Those who choose to fight do so for the sense of patriotism and pride they feel for their country. They come home to a hero’s welcome, with new skills and new friends. However, going to war con traumatise a soldier. For many years they can be faced with nightmares about what they have seen and whose life has ended in their hands. Many soldiers who have fought have ended up being permanently disabled and battled with depression. They can make new friends, only to watch them die the next day. And sometimes, the attitude can be “what for?” To be in these situations, you would need a lot of courage.
Those who choose not to fight also have good reasons not to. They can see into the long run, with the nightmares and disability, and they’re scared. Some of these people are the people who man the munitions factories. Some of these people are the medics caring for the sick and wounded soldiers. However, these are the people seen as the cowards. They are called names and not only mentally, but physically abused by the rest of society. They also get depression, but not from what they have done, through guilt of what they could have done, but didn’t. They sit at home worrying about friends and relatives who have gone to fight, not knowing whether they are still alive or not. These people need the courage to carry on with their own lives, and to try not and worry themselves too much about their loved ones.
The bible gives mixed feelings towards war. Two passages I have found that appear to encourage fighting in wars are Joel 3:9-21, which basically states that you should prepare to fight and to turn you harvesting tools into weapons “ beat your ploughshares into swords and your pruning hooks into spears” and Deuteronomy 7:22-24. Both of these examples are pro-war and would need to show courage to leave their homes, family and their crops to go and fight for their countries.
Two passages that encourage peace are Isaiah 9:6-7which talks about God being everlasting peace and Matthew 5:39 “ if someone strikes you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also.” This shows courage because you would need it to turn away and ignore the provocation, and not start something that could get out of hand, that could involve people getting unnecessarily hurt.
Can anyone really be called a coward? The soldiers who risk their lives each day to keep the world a safe place need the courage to stand up and fight. They need the courage to load the rounds into the chamber and take aim. They need the courage to pull the trigger and potentially take someone’s life. They need the courage to climb into the cockpit of their Tornados and drop the bombs that can destroy a whole civilization.
Nevertheless, those who choose not to fight also need courage to stand up for what they believe is morally right. These are the people who are manning the munitions factories, producing the rounds and missiles that the soldiers fire. These are the people who fly into highly dangerous situations to carry out medevaks on wounded soldier. These are the people who endure torture from society and get called wimps. In my opinion, those who say conscientious objectors have no courage, these are the real cowards. They don’t have what it takes to stand up for what they believe. They are sheep, and don’t have their own opinions, just follow the crowd.
We must always honour and respect soldiers who have fought, and sometimes lost their lives, as they have stood up for their country and done their bit. No matter how someone reacts to the call of war, we must value their opinion and not discriminate them for what they believe.
