ABSTRACT
In the previous chapter, I explored the nature of Christian faith and its relation to mimetic desire in the context of violence, particularly noting its connection to positive, self-giving mimesis. In this chapter, I reflect on the context and formation of Christian faith as a fundamental choice made in the context of a world tainted by distorted desire and victimage. In this context, I show how Christian faith is connected to certain forms of mimetic transcendence and solidarity. I do this by reflecting on a story from the end of the Indonesian regime’s rule in East Timor. This story is of a group of women from a Catholic religious order who were present at a massacre after the 1999 referendum. I explore how the religious Sisters resisted succumbing to the fear, despair and power of violence. By exploring this story, I define in more detail the nature of violent crisis; and how Christian faith can address these crises, especially in faith’s particular relation to the victim. I argue that the Sisters’ relationship with Christ enabled them to confront violent crisis consciously and purposefully as pacific and self-giving victims.
