"I'm a pacifist because I'm a violent son of a bitch." A profile of Stanley Hauerwas

Progressive, The, April, 2003 by Colman McCarthy

Hauerwas consistently draws large numbers of students to his classes. Earthy, gregarious, and often light-hearted, he is devoted to his students, returning their papers quickly, mentoring them into pastorates around the country, and relishing the melee of theological debate. Something of a cusser, he told Newsweek: "God is killing the church, and we goddamn well deserve it." According to a friend, Hauerwas defended this low-grade blasphemy by saying, "At least I mention God's name twice."

Days before Hauerwas visited Washington, politicians, lobbyists, generals, and assorted court reverends convened for the annual national prayer breakfast in the ballroom of a local hotel. Head-bowing Presidents and Vice Presidents rarely miss showing up. Unsurprisingly, Hauerwas has an opinion on these events. Like Amos, the Hebrew prophet who thought little of the rich Israelites who were publicly pious while privately greedy, Hauerwas says: "The God that's prayed to [at the breakfasts] is such a vague God that it's very hard for me to see how it avoids idolatry. It's dangerous for Christians to think that the state is sponsoring their faith. Is it really about prayer? Or a display of piety? Prayer breakfasts are just parading the piety to ensure a kind of righteousness that isn't commensurate with confessional sin. You'd never catch me at one."

Hauerwas believes that Christianity, to be authentic, must take a stand. In a 1991 interview, he said: "If you ask one of the crucial theological questions--why was Jesus killed?--the answer isn't `because God wants us to love one another.' Why in the hell would anyone kill Jesus for that? That's stupid. It's not even interesting. Why did he get killed? Because he challenged the powers that be. The church is a political institution calling people to be an alternative to the world. That's what the cross is about."

If, as Gandhi often stated, nonviolence is a creed for the brave and the bold---"its seat is in the heart, and it must be an inseparable part of our being"--then Hauerwas may not be our best theologian, but he is one of our bravest and boldest.

Colman McCarthy, a former Washington Post columnist, directs the Center for Teaching Peace in Washington. His recent book is, "I'd Rather Teach Peace" (Orbis, 2002).