When salvation is thought to be an individual experience the Christian obligation to pursue justice can be lost. Eberhard Arnold challenges those who assume that the kind of community he describes must withdraw from the world. On the contrary, such a community is constantly sending people out. Those sent out will work for justice, but they will also transform what is meant by justice. In particular, they will challenge the presumption that coercion is the only way to achieve justice in a world of violence. For those who worship a crucified Savior it is simply a contradiction to think the violence of the world can be used to achieve the good.

Disavowing violence may sound like bad news for those seeking justice for the oppressed.