Hacksaw Ridge, the name of a place in Okinawa (Japan) where some of the bloodiest fighting happened during World War II, is a 2016 war movie directed by Mel Gibson, based on the 2004 documentary The Conscientious Objector. The film tells the story of Desmond Doss, played by Andrew Garfield, an American pacifist combat medic during WWII who, as a Seventh-day Adventist Christian, refused to carry or use a weapon or firearm of any kind.
Doss became the first conscientious objector to be awarded the Medal of Honor, for service above and beyond the call of duty during the Battle of Okinawa. The movie includes violent scenes that are difficult to watch—yet is very inspiring.
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Its interesting how this going to the movies is about a Seventh Day Adventist at a time when I am looking for a Seventh Day Adventist church near me and I plan to take my family to service this Saturday. I am not trying to say that SDA church is the best, I have one near me whose pastors are successfully entrained, which is why the one I am going to is an hour away from my house.
I read your comment Catherine about the futility of violence and I am afraid I don’t fully understand what you meant by it. What I can say is, back in the day when I lived in southern New Jersey I was assaulted a few times. New Jersey being a state that would prefer you walk around disarmed and be victimized by criminals, they certainly were able to successfully make that my reality.
As such, I no longer live in a state that does not allow me the right to carry a firearm and I can’t recall the last time I left my house without a firearm. Why? Because I refuse to be victimized again. Granted I am talking about corporeal victimization for I am still a tax donkey and a wage slave and I am hoping that as a Solari subscriber I can learn to someday stop being a tax donkey and wage slave.
I know this, I do have a plan to ensure my son learns some entrepreneurial skills and that he never has to work for anyone in his life because he will be too busy running his own successful business of which I hope I can be a part of.
I work in what I now have accepted as one of the nastiest businesses on the planet. I used to think working for Wall Street was nasty. Well, unfortunately in my field of tech, every CEO wants to be the next Mark Zuckerberg and since I am just a lowly engineer, does not bode well for me and I have paid dearly for it too. Its a shame too because I enjoy what I do, but its like Walker from Yellowstone said, “its funny how you can love what you do your whole life, and it just takes one person to $#!@ it all up.”
I am hoping someday to connect with the few software engineers that are out there with a conscious, who shun the Mark Zuckerbergs of the world as the archetype to follow and have the courage to work with people like me to create a more humane tech industry, with more humane software and more humane practices.
You know Dr. Gary Null was right when during the BLM smash and grabs throughout the cities he said, “wait til the adults in the room get angry enough about all this nonsense.”
I used to be a very amicable, fun-loving person. I believe I still am, but as you yourself have said, Catherine, this is a war, we are at war and I 100% agree.
Dear Luis,
I very much appreciate your posts; your person. God bless you and your family.
My late Father fought in the battles in Okiwana and Saipan. Gentlest, kindest man I ever met, neighborhood friends all agree. That generation never discussed it. Most forgiving man, my Dad. Wish he was still alive so I could ask how he moved beyond it. However when I got my first car he wouldn’t cosign on any car made in Japan. But then due to their superiority purchased one in his old age. Too many chicken hawks in the swamp today, post WW2 men served, were more patriotic. Doss was a brave man, but others had to do it. I will prepare myself since he never discussed it.
Living close to death taught me the futility of violence – it is very humbling. “Death be not proud, thou some have called thee mighty and dreadful, for though are not so.”
Sandra,
my grandfather saw the towers of Moscow through his binoculars. He was very frontline until he received the call to retreat.
This generation knows what it means to fight for values other than corruption, opportunism and all the other hoax and jokers we see in politics and elsewhere today. I guess they must have had their reasoning after all the blood shed.
I’ve seen the movie Hacksaw Ridge. It’s worthwhile watching. Also good to watch “The thin red line” with Nick Nolte. Awesome movie.
Very well done. A humble man asking only to know God’s will for him and the power to carry it out. Human beings still have some capacity to recognize it when God is working through another.
Prayer really can move mountains.
I have been trying to do prayer lately, just a lot of stuff going on both in the world and in my own personal life that is overwhelming and I feel like it will take a community praying in unison, one of the reasons I am trying to get my family and I to church this Saturday…its an Adventist church.