War and Peace: An Essay on Man
Rachael Logan
12th Grade
Throughout the history of man, wars have been waged among the people of earth. Whether it is to conquer, destroy, or preserve, families have fought against families, tribes against tribes, one religion’s followers against another’s, and in the modern day, nations against nations. People have fought for land, wealth, power, and security. While a moral society and most all people despise and frown at the very thought of war, many times the fighting and destruction are unavoidable, and it seems that the problem lies within our character as people.
Marcus Tullius Cicero once said "I prefer the most unjust peace to the justest war ever waged." Cicero was a Roman statesmen, lawyer, scholar, and writer. He was born into wealth, established a career in law, and then plunged into politics. Cicero was elected to consul in 63 BC, where he tried to uphold the Republican principles in the civil wars that destroyed the Roman Republic. He was also considered the greatest Roman orator. While no doubt a great man, one to be revered for his stateliness and wisdom, it was perhaps too assuming for a man like Cicero to truly understand the foundations of war. Though involved heavily in the law, the politics, and everything that surrounds war, Cicero was in reality sheltered from the grounds in which the reasons and causes for war could be truly conceived. While we would all prefer to avoid even the most just war, Cicero’s unjust peace could never be.
In real life, no such thing as an unjust peace exists. What would be mistaken for an unjust peace is really not a peace at all. By one definition, peace is a freedom from civil disturbance. There can be no freedom from civil disturbance without justice. While a war may not be raging between the peoples, those peoples are busy making allies, training military, and gathering arms. The very statement of an unjust peace is describing a peace characterized by injustice, and therefore not peace. Peace cannot exist without justice, as war cannot exist without injustice.
The best statement to help us comprehend the actions that take place during a war is this statement made by an unknown author: "The thing that makes life so cruel is that everyone has such good reasons." War has causes, and war reasons. While the causes for war can, for the most part, be understood, it is often the people’s motives to start a war that baffle us. The main problem is that no man has a full understanding of another man’s beliefs and opinions. For example, after the September 11th attacks on America, the followers of Bin Laden came forward to say that their beliefs classify Americans as evil. Bin Laden attempted to tell his people that they were following the ways of the Koran, when in fact the Koran teaches peace and humility. In turn, without even knowing about what true Muslims practice as their faith, some Americans were quick to believe such lies, became short- tempered, and began to act out against Muslims in America, even those who were American citizens and knew that Bin Laden is an evil man. Those American people did not understand what those who were attacking us believe, just as those who follow Bin Laden in no way know or understand the diverse beliefs of the American people. Without patience and knowledge, we can have no acceptance of another’s beliefs.
Ben Herbster said "The greatest waste in the world is the difference between what we are and what we could become." Dr. Ben Herbster was the founder of the United Church of Christ. He devoted his life to serving as the president of the United Church of Christ and the trustee for the Church, as well as many other United Church of Christ offices. Dr. Herbster also served the elderly in his spare time. An award is now given in Dr. Herbster's name and presented to people in United Church Homes communities who have shown themselves to be upstanding individuals.
It is no surprise that Dr. Herbster has been a source of inspiration and motivation for people to do right in every corner of the world. His words in the preceding quote ring true. Many people are hurt each day by the actions of another who has failed to care enough about others to educate themselves to be a kind, loving, and considerate person. Too often we shrug off taking the high road because we are just too busy. We must all strive to be better people, look out for our fellow man, and understand one another to the best of our abilities.
While we may never be able to live in a world free of war, we do have to the capacity to make the world we live in a better place. Through awareness and tolerance, we can all live together in harmony.