He shall judge between many peoples, and shall arbitrate between strong nations far away;
They shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks;
Nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war anymore.
Micah 4:3
In a garden of the United Nations, New York, stands a bronze sculpture, titled, “Let Us Beat our Swords into Ploughshares.” It depicts a man, hammer raised, bending a sword into a plowshare, and “symbolizing man’s desire to put an end to war and convert the means of destruction into creative tools for the benefit of all mankind.”
For those engaged in the work of ELCA Advocacy and ELCA World Hunger, this vision of Micah’s has special meaning as we strive for justice.
Micah pronounces judgment on Israel in a time of grinding inequality. The people and their leaders were failing to care for, even oppressing, those whom Jesus would call “the least of these.” Micah warns, Zion will be destroyed.
Yet in the midst of this judgment, there is hope that God offers ultimate reconciliation. Micah speaks of a time when all peoples will stream to the place where God is found. “They will go there because they want to know justice and peace, to walk in the ways of the Lord,” Micah writes.
The pandemic has revealed deep inequalities tied to race and wealth. Even with inspiring examples of generosity, our ministries cannot meet the overwhelming need. The strife tearing us apart may not look like ancient warring nations, and the weapons are different, but this does not look like peace that allows us to plant seeds for a hopeful future.
The prophets did not prescribe one divine solution to the injustice of their day, and neither do we. However, as Americans, we have considerably more power than the average ancient Israelite to create change.
As Christians, we believe that we have been given what the Israelites were longing for – Immanuel – God with us. In our baptism into the life, death and resurrection of this longed-for child, God’s spirit has been poured upon us.
Immanuel, This Advent, show us how we can begin to turn weapons of division into creative tools for healing. Amen.
Tracey DePasquale is Director, Lutheran Advocacy Ministry in Pa
