Stand
Up for Love
“I
refuse to accept the view that mankind is so tragically bound to the
starless midnight of racism and war that the bright daybreak of peace
and brotherhood can never become a reality...I believe that unarmed
truth and unconditional love will have the final word.”
Martin
Luther King, Jr.
In
a world bound to war, I stand with Martin Luther King, Jr. in
believing that love will have the final word. These are hard times,
fearful times, and most of the people I know are arming themselves,
literally and figuratively, to withstand the battles to come. Perhaps
it is because I come from the generation that put flowers into gun
barrels, and protested in the streets to end the war in Vietnam,
that, for me, war is not a solution unless it cannot be avoided. We
must confront terrorism without becoming terrorists ourselves. It is
a difficult and complicated business.
I
am naïve enough to believe that love is stronger than fear, that
aggression breeds aggression, and hatred cannot be overcome by more
hatred. I believe this, not because I don't know what “the real
world” is like, but because I choose with all my heart to believe
it. Hatred and racism, whether they take the form of hating
Muslims, hating Arabs, hating our President because he isn't racing to
war, or hating anyone at all, is poisonous to my own soul, and adds
fuel to a fire that is already burning down the world. I do not want
to be part of that.
Today,
I invite you to join me in praying for peace, in doing whatever you
can to confront hatred and racism in your everyday life, and in being
a person who stands up for love, brotherhood and peace.
Affirmation:
“Today, I will stand for love in all I say and do.”
In
the Spirit,
Jane
No comments:
Post a Comment