![]() ![]() ![]() That the wolf might lie down with the lamb, That our swords be beaten into ploughsharesĪnd no hurt or harm be done Anywhere along the holy mountain. That those who enjoy the privilege of peace Might not forget their tormented brothers and sisters. That we might see through our fear of each other A new vision to heal our fatal attraction to aggression. That those who make riches from violence and war Might hear in their dreams the cries of the lost. We pray for all who suffered violence today, May an unexpected serenity surprise them.įor those who risk their lives each day for peace, May their hearts glimpse providence at the heart of history. I often find that poetry and prayer can take me to this place, so here I would like to offer a poem by John O'Donohue.Īs the fever of day calms towards twilight May all that is strained in us come to ease. In the times we are facing now, it is important to find the love that is in our deeper hearts - not just emotional love, but a spiritual love which can unite us all. There are many different kinds of love, from the kind of hearts and flowers of Valentine’s Day to the love encapsulated in the phrase ‘Love your enemies, do good to those who harm you’. Often at times like these music, nature, poetry, and the beauty in each other’s hearts can bring us the strength to continue in the face of devastation, trauma and despair. Beauty can be something which brings about at least some degree of peace, and eventually contributes to the healing of the deep trauma we carry. However, if we are to be able to function as people who desire peace and flourishing for all peoples, we do need to strengthen ourselves. We can even feel guilty about seeking such a salve. In times of devastation and heartbreak, it can be hard to find healing for our sore hearts and exhausted bodies. Reading and listening to many different perspectives can help us to gain understanding and then discern what our actions should be. We need to be very careful and discerning, and have wisdom in what we take to be the truth, and where we seek the truth. We need to listen to each other’s understanding of the truth, research where we can and recognise that in war and conflict, we very rarely know the full truth. In war, truth is often an early casualty and hard to come by.Īs people of peace, we need to avoid falling into this trap of competing truths. Now there is often an assumption that we can arrive at the truth by competing, often aggressively, for our understanding or version of the truth to be taken as “the truth.” However, this kind of adversarial argument does not always lead to the truth but to the silencing of the person who loses the argument. I also witnessed this as a social worker when I frequently had to attend local and high courts. Some years ago, I had a conversation with a BBC programme producer, who told me that in his experience "truth is the first casualty of the court and judicial system". ![]() My recourse was to beauty, truth and love. Very conscious that people on the vigil would be feeling devastated by events in Israel and Palestine, I wanted to say something that might help us in these circumstances. What follows below is a version of what I said. A few weeks ago, I was privileged to be able to take part in a vigil for peace, organised by the Abrahamic Reunion. ![]()
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