Scene I
“Now from the sixth hour there was darkness over all the land unto the ninth hour. And about the ninth hour Jesus cried out in a loud voice saying, Eli, Eli, la-ma sa-bach-the-ni, that is to say, “My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?…” Matthew, Chap. 27:45-46
Scene II
The grandfather spoke softly to his grandson sitting on his knee. He told him the story of the Holocaust as his grandfather had told him, and when his grandfather grew silent, the little boy asked quietly, “Grandfather, do you believe in God?” The old man sat in silence, then said, “Where was God?”
Scene III
The bombing and shelling had ceased, leaving in its wake death and destruction in all directions. Standing before the mound of rubble that had once been her home a Palestinian woman clad in black raised both arms to the heavens and cried out in a voice pierced by pain, “Where is God?”
The belief in God for the Christians is based on the new testament of the bible, for the Muslims the Koran, and so on for all the multitudes that believe in some form of deity, spiritual force, or higher power. The essence of the Christian religion is based on the word of Jesus Christ who said, “…And thou shall love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength: this is the first commandment. And the second is like namely this.”, “Thou shall love thy neighbor as thyself. There is no other commandment greater than these.” Mark 12:30-31
In the United States of America God has been inserted into the Pledge of Allegiance, the oaths of office, the courts, in money, in song, and invoked by politicians who ask God to bless America and the final words to the condemned when rendering the death penalty. The history of the United States contradicts the idea that this nation is founded on Christian beliefs in that its building was over the bodies of Native American Indians, slaves, and indentured servants. Once established men and women who attempted or are currently committed to establishing ideals of brotherhood and peace have been attacked, imprisoned, and often killed to maintain the oppressive status quo.
Where is God?
Surely not with our past and current leaders who have embraced the opiate of empire, pre-emptive war, torture and rendition, killer lists of humans to be murdered by unmanned drones, and “regime change” by overt and covert intrusions in the internal affairs of other countries in the belief that “the ends justify the means.” The acronym CIA could, and some say should, be defined as Criminals In Action. In God We Trust should read “In the Gun We Trust” as the media terrifies and sickens us with horrific scenes and endless speculations on the murder of men, women, and children by fanatics and the mentally ill with weapons of war. Need I add the senseless murder of the poor by the poor who have been left to survive with no hope, no future, and no aid from their country, which sends billions of monetary assistance and weapons to our so-called allies.
Where is God?
Who really believes in the brotherhood of man? Not the men and women who sit in the seats of power and whose actions, or lack thereof, drive the multitudes of humanity into the depths of despair, poverty, hunger and homelessness; not the majority of people who support the death penalty, privatized prisons, a broken justice system, and the continuation of perpetual war.
Where is God?
Do you have the answer to the question posed by the old grandfather, the Palestinian woman and all the men, women and children now dying or fleeing the horror of war and the violence? Is it not written, “…For the love of money is the root of all evil: which some covet after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows…” Timothy, Chap. 6:10. Is this the underlying truth as to why we send forth our sons and daughters to be killed and wounded on the battlefields of foreign countries?
Where is God?
Since all living creatures die, perhaps the answer to that question will be made known to us after death. Then again, perhaps Bob Dylan may be onto something when he sang, “The answer is blowin’ in the wind.”
On April 25-28, 2015 in the streets of Baltimore, Maryland, there were angry protests relating to the death of Freddie Gray who died while in police custody. Signs carried by the marchers read “BLACK LIVES MATTER.” There was also a post on Facebook that said, “POLICE LIVES MATTER.” Do not ALL LIVES MATTER? The planet Earth is a living nightmare of hate, greed and violence, where it seems “NO LIVES MATTER.” What is to be done?
June 19, 2010, in a letter to the Daytona Beach News Journal I wrote, “I believe the death penalty is a crime against humanity and should be abolished. The death penalty is an arbiter of revenge, not justice, and is an insane reaction to an insane act…”
One response was, “…First, the law does not allow the death penalty when the person committing the act is deemed insane…” One definition of insanity is “a deranged state of mind…” Can anyone be classified sane who deliberately kills another human being?
Another response was “…his bleeding heart on the death penalty is in the minority…” I agree! Rarely has the majority ever initially challenged a perceived evil (i.e. war, slavery, genocide, segregation, economic inequality, etc.). History bears witness that it is always the small minority of people that actively raise up to right a wrong.
I wrote a poem that poses another question titled –
WASH YOUR HANDS
The State killed a man yesterday.
When the city lights dimmed
People cheered because
They believed
This man was evil
And thus, deserved to die.
Does the State claim a power
Greater than the Creator
To whom it pays homage in
Rendering the final judgment?
Or has the State discarded the pretense
Of ascribing to a Higher Power?
Come then, if this be fact,
While there is still time – wash your hands
As Pilate did when the State
Killed that criminal they called Jesus.
At this point in time the government of the United States has descended from forced relocation and torture to a new form of the death penalty – killing human beings in violation of all known national and international laws by employing unmanned drones. Has the survival of the human race become “kill or be killed?”
Remember the breaking news to announce the killing of Osama Bin Laden? Did he not deserve his day before the bar of justice? Remember the war crimes trials after World War II? If his dead body could be dumped into the sea, could not his live body be brought to stand trial? Do you feel more safe today?
I urge you to read the lecture by Dr. Martin Luther King “Beyond Vietnam.” Now, please consider this: If you have no finances, no family, and no friends you become hungry and homeless. Who then, is supplying the financial support for those in poverty using weapons of war?
If we as a people begin to cherish the sanctity of “ALL LIVES” would it not be a beginning? But as previously stated, only a small minority has ever come forth to fight injustice. To which group do you belong – the majority or the minority? If you choose the latter, you had better get busy! We may be running out of time!
Nitti Gritti I posed the question “Where is the Devil?” The Old Testament, Genesis, Chapter 3 tells us that the first sin committed by humans was disobedience. The Symbol of evil was the serpent.
In the New Testament Satan tempts Jesus (Matthew Chapter 4:10). Could the symbol of the serpent and Satan be symbolic of self and spirit? In current and past times what has fueled the desire to hate, kill, and celebrate greed and power as a virtue? Are we composed of positive and negative poles, or is it possible to be all negative or all positive? Without these opposites could there be life? Can there be movement without friction?
If man is a spiritual being, upon what basis of reason could consent, support or silence be acceptable to any act that would deliberately harm another human being? If thought precedes the act, is the devil the negative pole? Was James Allen correct in his book, “As A Man Thinketh,” when he wrote:
“Man is the Master Power that moulds and makes
And man is Mind, and evermore he takes
The Tool of Thought, and shaping what he wills
Brings forth a thousand joys, a thousand ills –
He thinks in secret, and it comes to pass,
Environment is but his looking glass.”
There are those who claim to be “Believers”, who by their deeds give ample evidence that in reality they are “non-believers”, and there are “Non-believers” who by their acts are really “Believers.” Both good and evil are the sum total of actions taken. Can good be found in pre-emptive war, torture, murder by drones or any form of wanton destruction of human life or the planet Earth?
“The mind is its own place, and in itself can make a Heaven of Hell and a Hell of Heaven.” Paradise Lost, Part I, John Milton (1608-1674)
To this end I dedicate this poem:
VOICES IN THE TEMPLE
They speak to each of us – the Voices –
Oft uninvited, to join in battle
For the Dominance of thought and deed
In the dark chambers of the mind.
I know not why only those deemed insane
Actually hear the voices;
Whilst those few believed to be sane sit mute
Midst the silence of thought and selection,
Contemplating the choice between
The darkness and the light.
They speak to each of us – the Voices –
And none know from whence they come
Or why they exist is a contradiction
And opposition to each other.
But then, could there be light
In the absence of darkness or
Could joy be present without the shadow of sadness?
And is not that harbinger of good thought and deed
But the triumph of reason over that other
Spectre of doom and death?
They speak to each other – the Voices –
Midst wave after wave of cascading thoughts,
Controlled solely by the depth of our understanding,
While that omniscient Farmer called Time
Nourishes the seeds of our choice,
And the harvest yields both
Rewards or punishments conferred
Without regard to rank and privilege
For each acquiescence to thought
And the subsequent flower of deed.
They speak to each of us – the Voices –
As they spoke to Plato, who viewed the voices
As a flawed belief in the cave of life,
Wherein the inhabitants gyrated
Before a mirage of perceived reality,
Which were but shadows dancing
On a wall forged by the lack of understanding.
And, as the images moved in random circles,
Only the chosen few turned from the
Darkness of ignorance to the light of knowledge.
They speak to each of us – the Voices –
As they spoke to Ghandi and
He freed a nation and its people
From the vice of oppression
Knowing that the price of redemption
Was a bullet in his bony breast.
And the nation mourned and waited
In the agony of the blasphemy of murder,
While the assassin counted His thirty pieces of silver.
They speak to each of us – the Voices –
As they spoke to King, and he
Led a people to an altar of love and preached a
Sermon on the brotherhood of man,
While others plotted to destroy this,
Man, whose only crime was
Listening to the voices that spoke to him
In the valleys and on the mountain top –
Until they were silenced by an assassin’s bullet
For thirty pieces of silver.
They speak to each of us – the Voices –
As they spoke to Him on the
Precipice and bid Him to choose
Between the world and the Word.
They spoke to Him in the garden
As He trembled in fearful
Anticipation of the cross of wood.
And they spoke to the despised one
Who betrayed Him with a kiss
For thirty pieces of silver.
They speak to each of us – the Voices –
And each of us, in the never ending struggle
To conquer self, must reach deep within
The turbulent stream of consciousness
And find the rock of understanding before we
Can join the battle to conquer that
Negation of reason and righteousness always present
In the realm of mind where both Heaven and Hell reside.
Have you ever thought about Hell? Have you ever wondered what the devil looks like? Have you ever wondered why a loving God would condemn anyone to a life of suffering? A class of 7th graders when asked, “What color is evil?”, responded, “Black!” Someone told me the devil was red. As a child I was warned to fear the “boogey-man”. My introduction to religion replaced the “boogey-man” with the devil. One of the dictionary’s definition of the devil is “the ruler of Hell.”
Time magazine April 14, 2011 featured an article by Jon Meacham, titled, “Pastor Rob Bell; What if Hell Doesn’t Exist?”, and discussed Pastor Rob Bell’s best seller, “Love Wins: A Book About Heaven, Hell and the Fate of Every Person Who Ever Lived.” The book created a controversial firestorm among Evangelical leaders.
Perhaps the politicians know more about Hell than the preachers. Vice President Joseph Biden and Senator John McCain both referred to following someone “…to the gates of Hell…!” How many of us knew Hell had gates? Other dictionary definitions of Hell are “…the nether realm of the devil and demons in which the damned suffer everlasting punishment” and “…a place or state of misery, torment, or wickedness.” Could these definitions, given our current and past history, be a description of the planet Earth? The bible states, “…and fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul, but rather fear him which is able to destroy both soul and body in Hell. Matthew 10:28
Both before and after Jesus humankind has killed every messenger extolling love, non-violent reconciliation and universal brotherhood. Any overture of peace has been shattered by blindly following those who teach us to hate and kill the designated enemy rather than expose and condemn those whose funds make the existing evil a reality.
Today we are a nation of people blown like the desert tumbleweed by the winds of fear. Cameras, alarms and fences protect our homes and autos. We have identity protection to protect our personal information, guns to protect our personal safety, and senseless invasive searches when we travel. The media is a clarion of violence and commercials which sell sex, cars, law firm services, and bundled news. There is seldom anyone home to rear the children because both parents, or all too often the single parent, must work two jobs or longer hours to survive. The only escape is the television where one can watch soap opera, quiz shows, old films, or for a price new films. Others seek release watching events at the coliseums we now call stadiums where we watch the gladiators in an attempt to obliterate the raw reality of our existence.
We have become a nation of guns, bombs and drones which kill daily, or in the case of the drones, spy upon an unsuspecting populace. Our coins say “In God We Trust” while we worship at the altar of hate, revenge and greed. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. spoke the truth when he gave the “Beyond Vietnam” lecture in New York. Is not war a form of universal insanity? Violence begets more violence.
What is Hell but a negation of peace and love. This planet could be a proving ground for the saint and the sinner. If earth is representative of Hell, then where is the devil? Let us talk about that in Nitty Gritty II.
PEACE-
During the trial in the movie “A Few Good Men”, Jack Nicholson, in the role of a Marine Officer, shouted, “You can’t handle the truth!” Is the truth that difficult to handle? One of the dictionary’s definitions of truth is “…of being in accordance with the fact and reality…”. The bible states “…and ye shall know the truth and the truth shall set you free…” (John 8:32) Why should we seek the truth if we can’t handle the truth? Let us examine the lives of a few “truth seekers” and determine how they “handled the truth.”
Socrates was charged with “corrupting the minds of the youth” and executed in 399 BC. He was sentenced to death at the age of 70 by a jury of 500 male Athenians over the age of 30 chosen by lot. Under Athenian law execution was carried out by having those found guilty drink a cup of hemlock; a poisonous plant used for executions. Some say Socrates was the first known martyr for “free speech” and SEEKER OF THE TRUTH.
Giordano Bruno (1548-Feb 17, 1600) was a Dominican Friar, philosopher, mathematician, astrologer and astronomer. Bruno declared the sun was a star at the center of the solar system and that the sun did not move. He was charged with heresy and his imprisonment and trial lasted seven years (1593-1600). Bruno was found guilty and burned at the stake.
The New Testament is based on the life and teachings of Jesus. In the gospel love and forgiveness is preached and when asked what was the greatest commandment in the law, Jesus said, “Thou shall love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.” This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like unto it; Thou shall love thy neighbor as thyself. On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets. Matthew 23:36-40
Was Jesus an advocate of non-violence when He said, “Put up again thy sword into his place; for all that take the sword shall perish with the sword…” Matthew 26:52 Jesus was tortured and crucified, but before he died Jesus said, “Father forgive them, for they know not what they do.” Luke 23:34
Mohandas Gandhi took up the mantle of non-violence and removed the yoke of British colonization. Gandhi was a “truth seeker” and was murdered, but the principles of non-violence have lived on.
In our time Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., a Baptist minister and believer in non-violence, gave a lecture at the Riverside Church in New York titled “Why I oppose the Vietnam War.” Dr. King, vilified by friend and foe, was murdered exactly one year from the date of that speech. History is a witness that many “truth seekers” are violently attacked and often killed.
The Realm of Make Believe is a mindset wherein they that reside there accept as truth many beliefs that defy all factual reason such as:
THE UNITED STATES WAS FOUNDED ON CHRISTIAN PRINCIPLES.
In reality the nation was founded by war, and was nurtured by indentured servants, slavery, and the genocide of the Native Americans. The division between the haves and have-nots already in existence was cast by word and deed. Two hundred years of slavery, forced segregation, and Women’s suffrage, all to be reversed by courageous men, women, and children who were imprisoned, beaten, and often killed as they non-violently marched to render some semblance of truth to the Constitution and Bill of Rights.
There are those who call themselves Christians, yet support both pre-emptive war and the death penalty. In the Realm of Make Believe this does not appear to be hypocritical.
In the Realm of Make Believe under the guise of protecting the people from terrorism we are suffocated by constraints to our ability to travel and/or speak the truth without fear of punishment or name calling. To protect America from present and/or future acts of terrorism our government embraces its own form of terrorism by sending drones to kill anyone deemed an enemy, while also killing innocent men, women, and children.
In the Realm of Make Believe our Senators and Representatives, in many cases, devote much of their time raising monies to ensure their ability to remain in office and the remainder of the time serving the needs of their powerful supporters. The people be damned!
In the Realm of Make Believe under the banner of justice, we have killed and incarcerated more citizens than any other country on the planet.
In the Realm of Make Believe the government has saved the Banking and Investment systems, permitted corporations to transfer our manufacturing industries overseas to increase their profits utilizing cheap labor and substandard working conditions, while the people are evicted from their homes and hurled into bankruptcy and poverty.
In the Realm of Make Believe we spend the National treasure by making and devising new weapons for defense, while many men, women, and children are hungry and homeless and the nation’s infrastructure.
In the Realm of Make Believe we sing God Bless America and extol Democracy and Peace, while our government supports regimes that are evil and corrupt. We meddle in the affairs of other nations — often with evil intent and proclaim we are promoting democracy.
In the Realm of Make Believe we refer to citizens as white and black, yet in reality there are no white or black people in the United States.
Do we dwell in the Realm of Make Believe because we can’t handle the truth or is the price “truth seekers” may have to pay too high?
In the name of God that some say they believe in – in the name of the Good that others believe in – it is time for those with the courage and strength to “handle the truth.” Now is the time to leave the Realm of Make Believe and become “seekers of the truth” for therein lies the salvation of our civilization and the planet earth.
So let us begin…
Permit me to tell you about three visits to the mountain top which stand out in my mind among the many similar visits that have also been made.
The first visit was made into a move based on The Old Testament, Book of Exodus. The movie, called the Ten Commandments, was directed by Cecil B. DeMille in 1956. The main characters were Moses (Charlton Heston), The Pharaoh (Yul Brynner), and the Pharaoh’s wife and provocateur (Ann Baxter).
In the movie Moses freed the children of Israel from Egyptian bondage with the rod of God which afflicted the people of Egypt and forced the Pharaoh to order Moses and the children of Israel to “be gone” from Egypt. (Exodus, chap. 4, verse 7); (Exodus Chap. 9-13); (Exodus, chap. 12, verses 31, 32) When Moses and the children of Israel left the land of Egypt and began the long journey to the promised land, Moses held aloft the rod of God and opened and closed the red sea. (Exodus Chap. 14, verses 15-31)
Chapters 32-33 of the Book of Exodus tell of conversations Moses had with God on the mountain top. These chapters also portray the fickle nature of human beings. When the children of Israel grew weary of waiting for Moses to return from the mountain top, they made a God of gold and engaged in all manner of evil and wanton actions. (Exodus, chap. 32, verses 1-9)
The film ends with Moses old, and alone on the mountain top, and never lived to see the promised land. The movie was a great success and Charlton Heston will always be remembered for the role he played as Moses.
The next mountain top is found in the New Testament (Matthew, Chap. 4, verse 8), wherein Jesus is tempted by the devil. The symbolism I see here is that all of us, as human beings with the power of choice, are given the opportunity to choose a life in the pursuit of profit and power with the belief that the end justifies the means, or a life wherein the goal is the pursuit of justice and peace for all mankind. The pages of history vividly portray the price paid by those who chose the latter (Matthew, Chap. 23, verse 37-39).
Finally, let us move on to our time when young Baptist preacher named Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. led a movement under the mantle of non-violence and love that shattered the corrosive barriers of segregation and discrimination in these United States of America. One year after Dr. King’s lecture as to the reasons he opposed the Vietnam War, he went to the mountain top and stated, “I have seen the promised land…”. The next day he was murdered and his dream of uniting the poor and all caring people for a march to the nation’s capitol to demand national recognition and justice for the poor died with him.
In these times of violence, hate, and fear which permeate the fragile fabric of our existence and where the name of God is used during the oath of office, the pledge of allegiance, in our patriotic songs, and our currency, one may well wonder if they who have been chosen to govern us have not consigned the belief in the “good and justice” to the realm of the tooth fairy.
Therefore, when one reaches his or her mountain top, serious thought should be given before making the choice between greed or good for the light of love and goodness is not always extinguished by the darkness of death. Since all living creatures and things will someday die, the words cited in the New Testament, (Timothy, Chap. 6, verse 10-11) have meaning and truth for both believer and non-believer–
10. “For the love of money is
the root of all evil, which
some covet after, they have
erred from their faith, and
pierced themselves through
with many sorrows.
Fight the fight of faith…”
In January 2009 while the the new President was being sworn into office, a group of men met secretly to devise plans to insure that this Presidency would fail. The Minority Leader of the Senate publicly stated his main goal was to make President Barak Obama a one term President.
After the Congressional election of 2010 a newly elected Republican representative called the President a “Liar” during the President’s State of the Union address. The Republican Majority Leader of the House shouted, “Hell no, You can’t!” while the Republican members and a few Democrats voted NO, and the Senate used the filibuster to defeat, derail or block any Administration proposal. These decisions and actions were made deliberately in violation of the oath they took before assuming office and, to some degree, an undermining of the Nation’s ability to function effectively. (In a military setting they might have been tried for treason.) The newly elected President was vilified in the media by his enemies, who by innuendo and lies, questioned his citizenship, religion and loyalty. In this corrosive atmosphere of hate and rejection the President has survived.
I neither applaud nor condemn the President; nor do I believe, should he be re-elected to a second term, that he will bring peace, prosperity and justice to our sick society. History is a witness that all meaningful change emanates from the bottom to the top. It has always been the people who have moved this nation forward; that small minority of citizens who were persecuted, imprisoned and often killed as they stood up, sat down and marched to right a perceived wrong. These few among the many are the root of the tree of justice. They will be the wind which moves this nation forward. The President is the Captain of the Ship of State, but not even the Captain can control the wind.
Therefore, let it not be said by those generations who may follow us that we did not speak out, stand up and march within the true context of non-violence to correct a wrong and seek to define the right. President Barak Obama, you once stated “…It was your sacred duty to protect the people of the United States…”. Since I believe that all the people on this planet are One, I hope you extend this oath to mean the protection of all life on the planet. It is not our military might that will protect us in the long haul, but our desire and action to be cognizant of the poor, the hungry and homeless – the wretched and hopeless. Is not compassion and love the foundation of any lasting peace? Has it not been written, and here also history is a witness –
“…PUT UP AGAIN THY SWORD INTO HIS PLACE: FOR ALL THEY THAT TAKE THE SWORD, SHALL PERISH WITH THE SWORD…” MATTHEW 26:52
PEACE AND ABOVE ALL – UNDERSTANDING
Written to honor the victims of hate
Many years ago while attending a course in Philosophy the professor stated the final exam would consist of one sentence which was – “Prove or disprove the existence of God.”
With a determined pen I set forth to PROVE THE EXISTENCE OF GOD, but before the time was up I had a troubled sense that I was mentally running in circles. At this time I was the only student left in the room. The professor stood before my desk, took my blue books and said quietly, “You gave it a good try. I shall give you credit for your effort even though your answer is incorrect.”
“How do you know it is incorrect?”, I asked.
“Because,” he answered, “the correct answer consists of no more than two sentences. The existence of God can neither be proved or disproved. It is a matter of faith.”
Today, remnants of that course still permeate my thoughts. Here was a professor that a PHD in his field, who had written numerous books, and when asked what he believed he answered, “Nothing.” When asked what he detested, he thought for several moments then responded, “Insincerity.” At that time I inwardly thought he was one of those intellectuals with a great amount of knowledge and no common sense and/or judgement. I have always told my children and grandchildren that the beginning of wisdom was the realization of how ignorant you were. Could this nagging memory be a dim light on my own shaded understanding?
Therefore my brothers and sisters, I propose that you ponder this question – IS THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICAN ONE NATION UNDER GOD INDIVISIBLE WITH LIBERTY AND JUSTICE FOR ALL?
It is written “…ye shall know the truth and the truth shall make you free…” (John 8:32) We are told the first pilgrims arrived in the Americas seeking freedom, and thus began the systematic destruction of the freedom of the Native Americans.
Slavery was the catalyst that spawned the Civil War, not a battle to free the slaves, but a struggle of powerful forces for power and economic control.
The industrial revolution, sweat factories, birth of the unions, women’s suffrage, segregation, lynchings, the Great Depression and World War II careened through the corridors of time. Then came the moral revolution of the 1950’s and 1960’s. In all the movements seeking a change for the good of humanity, it has always been the few against the many. I shall never forget the visual images of the beatings, bombings, fire hoses and attack dogs that the innocent endured. Many were jailed and also killed but their non-violent beliefs secured their victory.
Today the people are being beaten, pepper sprayed and jailed as they protest the economic injustice that has created foreclosures, homelessness and poverty for millions of Americans who reside in the wealthiest country on the planet. A country that inserted God in the Pledge of Allegiance, on its money and under the guise of protecting our freedom has embraced pre-emptive war, torture and assassinations, while the politicians conclude their speeches with “God Bless America.”
We say we are a country founded on Christian principles, yet the bible we pretend to believe in states “…Love your enemies, do good…” (Luke 6:26, 27, 28) In response we maintain the death penalty, created overfilled prisons and held press conferences to announce the murder of men we deemed evil.
Now the drums of war have begun to beat again. “Iran,” they shout, “cannot be allowed a nuclear bomb”, while the surrounding countries are bristling with nuclear weapons. I would humbly suggest that we stop telling God what to do and do what God has told us to do, or stop being hypocrites and omit the name of God from political speeches and governmental icons.
There may never be time like NOW to dedicate our lives to the GOOD that includes ALL people. Stop calling for an end to the suffering of the middle class. What of the poor? Surely if we concentrate in lifting the bottom, the middle and upper parts rise automatically.
I believe the time has come when it is imperative for all of us to march for peace, to march for justice, and to march to preserve our very existence. Like those who have marched before us it is now our time to MOVE! Faith can move mountains, and to all of you now enjoined in the struggle I dedicate this poem.
A TRIBUTE
Before this little light
Surrenders to the darkness
I celebrate those lights
Which came before and
Those destined to follow me,
Who midst the storms
And vicissitudes of the
Battles between good and evil,
Have volunteered to traverse
The thorny trail of non-violence.
Clinging to principles that
Yet defy all rational reason they
Have endured the pain inflicted
By those entities held fast by the
Magnet of fear and self-interest,
And bared their defenseless bodies to
The blade, bullet and bomb
With an unwavering faith
That redemptive salvation
Exists both here and
Beyond the grave.
On September 11, 2001, when the planes crashed into the World Trade Towers in surreal flashes of fire, the smoke and falling debris made it seem like a scene from some science fiction movie. Now, ten years later, that tragic and senseless act of death and destruction still sears the soul of this nation.
The history of mankind is replete with the murder of innocents. Many Americans take pride in the belief that we are a nation founded and buttressed by Christian principles. Yet, after the horror of September 11, 2001, our response then, and at any prior event in our history, has the use of military force. Like some old western movie, when confronted by a real or imagined threat to our “national security” or “political interests” our leaders have called forth the cavalry. Currently we have openly embraced the use of torture and assassination of alleged terrorists and their families, which we term collateral damage. Under the aegis of protecting us from terrorism many of our personal rights have been abrogated. Since that dreadful day the government and media have injected more fear into our daily existence than the “killers” could ever have deemed possible.
Will mankind ever learn that violence only begets more violence? Is it not written in the Holy Book we extol that “they who live by the sword shall perish by the sword…” Thus I am deeply troubled when the President of this great nation celebrates the killing of another human being, and many Americans join in the celebration chanting “USA, USA.” Yet these same voices are silent when the voices from the countries we have invaded, to extricate the source of the terrorism, protest that we are also killing their innocent men, women, and children.
History and a sense of morality should teach us that it is not in anyone’s best interest to rejoice at any human being’s pain and suffering. By responding to this insidious evil of hate we inherit the insanity of those who seek to destroy other innocents with the flawed belief that such evil is justified.
A belief in Empire fed by greed and a lust for power has led us to establish bases wherever possible. The result has been a hemorrhage of the national treasure and has added fuel to the fires of poverty now devouring the families of this nation. For ten years we have sacrificed our young men and women on the altar of war in a useless attempt to eradicate those who would harm us by using the sword – an act the God we pretend to worship has warned us not to do.
Is it not time to end this madness and bring our young men and women home? Is it not time to destroy the contaminated garden of poverty and ignorance wherein the seeds of evil are sown? If these seeds are left to fester their harvest will rot and destroy the pillars of civilization needed to maintain life on this planet.
It is with a plea for reason and reconciliation that I dedicate this poem, which I wrote in the aftermath of September 11, 2001, to the citizens of this planet who thirst for a more humane world for themselves and the generation of those who may follow us.
NINE ONE ONE
Come quickly, come quickly—
There is great destruction – fire and pain,
Innocent people dying, others fleeing in terror,
Tall towers, a city’s symbol of pride,
Now twisted steel and rubble smoldering
In sullen acceptance of a fate
That decreed their destruction.
“OUR FATHER, WHICH ART IN HEAVEN…”
Killers stealthily planned their crime,
Committing horror and shame
In Thy name – they have blasphemed.
Camouflaging their insidious intent
Beneath a cloak of self-righteous deceit.
The fruit of their harvest
Shall be reaped as it was sown.
“HALLOWED BE THY NAME…”
There is a rage in the land,
A pregnant theme thirsting for justice,
Revenge crying aloud for redemption.
Unwise men sow cancerous seeds of war
Blinded by debris of hate and avarice;
By a self induced sense of importance and power.
“…THY KINGDOM COME, THY WILL BE DONE…”
Come forth you teachers of the Word,
You are needed to sound the alarm.
Little time remains to save this great planet
From the fire simmering in the cauldrons of hate.
Arise you lovers of justice,
Awaken the sleeping giant of conscience;
Hand him the drum major’s mace.
“…ON EARTH, AS IT IS IN HEAVEN…”
There is hunger in the land
For the bread of justice and peace.
Who will feed the hungry and clothe the naked
If a man does not sow a garden of brotherhood?
Who will set his hand upon the plow
Knowing the field he seeks to cultivate
Is contaminated with weeds of greed?
“ GIVE US THIS DAY OUR DAILY BREAD…”
The tablet of time is stained with blood
Of those who first welcomed strangers from the sea,
Those who came chained to the ship‘s wood,
Those tortured and killed by mad men
Who meddled in affairs with ruinous intent
Under the symbol of top secret,
Justified by the aegis of privilege.
“…FORGIVE US OUR TRESPASSES…”
In this hour of need and confusion,
Tormented by this new burden it must bear,
This nation must seek understanding,
Beyond that yet borne of forgiveness,
To embrace the freedom of forgiveness,
Lest hatred consume its people and render a judgment
More terrible than any horror inflicted upon mankind.
“…AS WE FORGIVE THOSE WHO TRESPASS AGAINST US…”
Standing midst ashes blown by wind and rain,
We call upon our Creator
To answer the prayer of a Nation striving
To renew its shattered soul,
Struggling to believe there yet remains
Reason and purpose for the darkness
Which permeates our present and our future.
“…AND LEAD US NOT INTO TEMPTATION, BUT DELIVER US FROM EVIL, AMEN.”
BEAT, BEAT THE BIG BRASS DRUM!
BLOW, BLOW THE BIG BRASS BUGLE!
SHAKE, SHAKE THE TINSEL TAMBOURINE
SING, SHOUT, AND STAMP YOUR FEET!
HALLELUJAH! WE ARE ON OUR WAY!
Yes, we have come along way – these United States of America. As a young nation we have made great strides along the Avenue of Understanding.
Looking back at our troubled past, we had an early legacy of genocide against the indigenous natives of the America, slavery, indentured servitude, women’s suffrage, child labor, repeated violent clashes against the greed of the priviledged few, segregation, sharecroppers peonage, homelessness, hunger, and wars forged on the anvil of profit and empire. Yet, we rose to elect a Christian of African heritage to the highest office of the land – President of the United States of America! Many Americans, and those not American, rejoiced while while others were angry and fearful. There were also those in high places who vowed to oppose the new President’s every effort to bring about the promised change of his campaign.
Today, in the year 2011, almost three years have passed and many who rejoiced in the year 2009 are troubled because this President, in their opinion, has done little to ease the suffering of the poor, the unemployed, the millions facing foreclosures and eviction, and the rising spectre of hunger now prevalent among the nation’s families and their children. Many of the nation’s young men and women fortunate enough to return from combat alive are returning mentally and physically injured. Financing wars and other covert actions which have no visible meaning or purpose, has caused our economy to stagnate in an unrelenting recession. Also, there are others who are beginning to question overt and covert assassinations as well as the sending of troops to distant lands to kill and destroy in the name of democracy and freedom, while punishing entire populations (i.e. Cuba, Haiti, the Hamas West Bank, etc.) for embracing leadership we unilaterally reject; yet we have also supported oppressive regimes whose people are now marching in search of freedom. Have not our giant corporations plundered foreign nations of their mutual treasure and impoverished their people?
Why do we rejoice, one might ask, if the above has validity? I say this – It is up to you, the individual, to bring about the “CHANGE” we so desperately need. Study and examine our history; not the history taught in schools or promulgated by a controlled media; rather go to the libraries, the internet and your neighbors! Seek knowledge from those now living to truthfully testify as to the reality of their time.
We have come a long way and have yet a long way to travel, but HALLELUJAH! WE SHALL REACH THE PROMISED LAND! Has it not been written, “…And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free…JOHN, 8:32.
Come my brothers and sisters! Be seekers and speakers of the truth, for therein lies the salvation of our civilization and this planet! PEACE!
BEFORE THE WINDOW CLOSES 