A thesis by Stuart James Takahashi Gray
Sunday, December 07, 2008
Martial arts; just the mention of those two words conjures up visions of Shaolin monks as they fly through the air, displaying aerial prowess that only the Shaolin monks of northern China can do. We recall David Carradine as he embodies that one career-defining role that he took on; that of Kwai Chang Caine, from the TV series "Kung Fu" back in 1972. We were glued to the TV set as we eagerly awaited the time when with lightening speed he would eventually “snatch the pebble” from Master Kan’s hand who was played by the talented Philip Ahn. For over 40 years, Martial Arts and the legendary late Bruce Lee were inseparable, along with others such as Chuck Norris, Jackie Chan, and more recently, Jet Li and Steven Segal. So how can we reconcile the Martial Arts and Christianity?
At Karate for Christ, we have been able to maintain the purpose for which the Martial Arts was created for, while removing those elements such as Eastern practices and mythology, that made the Martial Arts an affront to the Holiness of God. We have removed ALL form of idolatry and replaced them with a Christian worldview. We have in effect disarmed those things that would have otherwise made the practice of the Martial Arts sinful. However, there are many well-meaning Christians that consider the practice of the Martial Arts in contradiction to Christianity.
The problem with modern Christendom is that they have become alienated from their beginnings. After the fall of man, sin entered into the world and the human race as a whole became corrupted. This required God to do something radical. Since everyone “did what was right in his own eyes”; what was right became a matter of personal subjection. The temporary “cure” for this was that God gave us His LAW. Man was now required to adhere to The LAW as received and taught by Moses as it had been revealed to him by the very finger of God upon Mount Sinai. Failure to comply with The LAW at least required a blood sacrifices and at most, the death of the disobedient. As harsh as this seemed, the purpose of The LAW was for the preservation of life through the removal of anything, which could lead to the demise of both the nation of Israel, as well as the individuals that made up this said nation. This included both spiritual life as well as physical life. I will get back to this shortly, but first I must return to its present day application.
“You have heard that it was said, 'Eye for eye, and tooth for tooth.'But I tell you, Do not resist an evil person. If someone strikes you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also. And if someone wants to sue you and take your tunic, let him have your cloak as well.”” (Matthew 5:38-40). This passage is probably the most frequently used passage in the Bible that those who oppose the learning of the Martial arts by Christian will use. They throw it out there as if playing their “trump card” while all along, taking the passage completely out of context and out of application. Allow me to continue. Since God had in the past , not only permitted the punishment and death of individuals that willfully ignored some of his laws, He also demanded it. Do we worship a schizophrenic God? By all means NO! The only explanation is on a figurative interpretation that relies on historical and other factors. At the time of Jesus, striking someone deemed to be of a lower class with the back of the hand was used to assert authority and dominance. If the persecuted person "turned the other cheek," the discipliner was faced with a dilemma. The left hand was used for unclean purposes, so a back-hand strike on the opposite cheek would not be performed. The other alternative would be a slap with the open hand as a challenge or to punch the person, but this was seen as a statement of equality. Thus, by turning the other cheek the persecuted was in effect demanding equality. By handing over one's cloak in addition to one's tunic, the debtor has essentially given the shirt off their back, a situation directly forbidden by The Law as stated in Deuteronomy 24: 10-13 Therefore, What Jesus was doing was reinforcing The Law, that preserved life, with all its power and authority as well as all of its legal requirements. Thus “an eye for an eye" and a “life for a life” not only became the measure, it also became the rule! No more than an “eye for an eye” could be demanded, while “a life for a life” was certainly not out of the question. Equivalence and equal exchange was the message in The Law while the preservation of life was its goal!
Now, returning to The LAW. It is The Law that was to be the foundation for the New Covenant and not the other way around. Jesus did not come to destroy The LAW, but to complete it. What was permitted through The LAW is still permitted today, provided it does not conflict with our civil laws that we have to live by today at this time; an example of this prohibition being that of plural marriages. However, our current civil laws grant us the right to protect ourselves, our lives and the lives of others provided that we do not go beyond what is reasonable or equivalent, the very thing that has been granted to us by God through The LAW. His LAW was for the preservation of life as are our current civil laws. Since The LAW was given for the preservation of life, to not do so, in my opinion, is to commit the sin of omission. If one has the ability through the practice of the Martial Arts, to preserve his own life or the life of another through the removal of a threat and does not, then that individual is guilty of the sin of omission. That person has failed to do the very thing for which The LAW was given.
King David whom probably knew God better than most men proclaimed in Psalm 144 “Praise be to the LORD my Rock, who trains my hands for war, my fingers for battle”. It was later reiterated by his son Solomon in Ecclesiastes 3 “a time to love and a time to hate, a time for war and a time for peace”. If God is God and does not change, then who has given us the right to change Him? Either He is God, consistent and fully trustworthy or He is a fraud.
In closing, I would like to now point out that practicing some form of Martial Arts is as amoral as bowling. It all boils down to individual intent and worldview. Some people should definitely not practice the Martial Arts. However, the execution of Martial Arts as a means of preserving life is as I have clearly show, acceptable by God and may even be seen as an act of worship where it is done with an obedient and thankful heart. I would like to challenge those people who would disagree with me, to go to God in prayer and ask Him, as I have done, putting aside all previous prejudices, doctrines and dogmas, and consider what I have here in said. Perhaps you may find that you yourself are called to the Martial Arts as I was. Thank you for your consideration.
In Christ,
Stuart James Takahahshi Gray.
