Monday 24 March 2008

Sorry for the late post today. Here's a brief insight from Gandhi that caused me to pause today on this day after the events of Good Friday, Holy Saturday and the Resurrection of our Lord.

In non-violence the bravery consists in dying, not in killing.

As much as I thought about this comment, I have just as much raced through my mind about how hard it would be to kill. In addition, I wondered about how brave one must be to be put in a position in which one is called on to kill...and that is under the threat of being killed. It is as though I should not make a comment at all since I have never been in a situation like that. Then again, there are so many ways to kill that do not demand any bit of bravery. At least that is not what is the motivating power at hand. Rather, killing at times can be done not as an act of bravery...but as one of cowardice. This may be a "get them before they get us" which is so motivated by fear, it would be easy to confused this action as bravery when it is rather fear-based and fear motivated. We saw throughout the Holy Week stories of Jesus that his bravery was a constant witness to non-violence. I should really say a witness to the Reign of God that is not bound to violence but is completely supported and sustained by love, justice, peace, forgiveness, etc. When we, with Jesus, reside in this Reign, acts of bravery are, at times, a matter of laying down ones life for the well being of the other...even if the other is our enemy. In that way, we act from a secure center - a ground that is able to be our sustenance even when we are in the face of death's many threats.

Connection: I suppose dying to our ego needs/greeds takes as much bravery as other ways of dying within our lives. This may be the way we begin the journey of non-violence - even today.

In your dying, O God, we are raised up by you. As we are raised up, we become a part of the community of people who are assured of your presence with us at all times and even through what would be the end of us. We give you thanks for your presence and how you do not abandon us but rather call us to come and live even as death threatens us. Amen.