Pray for peace
07/04/24 00:39
Here we are. It is the second Sunday of Easter, 2024. From my point of view, the world has always been in need of the Easter message, but this year, of all of the years of my life, it seems like that the need for that message is at its most desperate.
I could write about the environmental crisis that already is threatening the lives and well being of millions of people - of the drought and the threat of wildfires that is bearing down on British Columbia, just to the north of my homer where the fires from last summer continue to burn having resisted the power of even winter to extinguish them.
I could write about the rise of the power of totalitarian governments around the globe and the ways in which our own nation is flirting with fascism in a way that is deeply reminiscent of the years leading up to World War II.
I could write about the worldwide crisis of refugees and how never before in human history have so many been forced to flee their homes with no place to turn and are being met with increasing resistance and persecution wherever they flee.
I could write about the war in Sudan affecting 25 million people, over 14 million of which are children in urgent need of humanitarian aid, of 8 million people fleeing causing the largest displacement crisis in the history of the world.
I could write about hundreds of possible places where the future seems grim, where death seems to dominate, where new life and resurrection is critically needed. Doing so, however, would diffuse the message and increase the sense of hopelessness. Easter, if anything, is the opposite of hopelessness. While I am tempted to simply pray for the entire world and allow God to sort out all of its needs, let me focus for a moment on just one situation in a world that is in desperate need of Easter resurrection.
Six months after the Hamas attacks on Israel, war, disease, starvation and death ravage Palestinians in Gaza. Israel is deeply divided, as its prime minister struggles to keep his promise of total victory. Here in the United States, Israel’s most essential ally, the voices of many have turned against the way it is fighting the war. As we walked down the street with our Grandchildren on Friday, we passed a block of protestors, calling for peace without offering a clear path to that elusive goal.
The past six moths have revealed horror after horror. More than 1,200 Israelis, mostly civilians, were killed by Hamas on October 7. 253 people were taken to Gaza as hostages. At least 34 of the hostages have been killed. The government of Israel has announced that nearly a hundred still remain in custody amid inhuman circumstances. A UN team reported last month that it had “clear and convincing information” that hostages had been subjected to sexual violence “including rape, sexualized torture, cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment.” There are “reasonable ground” to believe the violence against hostages is continuing.
More than 33,000 Gaza’s, the majority of whom were civilians, have been killed. The organization Save the Children reports that 13,800 Palestinian children in Gaza have been killed and over 12,000 wounded. Unicef reported that over 1,000 children have had one or both legs amputated. Around 1.4 million displaced civilians are trapped in Rafah under conditions that are unknown because journalists are not allowed to report from Gaza. Israeli firepower has reduced all of Gaza to a large wasteland.
A grim irony of the war is that Nir Oz, the Israeli settlement that was attacked on October 7, is part of a left-wing movement whose members had supported the idea of peace with the Palestinians.
The Internal Court of Justice is investigating and accumulating evidence that both Hamas and Israel may have committed war crimes. South Africa has charged Israel with allegations of genocide against the Palestinians. Hamas is classified as a terrorist organization by the United States and the United Kingdom.
World Central Kitchen, which had been providing minions of meals in Gaza, has been forced to withdraw its services following a direct attack against a relief convoy that died seven volunteers. Those deaths outraged President Biden whose condemnation of the killings has left Israel even more isolated and its leadership more desperate to demonstrate progress in its attempt to eliminate Hamas. The killing of the World Central Kitchen team seems to have been a tipping point in world opinion. Some pundits observe that the US is no longer prepared to serve as a safety net for Benjamin Netanyahu and his extremist coalition partners.
Thousands of protestors waving Israeli flags are blocking the streets around the Israeli parliament demanding the resignation of the prime minister and new elections. The deeply divided people of Israel live in shock following a brutal attacks.
Six months into the war there is no sign that it is ending. Israel has revealed no specifics about how Gaza will be governed when the war does end, except insisting that it will continue to be in control. The plans are clearly for an occupation of the region. Both sides cannot see the other side as a potential partner for peace. The attacks of October 7 resulted in many Israelis saying that they are not a people who deserve equality. Their humanity is questioned by those who are grieving the losses and watching with horror the treatment of the hostages. On the other side those who are witnessing the targeting of women and children, the deliberate killing of entire families, the demolishing of entire neighborhoods as inhuman attacks. The Israelis are seen as monsters.
The dehumanization of those perceived as enemies portends a disastrous future.
The world is desperate for peace that seems to be beyond our grasp. If hope were easy we might be tempted to believe that we are not in need of the miracle of resurrection. However, with death dominating and hope hidden, it seems as if never before have we found ourselves in such desperate need of resurrection. Life in the face of death is the core of the Easter message. Now, as never before, our Easter prayers seem essential. 1 Thessalonians 5:17 suggests that we “pray without ceasing.”
May we pray for peace.
I could write about the environmental crisis that already is threatening the lives and well being of millions of people - of the drought and the threat of wildfires that is bearing down on British Columbia, just to the north of my homer where the fires from last summer continue to burn having resisted the power of even winter to extinguish them.
I could write about the rise of the power of totalitarian governments around the globe and the ways in which our own nation is flirting with fascism in a way that is deeply reminiscent of the years leading up to World War II.
I could write about the worldwide crisis of refugees and how never before in human history have so many been forced to flee their homes with no place to turn and are being met with increasing resistance and persecution wherever they flee.
I could write about the war in Sudan affecting 25 million people, over 14 million of which are children in urgent need of humanitarian aid, of 8 million people fleeing causing the largest displacement crisis in the history of the world.
I could write about hundreds of possible places where the future seems grim, where death seems to dominate, where new life and resurrection is critically needed. Doing so, however, would diffuse the message and increase the sense of hopelessness. Easter, if anything, is the opposite of hopelessness. While I am tempted to simply pray for the entire world and allow God to sort out all of its needs, let me focus for a moment on just one situation in a world that is in desperate need of Easter resurrection.
Six months after the Hamas attacks on Israel, war, disease, starvation and death ravage Palestinians in Gaza. Israel is deeply divided, as its prime minister struggles to keep his promise of total victory. Here in the United States, Israel’s most essential ally, the voices of many have turned against the way it is fighting the war. As we walked down the street with our Grandchildren on Friday, we passed a block of protestors, calling for peace without offering a clear path to that elusive goal.
The past six moths have revealed horror after horror. More than 1,200 Israelis, mostly civilians, were killed by Hamas on October 7. 253 people were taken to Gaza as hostages. At least 34 of the hostages have been killed. The government of Israel has announced that nearly a hundred still remain in custody amid inhuman circumstances. A UN team reported last month that it had “clear and convincing information” that hostages had been subjected to sexual violence “including rape, sexualized torture, cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment.” There are “reasonable ground” to believe the violence against hostages is continuing.
More than 33,000 Gaza’s, the majority of whom were civilians, have been killed. The organization Save the Children reports that 13,800 Palestinian children in Gaza have been killed and over 12,000 wounded. Unicef reported that over 1,000 children have had one or both legs amputated. Around 1.4 million displaced civilians are trapped in Rafah under conditions that are unknown because journalists are not allowed to report from Gaza. Israeli firepower has reduced all of Gaza to a large wasteland.
A grim irony of the war is that Nir Oz, the Israeli settlement that was attacked on October 7, is part of a left-wing movement whose members had supported the idea of peace with the Palestinians.
The Internal Court of Justice is investigating and accumulating evidence that both Hamas and Israel may have committed war crimes. South Africa has charged Israel with allegations of genocide against the Palestinians. Hamas is classified as a terrorist organization by the United States and the United Kingdom.
World Central Kitchen, which had been providing minions of meals in Gaza, has been forced to withdraw its services following a direct attack against a relief convoy that died seven volunteers. Those deaths outraged President Biden whose condemnation of the killings has left Israel even more isolated and its leadership more desperate to demonstrate progress in its attempt to eliminate Hamas. The killing of the World Central Kitchen team seems to have been a tipping point in world opinion. Some pundits observe that the US is no longer prepared to serve as a safety net for Benjamin Netanyahu and his extremist coalition partners.
Thousands of protestors waving Israeli flags are blocking the streets around the Israeli parliament demanding the resignation of the prime minister and new elections. The deeply divided people of Israel live in shock following a brutal attacks.
Six months into the war there is no sign that it is ending. Israel has revealed no specifics about how Gaza will be governed when the war does end, except insisting that it will continue to be in control. The plans are clearly for an occupation of the region. Both sides cannot see the other side as a potential partner for peace. The attacks of October 7 resulted in many Israelis saying that they are not a people who deserve equality. Their humanity is questioned by those who are grieving the losses and watching with horror the treatment of the hostages. On the other side those who are witnessing the targeting of women and children, the deliberate killing of entire families, the demolishing of entire neighborhoods as inhuman attacks. The Israelis are seen as monsters.
The dehumanization of those perceived as enemies portends a disastrous future.
The world is desperate for peace that seems to be beyond our grasp. If hope were easy we might be tempted to believe that we are not in need of the miracle of resurrection. However, with death dominating and hope hidden, it seems as if never before have we found ourselves in such desperate need of resurrection. Life in the face of death is the core of the Easter message. Now, as never before, our Easter prayers seem essential. 1 Thessalonians 5:17 suggests that we “pray without ceasing.”
May we pray for peace.
