Remembrance and Renewal

Just this past weekend we commemorated Memorial Day, here in the United States. Memorial Day is traditionally the day that we remember those who have died either in military service or in other service of our nation. Remembering and honoring those who have given their lives serving our country is important, however soldiers are not the only people whom we should remember on such a day. This year I approached the holiday with a different perspective. I thought more about those whom have made great personal sacrifices pursuing peacemaking through nonviolence.

I realized that there are many, many people throughout human history who have given of themselves and made great personal sacrifices to help others through the ways of non-violence. A pastor friend of mine articulated this point very eloquently in a meditation at an evening service that I attended with my wife.

Many of the great leaders of social change movements in human history have made great personal sacrifices to advance the causes of nonviolence and social justice. Civil rights leaders Martin Luther King jr., Mahatma Gandhi, and social justice advocate Bishop Oscar Romero come to mind. All three of these men ultimately gave their lives seeking to be faithful to their calling to speak up for justice for the oppressed.

King envisioned an America freed from the oppressive influence of racism, discrimination and hatred. Beginning in the heart of the deep south of Alabama with all of its racial hatred and discrimination in the Jim Crow era, King eloquently articulated a vision of non-violent resistance and organized protest of racial injustice.

The Montgomery Bus Boycott, as well as the lunch counter sit-ins, peace marches- first on the Alabama Statehouse, then ultimately the 1963 March on Washington where he delivered one of the most powerfully moving speeches on social justice and nonviolence ever given- "I Have a Dream." The world was forever changed.

Mahatma Gandhi started from humble beginnings in a middle class family from a small town in India in the 19th century, where he lived with his family under the oppressive colonial rule of the Brittish. He saw firsthand the injustices discrimination, and even violence that was committed against the people of India. His parents made great sacrifices to make it possible for him to travel to England to study and get a first-rate education.

Gandhi went on to earn a degree in law. One of his first cases took him to South Africa. While there, he was deeply disturbed by the way in which people of color were treated. He stayed and fought for the rights of people of color there.

Then, after studying the Bhagavad Gita and Christian scripture, he gave up a promising law career to help liberate his people from colonial oppression and racial discrimination. He lived out his beliefs. One of my favorite quotes from Gandhi is:

"Be the change you want to see in the world."

This speaks powerfully to me even today. As Jim Wallis articulates the spirit of this statement so well in his book "God's Politics," where he writes: "Peacemaking is less a position than a path- the path Jesus has clearly instructed us to take."

Oscar Romero was a powerful voice for non-violence and social justice for the oppressed. During his several years as archbishop of San Salvador, in volatile Central America, he confronted injustice, and courageously spoke up against and faced the violent rebels who were viciously killing anyone who opposed their regime. He ultimately paid the price for his peacemaking by being struck by an assassin's bullet.

Romero, in many ways, exemplefied what peacemaking is all about- taking bold stands for justice for the oppressed, and being willing to make great personal sacrifices for these beliefs, even to the point of being ready to die for what one believes in.

The whole concept of remembrance calls us back to the metaphor of being part of a living body or organic movement. When we re-member, we call to mind that we are all members of this body working in concert with one another toward the goal of peace. May we each take bold stances for peace, social justice and non-violence- not just with our words, but with our whole selves- the way we live, the example we set, the goals we work toward.

May peace be more than just something we are "in favor of"- may it be a path we seek to walk and live.

Peace,

John