We highlight an incredible Speech Against War from July 10 at the “Living without NATO – Ideas for Peace” Congress in Berlin, where Dr. Eugen Drewermann delivered a strong case for peace. Dr. Drewermann’s intimate experience with the aftermath of World War II allowed him to detail descriptions of the human toll of Nazi air raids; of the horrid American bombing of Hiroshima that killed 100,000 people in a few seconds; of the callous counting of the dead in Vietnam; and of the remorseless research used to develop the hydrogen bomb.

Dr. Drewermann addressed the ghastly effect of soldiers just following orders and of armament motivated by fear. He remarks, “the body is made soulless  and a mere puppet [when it follows orders to kill].” His speech drew from a wide range of philosophers who advocate for human conscience as a free choice by every person, a moral imperative to peace. He calls for each of us to examine our role in war and makes the case that when we show courage and stand up for what we believe in, we turn fear on itself (and our governments):

Mahatma Gandhi is undoubtedly correct: peace does not come from the motivation of fear. On the contrary, soley out of the inner strength of one’s own person, through fidelity to oneself, by having the courage to have one’s own conscience. In Hindi it is called satyagraha. Think for yourself, Kant would have said. Stay true to yourself, Gandhi said. The resistance to get ready for war and the armament for war actually lies only in no longer allowing ourselves to be intimidated.

We would need to declare to those who govern us: “We will no longer let you whip us into a frenzy through ever new horror scenarios: how the Russians are coming, how the Chinese are coming. That YOU come is bad enough! And now we’re going to scare you up there, by no longer letting you scare us. We want to break the cycle of death.

Without hesitation, and speaking without notes, Dr. Drewermann eluded to double standards by European nations and the United States by citing examples including how governments gain access to mass funding for weapons immediately, in contrast to even minimal budgets that could save lives of refugees displaced by wars.

Dr. Drewermann’s full speech (in German with English subtitles) can be seen on Youtube.

Dr. Eugen Drewermann (born 20 June 1940) is a German church critic, theologian, peace activist and former Catholic priest. His work has been translated into more than a dozen languages. Read more on Wikipedia