In combining biblical, historical, theological, and ethical analyses of “the business of war,” the authors invite us to better understand it as a new moral problem that demands a new, faithful response.

While COVID-19 is a novel coronavirus, the violence exacerbated in its wake is anything but new.

A search for origins is also always a search for meaning. In a time of political crisis such as ours, when origin narratives are especially tempting, fresh reminders of their limitations and violent potential are welcome.

In times as uncertain as ours, these reflections serve as welcome reminders of the importance of political resistance, critique, and the near-militant self-awareness that characterizes Thoreau’s work.

It is ironic but evident that self-preservation and its varied expressions like self-interest and self-defense are routinely used to justify neglect, violence, and brutality towards others.