THURSDAY, OCTOBER 12, 2023 - WAR IN THE MIDDLE EAST

 THURSDAY, OCTOBER 12, 2023 - WAR IN THE MIDDLE EAST

The expression LOVE WINS has been my mantra for the past seven years.  

But, war over land and religion has started again in Israel.

There will be people killed - both military and civilians.  Maybe one of the murder victims would have found a cure for cancer or a way to end dementia.  But they are dead and gone.

You have heard that it was said, 'Love your neighbor and hate your enemy. ' But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your Father in heaven.

Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.

Above all, love each other deeply because love covers many sins. Offer hospitality to one another without grumbling. Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others as faithful stewards of God’s grace in its various forms.

But we do live in a world of hate and war. Matthew 24:6-7

“You will hear of wars and rumors of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come. Nation will rise against nation and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines and earthquakes in various places. “

A friend sent this:

<begin quote>

“A Holy and Wholly Inadequate Statement

I was a very young teenager when I read Leon Uris’ novel Exodus. At the time, I had a small understanding of World War II and the Holocaust, and I was completely swept up in the romanticism of Uris’ historical fiction. I lacked the age and experience necessary to consider that there might be more to the story of the founding of the State of Israel than I read in the novel. I lacked the humility to fully appreciate the vast scope of history and the stories behind the stories. Even if I had read these words from the onetime Prime Minister of Israel, David Ben-Gurion, I wouldn’t have understood their implication: "As a piece of propaganda, it’s [Exodus] the greatest thing ever written about Israel.”

Years after his novel achieved phenomenal success, Uris is reported to have said, “Exodus is the story of the greatest miracle of our times, an event unparalleled in the history of mankind: the rebirth of a nation which had been dispersed 2,000 years before. It tells the story of the Jews coming back after centuries of abuse, indignities, torture, and murder to carve an oasis in the sand with guts and blood...Exodus is about fighting people who do not apologize either for being born Jews or the right to live in human dignity.”

I simply think we have passed the point when there can be a political or military solution to what is happening in the Holy Land. A miracle is needed, and it will find its genesis in great love—love for the One we know by different names and love for one another.

[Karen adds - LOVE - AGAPE LOVE - GOD’S PERFECT LOVE. - AND LOVE FOR ONE ANOTHER!!]

There is so much I haven’t even tried to address here. Several times, I wanted to say something along the lines of “We must love people more than we love the land,” but I quickly erased those words as I sit here, one day removed from Indigenous People’s Day, on land that Texas says belongs to me and that can really never belong to me. Land that, for 50 years, I thought was “discovered” by Columbus. I wanted to write something that would excuse me for responding to this state of war in Israel when I’ve remained mostly quiet about the insurgency in Algerian and Uganda. I wanted to make sure and acknowledge my unquantifiable privilege. I wanted to write something that offered love and support to my Jewish friends and to my Palestinian friends.

None of that will help. I am going to pray for a miracle. Thank you, Rabbi Sheila Weinberg, for this prayer for Israel.

Two peoples, one land,

Three faiths, one root,

One earth, one mother,

One sky, one beginning, one future, one destiny,

One broken heart, One God.

We pray to You: Grant us a vision of unity.

May we see the many in the one and the one in the many.

May you, Life of All the Worlds, Source of All Amazing Differences, help us to see clearly.

Guide us gently and firmly toward each other, toward peace.

<end quote from my friend>

There is war worldwide - Ukraine and Russia; Israel and Palestine; various African countries; Turkey and Armenia; Iran and Saudi Arabia.  

Many of these conflicts are based on religion.  Many say they love God and are killing in the name of God, Allah, or whoever.  And, even when it isn’t out-and-out war, there are clashes between Republicans and Democrats (or even Republicans and Republicans).  Or with conservative versus liberal.  

WHY DO WE FIGHT? Because we are hard-headed and hard-hearted people - greedy, judgmental, and stupid.  

Let’s get along - Let’s work toward peace!!

Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.

LOVE WINS

LOVE TRANSFORMS

KAREN ANNE WHITE, ©, OCTOBER 12, 2023