Musings of a Sunday morning: Herman Melville, in his novel “Moby Dick” has Captain Ahab thusly abuse white whale “… to the last I grapple with thee; from Hell’s heart I stab at thee; for hate’s sake, I spit my last breath at thee.” It would be a wonderful thing to claim that my existence, my very life, before I knew Christ was thusly phrased and that, after coming to know Jesus, the song of my life was one of joy and love of God and my fellow humans in all things. But, you see, that would be a lie. In fact, it is this very lie that often makes me cringe at our intolerably rose colored glasses; glasses that sometimes don’t appear to permit us to see the very challenge placed before us. In our world – ten thousand years ago just as today – we live lives filled with the need to be correct and shown to be correct. That is, to be righteous – judged in the good. And in some curiously horrific manner of thought common to us all, we believe that vengeance somehow does just that. Our very nature is to “get even” or even to “get the better” of someone. We are inherently greedy, and that is quite natural because survival demands selfishness much more than it demands cooperation. And how many conflicts exist on this planet today for the sake of vengeance, not survival – no – rather simply to get even, just like Captain Ahab? How often do we justify horrible actions through our need to be correct and our closed minds? And make no mistake: vengeance is simply the fulfillment of our desire to be proven right – to be vindicated. And the scales are never even. No, those seeking vengeance seek more than what was lost but, rather, punishment for what was lost as well a greater deprivation exacted upon the wrong doer than that same wrong doer has visited upon those who seek revenge. Vengeance is exacted, the see-saw swings, and the cycle begins anew. Hope is placed upon vengeance that extreme punishment will prevent what is deemed recidivist behavior, but, in truth, we just like punishing people and watching them suffer for the alleged wrongs that they’ve done to us – because of course we are right and they are wrong. In fact, this very philosophy of “hope in hate” fuels the fire just as did the Treaty of Versailles help to fuel World War II. How many of us rapidly judge who is right or wrong based on scant evidence in the news or on web sites? I most certainly do, and I regret that. We are quick to anger and be drawn into outrage but slow to forgive and glacial in progress towards peace. The see-saw of tit for tat not only totters but is driven by the winds like the Takoma Narrows bridge with ever increasing amplitude until devastation is inevitable. Yet, the bridge is rebuilt over and over with no design change and is again driven by the wind into a seemingly natural cycle of destruction. But this bridge is not wind driven. No, it is driven by mankind’s evil. And how myopic we truly are. We ignore the deaths of thousands yet spend tears and angst in worry about the killing of a few, or of one. One violent death is surely too many, but how many murders are there in these United States and why don’t we become outraged at each and every one? The deaths of thousands are of course in a region lacking oil or some other “vital” concern and therefore don’t even draw our slightest attention – and we don’t have friends there, most of us. Or, perhaps, we have friends involved in the conflict and a single injury draws massive outrage. And we want vengeance – not balance, not equity. No, we want the whole world to be blind and toothless – and at a rate of say ten for one. But, you see, we are guided by that need to be right or wrong again – we are outraged at carnage brought about by whom we deem to be in the wrong. It is not the tragic deaths that outrage us. No, it is something happening that we deem to be wrong and that we want to punish. What is good and equitable does not merit consideration; right and wrong are the subjective scales. We demand that “civilians” be spared in war when the death of civilians is the only thing that makes war unbearable and ultimately stops war. Why did Sadat go to Israel? Surely history tells us that, but all of the sudden we are become so wise as to, well, be fools. We thereby create situation after situation where continual strife is tolerated, much like Star Trek predicted ! Few are convinced to sue for enduring peace and hostility continues with terrorist acts and heavy handed conduct for generations. No one and no thing changes – except the efficiency whereby carnage can be brought and the relative luxury in which those not killed can live and thereby tolerate the continued warfare. And the civilians – are there civilians? Do they support the governments and the unofficial belligerent parties? They most surely do, for the most part – and so do we in our endless need to pick the winner. For the most part, they suffer tragic oppression that is quite frequently self-imposed through selection of rulers and platforms upon which rule is based. And again, the conflict is perpetuated. The hate continues. Eventually, the root cause of the conflict is forgotten and all that remains is hate and the recent history of pain caused by the recent conflicts (that never end). Enemies grapple with each other to the last, stabbing at each other from Hell’s heart for no good but only for destruction and revenge, spitting their last breaths in a hateful almost demonic declaration of enduring hostility. Yes, old Melville got that right – and that’s why the phrase is famous. It encapsulates human behavior throughout history in such eloquent brevity. How many such struggles still continue today? I don’t know and, I posit, neither do you. There are so many and the roots are so deep – tribal conflicts, conflicts over land conquests, conflicts over religion or holy sites. Valid complaints of past of horrible wrongs done such as slavery, the trail of tears, and the list goes on and no culture is exempt from the burden of guilt. And most cultures want to forget but not to heal. Those devastated by prior conflicts and wrongs remain devastated and impacted for generation after generation, fomenting response after response. You see, we blame these past wrongs, quite often, on religion or some other cause, but that’s not really the problem. Our selfishness perpetually drives hate and destruction. And we mustn’t forget the financial benefits of conquest and growth – and the cost! Those two are at the root – the desire for what others have and the desire to be right. A mixture sure to produce an evil poison. Hopeless, utterly hopeless. That’s the situation today, and it was the situation when Jesus walked the roads through Judea. But there is yet hope. The path is so hard that it is tantamount to picking up a cross and carrying to the hill for your own shameful execution. Yes, it is like standing still and inviting the multitude to do their worst to vent their hate and anger upon your very body, even unto your death. And as they do so, you must forgive them for what they do. It is like enduring the violence of Israel’s complaints against the Palestinians and that of the Palestinians against the Israelis as well. Or being the democrat for the republicans and the republican for the democrats. But it is never a task of changing the belligerents. No, just the task of being both target and backstop and absorbing and nullifying the hate by allowing your blood to be spilled. You must be so filled with love for your fellow humans that you sacrifice yourself for them and deem even the least of them worthy of your sacrifice. This, my friends, is what the Kingdom of God is like. Filled with people who have done their worst yet have come to the beginning of a love for God and have seen the glimmer of light in the way of Love – Love for God, Love for each other, and the Love that sacrifices even life itself thereby gaining life through the Holy Spirit. And no, it is not what we do that brings about the Kingdom, far from it. Our task is to try and live in a manner befitting citizens of that Kingdom. And only with God’s help can we even hope to begin, for we all fail completely each and every day. To what White Whales do you say “… to the last I grapple with thee; from Hell’s heart I stab at thee; for hate’s sake, I spit my last breath at thee.”? Will you consider putting aside the past wrongs, such as Ahab’s lost leg and many scars, to free yourself from the bondage of hate and live a life empowered by love and forgiveness? It is risky business, and it takes help from the Almighty. Come on, I dare you – even double dare you. I try and fail but I still try. But that’s okay. After all, I know the ending. Yes, the good guys win and the Kingdom comes. Just like the Lord of the Rings’ Return of the King. Fancy that.
Posted on: Sun, 20 Jul 2014 13:02:46 +0000
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