We in the world live in a time when the problems we face may seem to
have no ready solution. Yet the heart can see clearly, where the mind
does not yet have an answer. The great challenge and gift of
this time, is that we become more fully who we are as souls, to bring
the mission and the truth of our deepest hearts to life, and to live by
that. By so doing, we inherently call upon the Divine of which we are
part, to enter the human stage of events in our individual and
collective lives. By our dedication to the highest ideals - and our
willingness to live by them - we invoke the presence of the Divine to
bring forth the answers to the problems that we face, that cannot solved
with our more limited human capacities alone.
Such is the
situation we face with the use of military force by the United States.
The use of violence - to stop violence against this country, or to
attain other goals related to so-called 'interests' - is a current of
energy and of action that needs to be purified. For in seeking to
protect 'our own', the United States has done great harm to others. And
so also to itself.
We must now seek to bring this chapter of
our history to a close. As at so many times in American history, there
needed to come a time of turning. So too now, do we need to turn away
from violence as an answer the problems we face. We have taken leaps as a
country since our founding – the abolition of slavery, women’s
suffrage, workers rights, social security, civil rights, and the
increasing recognition of the rights of all. It is time now to heed the
call, to a new level of what America is – respect for the sacredness of
all living. Whether it is for the moral and ethical reasons - that the
heart knows it is not right to kill - or recognizing that that the
killing others leads to more emnity and 'enemies' not less.
One
area that has been deeply troubling to me, has been the use in recent
years by United States of drones to target and kill those in other
countries who are suspected of carrying out, or intending to carry out,
terrorism. This has been done in countries which have not agreed for
this to happen within their borders; without due process of law; and
despite the deaths of innocents. This country is on very shaky grounds
anytime it takes it upon itself to act with aggression, especially in
ways that are not in accordance with the laws in this country, of other
countries, or international law.
Why is this continuing to
happen with this situation? I believe primarily it is because people
don't see that there is another choice, another way to protect 'our
own'.
But the way is there. Its beginning is very simple. We
must recognize deeply in the heart that it is simply wrong to use
illegal drone strikes and kill people.
And then to choose, as a country, to not do this.
What then?
Just that act of the United States saying "We choose not to continue to
do this harm to others" would be a revolutionary step. For it would be a
beginning of standing in the truth of the ideals of respect for the
rights of all people - out of which mutual respect and regard, back and
forth, can grow.
(It will take courage to not act out of fear,
to not 'defend' ourselves - but we can know that acting out of fear in
this way would undermine the very safety we would have been seeking).
We can say as a country "We seek, in common cause with all the
countries of the world, to address the causes of violence and despair
that lead to emnity between peoples, and we commit vast resources that
would otherwise be used for military, to help in this”.
~
I don't have all the answers to the problems we face.
But I do know this:
We can sit in prayer and mediation together, to ask to be led forward
through the dilemmas we face, by the Divine Spirit and the heart of
Compassion that lives in each of us. We can listen within, to what our
hearts tell us, about pathways to end violence, to meet the real needs
of people, to act with care and respect toward All - in this country and
around the world. We can seek, and we can wait – in trust and with
courage – to be guided from within and above ‘by a way we know not’ into
the future of peace that lives in our hearts. Guided in our actions by
what our hearts tell us, that is in keeping with love, and eschewing
that which is not. We can do these things in our individual lives, in
our families, in our workplaces, and in our governments. In so doing, we
nourish the energy and spirit of the seed-hope for the future that each
of us carries within, caring for it and waiting for it to take root in
our lives and on the earth, growing each day in the Light, with love and
trust and truth.
May the future of peace on the earth begin in
each of our hearts and our lives. May we seek it and choose it. And may
we have to courage to speak about what we are learning as we choose
live in this way, and so too help the world feel the hope in their lives
and for the future.
Namaste.
on Prayers for a New America
https://www.facebook.com/PrayersAmerica
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