The Business of War
A Meditation by Rev. Cameron Trimble
“They have healed the wound of my people lightly, saying, ‘Peace, peace,’ when there is no peace.” —Jeremiah 6:14
Today will go down in history—but not for the reasons a democracy should celebrate.
This morning, the world awoke to reports of Israeli airstrikes on Tehran, targeting military and nuclear sites in a dramatic escalation that risks igniting a regional war. On the same day, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth stood before Congress and, almost casually, acknowledged that the U.S. has developed plans to forcibly take over Greenland and Panama if deemed “necessary.”1
And then, in a jarring domestic moment, U.S. Senator Alex Padilla was handcuffed and removed from a Homeland Security press conference for daring to speak out about immigration raids devastating communities across California.2
Violence abroad. Suppression at home. And underneath it all—a system that profits from both.
It is no coincidence that the largest line item in the U.S. federal budget is for defense and military spending. The United States spends more on weapons and war than the next ten nations combined. War is not just a tool of policy—it is the product itself. We fund it. We justify it. We sell it globally under the banner of freedom and peace, while peace efforts are chronically under-resourced, and justice initiatives are blocked before they bloom.
We say we want peace, but we have built economies that depend on conflict. We say we care for the vulnerable, but we let bombs fall while aid is delayed. We say we value democracy, but our policies increasingly mirror the very authoritarianism we claim to oppose.
As people of faith, we must name this clearly:
This is not righteousness.
This is not justice.
This is idolatry—the worship of power, profit, and domination at the expense of life.
And yet: there is still a different way.
Spiritual teacher Matthew Fox teaches, “Compassion is not a luxury; it is a necessity, an imperative, without which humanity cannot survive.” That is the truth we must recover.
We are not helpless in this moment. But we are summoned to deeper seeing, to refuse to be anesthetized by the spectacle, to name the system for what it is, and to become living interruptions to its logic.
We must not only protest war. We must divest from the habits of domination wherever they show up—in our policies, yes, but also in our homes, our congregations, our hearts.
Violence is not just something we wage on battlefields. It’s something we either accept or resist in the choices we make every day.
Let us be the ones who choose resistance—not with vengeance, but with vision.
We are in this together,
Cameron
Reflection Questions
What narratives have I absorbed about the necessity of war? How might they need to be reexamined?
Where am I complicit in systems that rely on domination or dehumanization?
What would it mean to become an agent of peace in both word and structure—not just in sentiment?
A Prayer for the Day
A Prayer for Clarity and Courage
God of all nations,
You weep when your children go to war. You grieve when profit trumps peace. You mourn every soul—Israeli, Iranian, American, Palestinian— when they are reduced to pawns in someone else’s strategy. We live in a world that teaches us fear is power. Undo that lie in us. Teach us to see beyond the borders of nation, race, and creed. Grant us the courage to resist the drumbeats of war. And bless those who speak truth in the face of empire— even when they are handcuffed for doing so. Make us faithful in a world unraveling.
Amen.
Spiritual Practice
Imagining Peace
Take time today to examine the systems that shape your attention. What headlines dominate your news feed? Who tells you what is “necessary”? What stories are you consuming—and what values do they reinforce?
Choose one day to fast from media that glorifies war or justifies violence. Instead, spend that time in sacred listening. Read a story from a peace activist. Learn about nonviolent resistance movements. Or sit in silence and imagine what the world might look like if we invested in healing instead of harm.
Then, do one thing—however small—to align your life with that vision.
Upcoming Events That Might Be of Interest…
June 14, 2025 - On June 14—Flag Day—No Kings is a nationwide day of protest. From city blocks to small towns, from courthouse steps to community parks, we’re taking action to reject authoritarianism—and show the world what democracy really looks like. Find a protest in your city HERE. I will be out there with you!
SOLD OUT!!! July 20-25, 2025 - The Art of Wilding: A 5-Day Expedition in Wyoming for Women Leaders. Click here to learn more.
August 11, 2025, 2pm ET - Dr. Andrew Root and I will be hosting a 6 part series on Spirituality in the Secular Age based on his research. The dates are August 11, 18, September 8, 15, and October 6, 13. Mark your calendars! More on this soon.
September 4, 4:30pm ET - I will be collaborating with the Anderson Forum for Progressive Theology to host a conversation with Thomas Jay Oord on Open and Relational theology. It’s a FREE event. Register here.
October 15-18, 2025 - Converging 2025: Sing Truth Conference (all musicians invited!) at Northwest Christian Church in Columbus, OH. Register here!
I drafted a Strategic Framework for Congregations as we move into the coming years of increased authoritarianism around the world. If interested, you can download it here.
If you are a leader or member of a congregation looking for consulting support in visioning, planning, hiring or staffing, please consider Convergence.
https://apnews.com/article/hegseth-greenland-signal-congress-295b03478d985678c4f2bf2eb5b513ba
https://apnews.com/article/alex-padilla-noem-immigration-protest-california-f67d220a0254473c53c16aa96f554239
A fulsome analysis and warning....as well as your existentially appropriate prayer....
I think of Yeat's prophetic poem THE SECOND COMING.... The falcon cannot hear the falconer because of the broken unity of humanity and mother nature....the ominous beast slouching toward Bethlehem to be born....
Thank you so much for continuing to write every day - it is a bright spot for me in the morning and helps me re-engage with the challenges we face.