Tuesday, April 16, 2013

The Tragedies of April 15,2013

We've seen the news reports. We've talked about it with co-workers and friends. Many people will say that what happened was a tragedy. I agree. It was tragic on many levels. Most obviously, the loss of life. Lives abbreviated by acts of hatred. The family and friends of the departed will experience tremendous grief and loss. Surviving victims will live with their physical and emotional wounds the remainder of their lives. Witnesses to the event may also experience emotional scarring, affecting them for years.
Yes, those are some of the initial obvious tragedies of April 15, 2013.

There are more, less obvious, but just as tragic consequences to this act of hatred. The attackers themselves are victims of their own actions. I don't condone their actions, neither do I sympathize with whatever their agenda is. I couldn't ever support anyone or group that uses hate and murder to promote their cause. The attackers held hatred and murder in their hearts. Eternally speaking,  I'm not, and no one on this Earth is, qualified to judge them for their actions. They will however be judged accordingly and receive the appropriate consequence.

The scope of their crime is orders of magnitude higher than what will be reported on the cable news. The attackers had hatred in their hearts and purposed to kill and maim. It was an ego based, self fulfilling act of terror. We can only speculate on their motivation. But more than the act itself, the attackers also planted the seeds of additional hatred. Their fellow travelers will be empowered by this act and may plan evil acts of their own. Some families and friends of the victims may feel a need for vengeance. If that were to happen those seeds of hate will have been planted in them. Hate produces more hate. It's a terrible cascading affect.

What's to be done about it? I can't reverse time and make this event not happen. I can't directly stop people I've never met from hating and killing. If I look outside of myself there's not much I can do. But if look inside myself there are things I can do. I can become a better me. I can follow the words of Jesus; " ...do unto others as you would have done unto you.." and  " ...forgive them Father for they don't know what they do..." If I can be the best "me" I can be, perhaps I can positively affect one or two lives. Those lives can affect other lives. Seeds of love and caring could be planted producing a positive, healing cascading affect. By doing these things I can stop the spread of hate...and it's master.

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