Understanding the Church in a Multipolar World
Christianity is uniquely positioned to promote peace and evangelize in a multipolar world.
In the past few years, much thought has been given to multipolarity, the end of the “end of history,” and the conclusion of the post-Cold War epoch, which witnessed unquestioned American global hegemony. One can spend all day discussing the multitude of factors that contributed to and caused this end of unipolarity, in particular the disastrous wars of “regime change” which have squandered America’s military might and diplomatic reputation, neoliberal trade policices, as well the economic and political rise of China.
It is necessary to recognize that multipolarity is upon us and it would be quixotic and deleterious to try to return to the unipolar world of 1999. Instead, as Americans, we must work within the world as it exists, as to promote peace and prosperity with (in the words of Abraham Lincoln) “malice towards none” and “charity for all.”
However, as Catholics, there is much more to discuss with regard to what the Church can and should do in this new epoch. It is understandable why the role of the Church has been overlooked in discussions of multipolarity. After all, the Church does not compete in the geopolitical arena in the same manner of nation-states.
However, the Church will necessarily play a major role in this new era, as she has in all previous eras, least of all because she has over a billion faithful spread across the world, many of whom are in different nations with different and opposing interests. Thus, the Church is in a unique position to be able to reach above geopolitical divisions to call members of the faithful to virtuous ends.
Of course, the primary mission of the Church is and will always be the salvation of souls, and it must and will always be evangelizing. However, promoting natural goods such as peace can also rebound to the benefit of the Church and help open the hearts of many to her message. For instance, the consistency and great wisdom shown in Church teaching on issues such as the sanctity of human life, bioethics, and contraception serves as a strong tool for evangelization.
Further examples of interventions of the Church in geopolitical affairs, such as the brave stands made by the Church against totalitarianism, exemplified in the actions of St. Pope John Paul II against Communism, and encyclicals such as Pius XI’s Mit Brennender Sorge, inspire the faithful to this day and continue open the hearts of many to the Church.
An achievable goal for the Church in this new era would be to establish herself as an honest and just mediator in peace-talks. The Church has historically played a role in promoting peace, exemplified in World War I by the “Sixtus Affair.” Another area where the Church is doing commendable work has been with regard to the ongoing conflict in Ukraine, where Pope Francis has been a stalwart advocate for peace (much to the chagrin of certain hawkish voices).
The Church is also uniquely positioned to argue for the rights of persecuted Christians around the world. Christians are currently the most persecuted religious group around the world, with over 380 million Christians living in countries where they face high levels of persecution for their faith and an average of twelve Christians being martyred each day.
The past twenty years have seen events such as the ethnic cleansing of 120,000 Armenian Christians from the Nagorno-Karabakh, the decimation of Iraq’s Christian population (in the wake of a neoconservative war to “spread democracy”), and the takeover of Syria by Sunni Jihadists (who were cheered on, of course, by Western liberals) and the subsequent persecution of Syrian Christians. The Church has significant ability to raise awareness about these persecutions of Christians and to assist persecuted Christians through organizing charitable efforts and aid.
It can also bring her own resources to bear as leverage to convince non-Christian (or nominally-Christian) states to respect the liberty of the Church, of Christians, and natural law. These, of course, would hardly be a new roles for the Church. Indeed, the Church has always sought to prevent harm being done to Christian communities, with Leo the Great saving Rome from being sacked and its Christian population destroyed by Attilla. Religious groups, such as the Trinitarian Order, were created with the explicit purpose of aiding Christian captives held by non-Christians.
The Church can also reach above geopolitical lines to promote natural law and true justice. More recently, during the Cold War, the Papacy was not afraid of condemning the evils of communism or the “culture of death” which increasingly permeated both East and West during the course of that conflict. In the same way, the Church can also promote the distinct cultures and sovereignty of countries, contributing to a culture of harmony.
Regardless of how one feels about multipolarity, it has arrived, and it is within the interests of the Church that we look for news ways for the institution to thrive in our new era. Of course, we must remember that we are guaranteed that “the gates of hell shall not prevail against” the Church, and we can trust Providence to guide the Church. Yet, there are particular things that can be done to assist the Church in her mission for peace, and recognizing a few of these and how they may aid the Church in our multipolar world can have a real, considerable, and positive impact.
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“The primary mission of the Church is and will always be the salvation of souls, and it must and will always be evangelizing” well said 👏🏻
There is nothing in the teachings of Christ or the Apostles to guide us in national or international politics. The teachings regarding peace are centered in interpersonal relations. Christ did not teach about Rome, Roman law, nor Roman military affairs. He healed a Roman officer's child. He encouraged his followers to not only obey when they were ordered accompany a soldier for a mile, something that apparently was common. If fact, he said to go beyond duty and accompany for two miles.
Blessed are the peacemakers is somewhat vague. His followers were for the most part lowly subjects of an invading army, and were in no position to make peace between their nation and the Roman empire. The turning the other cheek when struck can only be seen as avoiding losing their temper when attacked by another person. It might not be applicable to just or unjust abuse of a soldier, magistrate, or other official. He did not put up any resistance when he was arrested, tried, and sentenced to death, so it might apply to us as well.
Often fighting back escalates beyond a scuffle between two people, especially when people are aggrieved in general, as in cases of oppression. We have seen it flare up between blacks and police. Riots have broken out nearly nationwide, sometimes abetted by the police, whose job it is to keep or restore the peace.
Group action in protest of official acts often served to escalate, and rarely serve to rectify bad situations. "Peaceful protests" are rarely peaceful. Mass movements have resulted in changes in legislation, but it should be obvious to everyone that bad actions come from bad motives, and legislation has little or no affect on bad behavior. Prohibition was less than ineffective, it made matters worse. The war of drugs is having even worse effects on society. The war on racism has not slowed hatred. The war on poverty is likewise creating more harm, without making a dent in poverty. The so-called safety-net of social security has destroyed personal responsibility for financial financial planning.
Government is not the solution. Government is the problem. Collective action is only efficient in enabling harm.