This is what Jesus meant when he described in the Beatitudes who is blessed by God. He did not describe the strong, rich and powerful. He blessed the poor in spirit, the meek, the peacemakers. He instructed us to love our enemies and do good to those who harm us. But do not think for a minute that Jesus was calling on us to be weak. No one who openly defied the Romans and the Jewish power structure and silently took a horrendous flogging and allowed himself to be crucified to demonstrate the fear and cruelty of both can be described as weak. Jesus was teaching us the true nature of strength that would overcome the dark forces arrayed against the ordinary people of his time. Yes, people have abused his teachings, but those who have truly followed them and similar ones have been hugely successful in changing their worlds.
This is also what Gandhi and then King and their followers and colleagues knew. If good people actively and firmly, but peaceably and lovingly, resist domination, discrimination and violence, the light they shine on the evil they oppose will change enough hearts and minds that the evildoers will be forced to change their ways, and many (remember George Wallace?) will undergo dramatic transformations to the side of the good. When you think of it, this is also what ultimately brought the Viet Nam war to an end: when the light was shone on the war and good Americans saw and heard about the true horrors being committed in their names (and also against them in the name of Vietnamese) their hearts and minds changed from supporting the war to opposing it to taking continuous and courageous action to stop it. Even a cynical manipulator like Richard Nixon could not trick us into continuing.
But, you might say correctly that the forces of darkness have become more sophisticated and pervasive, now composed of coordinated extra-national coalitions of the extremely wealthy, huge corporations, certain supportive politicians, religious fundamentalists, and, most importantly, an almost wholly co-opted mass media. They are working hard and cleverly to hide their actions from the light, or to fabricate false beams to create the impression of light, or even to convince us that they are actually light workers acting only in our best interests.
But a sophisticated evil is not irresistible. A sophisticated and determined darkness cannot withstand a sophisticated and determined light. And so we must work for the light.
Well, I've gone on so long about hope and spirit that this would become a tome if I described action too. I will write more on action very soon. But let me give you a quick outline of what I think hopeful action must encompass. We may need non-violent civil resistance soon, but maybe working with the system to change it will get us there.
(1) Create and nurture peace and love in our own hearts and lives (AT THE SAME TIME AS WE ALSO)
(2) Take constructive action in our local communities to help the less fortunate or the environment or another meaningful cause.
(3) Talk to people about your hopes and desires and how you really feel about what is going on and why you feel it is so wrong and damaging.
(4) Get involved in political or social change movements or start one of your own. Go to www.ROP.org for a great example of a rural, statewide movement in Oregon that has been incredibly successful in knitting together far-flung, seemingly isolated groups into a highly effective social and political change movement.
(5) Write your elected representatives regularly on issues important to you, by hand if possible. They really do pay attention, especially the closer they get to you locally.
(6) In this upcoming election, we have an unusual opportunity to shape the candidates' positions. See a great article by Naomi Klein and Jeffrey Scahill on this point on Common Dreams at www.commondreams.org/archive/2008/03/26/7887/. We should absolutely overwhelm the Clinton and Obama campaigns, especially the local offices in the states with primaries to come, insisting that they take positions to end the occupation of Iraq; change our political/economic relationship to put ordinary people first and sustain and heal the environment first with profits for huge corporations and the wealthy second; make health care a protected right and provide at least a health care safety net at first, then move toward universal care as soon as possible.
(7) Volunteer for a political campaign that captures your heart and imagination.
Never forget that you are love and that love can never be destroyed.
Peace and blessings, Bruce.
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