Peace and War

Over the weekend I attended a friends birthday party where I met a Kuwaiti who had been in Kuwait when Saddam Hussein invaded back in the first Iraq war. I shared about the advocacy and witness we are doing to try and bring an end to the current Iraq war and we talked about war in general.

Reflecting on living through a war, he was adamant that war was a horrible way to solve problems. He saw nothing of value in that method of confrontation. He spoke of the hard work of regaining a childhood shattered by war, of how hard it was to move on from that tragic reality.

On Thursday, I watched the film God Grew Tired of Us, a documentary about the lost boys of Sudan. It tells the story of a generation of Sudanese children who were chased from their homes, separated from their families, and in many cases died as they tried to reach refugee camps in Ethiopia and then Kenya. It was another chilling account of lives disturbed by war; of the tragic consequences of dealing with differences in a violent and destructive way.

Since beginning at the Washington Office my thoughts on war have become more clear. It is stupid. In line with the writings of Margaret Meade, I believe that war is a horrible invention that needs to be replaced with better methods for solving conflicts, showing courage, protecting what we hold dear, and for spending our tax dollars.

I have had the blessing of working with many UUs who are actively engaging in the process of becoming peacemakers. These folks are looking at the roots of violence in the world and within themselves and working to bring about a shift in consciousness. As radical, and some would say futile, as such work may seem, I believe this is very important work. Committing yourself to living non-violently, to living consciously, to engaging with the world in a constructive way is a noble endeavor; I only wish more would choose that path.

Personally, I will continue to do my piece by advocating on the Hill for a change in policy, and I will continue to explore what it means to live peacefully with love and courage leading the way.