You're right Rowland, I'm not in jail. And I probably won't be, at least this time. In Australia they don't like jailing people for nonviolent offences. Which means we have that much more freedom to act for peace and justice!

For those who didn't hear, I was part of a group called the Bonhoeffer 4 who travelled to Shoalwater Bay Military Training Area on the central Queensland coast to nonviolently resist the further preparation by Australia and the US for the wars in Afghanistan, Pakistan and potentially Iran. It's a live-fire military exercise called Talisman Saber involving the armies, navies and air forces of both countries, about 26,000 personnel in all, about 18,000 US and 8,000 Australian.

We're now 8 years into this war (according to George Bush "a war without end"), and there is widespread disengagement by the general Australian public (despite the fact that more than half the population do not agree with it). While soldiers and civilians kill and are killed and injured in a far off country, most of us sit passively by or change the channel. It will remain a war without end until we as citizens end it.

The four of us joined about 20 other Christian anti-war activists up there for prayer, reflection and action in the days leading up. We participated in a number of non-arrestable blockades of military facilities. Then we went onto the training area to stop the exercises. We spent about two days on the base (the military had previously said that if there were civilians on the base they would stop the exercises)

before being found by US soldiers who were playing the 'insurgents' in that day's exercise. We had some significant interactions with them while waiting for police to arrive (we stay and pray, not hit and split), with the opportunity to pray for one another and for all the victims of war.

After being taken back to Rockhampton we all refused bail and after spending the night in the holding cells saw a magistrate in the morning to get it over and done with. We all pleaded guilty ("and proud of it")

- Margaret and Jarrod were charged with trespass and given fines of $400 and $200 respectively. Jess and I were charged with trespass and obstructing police (we refused to leave under our own steam) and were given fines of $1200 and $700 respectively. A small price to pay for witnessing to a world without war.

We named our action after Bonhoeffer for a number of reasons.

1. Kevin Rudd in his article in the Monthly before the election called Bonhoeffer, "without a doubt the person I admire most in the history of the twentieth century." Bonhoeffer was a pacifist who was killed trying to stop war. Yet Rudd just signed off on a $100 billion long term military spending plan despite the fact that the recent Defence White Paper acknowledges Australia is not likely to be under threat for at least the next 20 years.

2. Bonhoeffer's participation in the plot to kill Hitler has largely defined him for most people. We wanted in some small way to rescue the legacy of a complex man who took costly action to end war. In fact, Bonhoeffer never renounced his pacifist stance and believed he was doing the wrong but the best thing, throwing himself on the mercy of God. Yet people have used him to justify war since then despite the fact that he was trying to stop it by stopping Hitler.

3. Bonhoffer's distinction between 'cheap grace' and 'costly grace' was of great inspiration to us, and to many people all over the world, particularly as he did not only talk about it, but lived it.

As with two years ago, this was a significant experience of the power of nonviolent action by small groups of people and of faithful, costly discipleship. I remember thinking as I walked into court, "In times of war and injustice like this, where else ought Christians to be found than before the courts for resisting them and witnessing to the inbreaking Kingdom of God?" Lots more stories and detail at http://nonviolencestories.wordpress.com, including theological reflections on prison, baptism, worship, singing, the cross and the bomb, and deep ecology.

Some useful links here: http://nonviolencestories.wordpress.com - reflections on the events of each day http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DOM-GR9MkB4 - a video of our action http://neobaptist.com/2009/07/14/baptist-pacifists-disrupt-war-games/ - discussion on Queensland Baptist's blog (I've written a response he's agreed to publish, so look out for that soon)

http://www.theage.com.au/national/game-on-for-christian-protest-20090712-dhef.html?FORM=ZZNR3

For those interested in hearing more about resistance to these military exercises, not just about the Bonhoeffer 4 but other groups as well, there's an information night on next Tuesday evening.

Grace and peace, Simon Moyle

August 2009