Ep. 61: We Resist: The Power of Nonviolent Resistance w/ Gary Alan Taylor

Holy Heretics: Losing Religion and Finding Jesus

Contrary to what many assume, peace isn’t meekness in the face of evil it is the courageous and oftentimes creative task of disarmament. Active peacemaking is a way to fight against injustice without using violence. It is using the transformative force of love to resist oppression. It says that the means are the ends, that the way to peace is peace itself. “Love of enemies does not necessarily ease tensions; rather it challenges the whole system and becomes a subversive formula for true personal and national liberation,” writes liberationist theologian Gustavo Gutierrez. Therefore we shouldn’t be surprised that peacemakers like Dr. Martin Luther King, Nelson Mandela and Mahatma Gandhi appear as anything but peaceful.

But what might it look like for you to live a life of nonviolent resistance to evil? How do you confront evil and injustice without becoming unjust yourself? In this episode with Holy Heretics host Gary Alan Taylor, we discuss ways to take power back from the oppressors through nonviolent, subversive action. We draw on the teachings of Jesus who provided a 'third way' beyond fight or flight that leads to an opportunity for the perpetrator to not only recognize your humanity, but repent of his oppression.

For our new patrons, thank you for joining us! Thank you for providing the resources we desperately need to continue creating this sacred, subversive space. Our podcast is an act of nonviolent resistance to dominator evangelicalism. We will not be silenced. We will not be intimidated by the religious establishment. We will continue to speak loudly and proudly for the marginalized, no matter the cost. Your commitment to this work is also an act of resistance, thank you!

Bio

Gary Alan Taylor is the Co-Founder of The Sophia Society and the Host of Holy Heretics Podcast. Gary Alan grew up in conservative evangelical culture as a preacher boy and his deconstruction journey began way back as an undergraduate at Milligan College when he took a course that changed his life. Taught by Stanley Hauerwas protege Phil Kennesson, Christ and Culture planted seeds that would grow into a subversive faith decades later. Prior to his faith deconstruction, Gary Alan worked in evangelical spaces as a content creator. He has written for RedLetter Christians and Missio Alliance and has a Master of Arts degree in Holocaust Studies as well as PhD work in Colonial American History. Gary Alan and his wife Jennifer live in Monument, Colorado and attend Grace and St. Stephens Episcopal Church.

Quotables

“Four in ten Americans live in a household with a gun. 44% of Republicans say they own a gun.”

“What might it look like to deconstruct your faith nonviolently?”

“Here in America, we love our guns, and we love our God given right to blow you away.”

“Even out theology is violent. We believe in a violent, wrathful God, so violence is wrapped into the DNA of what it means to be an American.”

“When the United States kills it’s enemies, it’s probably a Christian who pulls the trigger.”

“What I fear is being in the presence of evil and doing nothing. I fear that more than death.”

“We don’t have enough money for healthcare, education and basic human services because we spend billions of dollars on war, and we call that pragmatic.”

“For what the world spends on defense every 2.5 hours, smallpox was eliminated.”

“We believe that violence saves.”

“Can you commit an act of violence for the cause of justice?”

“Is there ever a time that you could kill for the right cause?”

“What if the people we think are so evil aren’t evil at all?”

“Our addiction to redemptive violence is the fault of the church.”

“When war is undertaken in the name of God, there can be no limit in the killing, because so much is at stake.”

“Nonviolence isn’t an exception to the rule, but is at the heart of what it means to be a Christian.”

“There wasn’t even a word for pacifism in the early church because to call yourself a Christian meant you lived a life of nonviolence.”

“Even in death, Jesus was nonviolent.”

“Jesus was nonviolent because God was nonviolent.”

“Is my job causing suffering to the planet or to the poor?”

“What or who am I afraid of?”

“In what ways do I benefit from the empire in which I live?”

“Pacifism isn’t meekness in the face of evil.”

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Show notes:

http://www.sophiasociety.org/podcast/the-power-of-nonviolent-resistance

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This episode was produced by The Sophia Society and written by Gary Alan Taylor. Music is by Faith in Foxholes.