can strategically subvert the empire, revealing the folly, injustice, and violence of the empire’s own systems.

The Way of Jesus produces the fruit of the Spirit: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self control (Galatians 5:22-23). The Spirit-fruits are abundant; they provide a foundation for a flourishing society. In contrast, empires generally propagate a spirit of fear, coercion, manipulation, envy, hatred, control, etc. for their own gain—in order to maintain social order and power. The spirit of empire is antithetical to the Spirit of Christ. The spirit of empire is anti-Christ.

I invite us all to recognize our own tendencies to fall prey to the seduction of empire. May we recognize our own lust for control, power, and prominence. May we learn to subvert the empire strategically by creatively practicing “third way” non-violent methods of resistance. If we are in a position to advocate for those who cannot advocate for themselves, I pray we would have the boldness to do so. May we learn to humble ourselves in the Ways of Jesus, recognizing that true power comes from laying it down. I pray we learn to be more and more like Christ:

“Who, though he was in the form of God, did not regard equality with God as something to be exploited, but emptied himself, taking the form of a slave, being born in human likeness. And being found in human form, he humbled himself and became obedient to the point of death— even death on a cross.”

Philippians 2:6-8 NRSV