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Arun Gandhi on responding to the
terror |
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A
Message from Arun Gandhi,
Mohandas K. Gandhi's grandson
TERRORISM
AND NONVIOLENCE
By
Arun Gandhi
Understandably, after the tragedy in New York and Washington DC on
September 11, many have written or called the office to find out what
would be an appropriate nonviolent response to such an unbelievably
inhuman act of violence.
First, we must understand that nonviolence is not a strategy that we can
use in a moment of crisis and discarded in times of peace. Nonviolence
is about personal attitudes, about becoming the change we wish to see in
the world.
Because, a nation's collective attitude is based on the attitude of the
individual. Nonviolence is about building positive relationships with
all
human beings - relationships that are based on love, compassion,
respect, understanding and appreciation.
Nonviolence is also about not judging people as we perceive them to be -
that is, a murderer is not born a murderer; a terrorist is not born a
terrorist. People become murderers, robbers and terrorists because of
circumstances and experiences in life. Killing or confining murders,
robbers, terrorists, or the like is not going to rid this world of them.
For every one we kill or confine we create another hundred to take their
place. What we need to do is to analyze dispassionately what are those circumstances that create such monsters and how can we help eliminate
those circumstances, not the monsters. Justice should mean reformation and not revenge.
We saw some people in Iraq and Palestine and I dare say many other
countries rejoice at the blowing up of the World Trade Center and the
Pentagon. It horrified us, as it should. But, let us not forget that we
do the same thing. When Israel bombs the Palestinians we either rejoice or show no compassion. Our attitude is they deserve what they get. When
the Palestinians bomb the Israelis we are indignant and condemn them as vermin who need to be eliminated.
We reacted without compassion when we bombed the cities of Iraq. I was among the millions in the United States who sat glued to the television
and watched the drama as though it was a made for television film. The television had desensitized us. Thousands of innocent men, women and
children were being blown to bits and instead of feeling sorry for them we marveled at the efficiency of our military. For more than ten years
we have continued to wreak havoc in Iraq - an estimated 50,000 children die
every year because of sanctions that we have imposed - and it hasn't moved us to compassion.
All this was done, we are told, because we wanted to get rid of the
Satan called Sadam Hussein. Now we are getting ready to do this all over again
to get rid of another Satan called Osama Bin Laden. We will bomb the cities of Afghanistan because they harbor the Satan and in the process
we will help create a thousand other bin Ladens.
Some might say "we don't care what the world thinks of us as long
as they respect our strength. After all we have the means to blow this world to
pieces since we are the only surviving super-power." Do we want the
world to respect us the way school children respect a bully? Is that our role
in the world?
If a bully is what we want to be then we must be prepared to face the
same consequences as a school-yard bully faces. On the other hand we
cannot tell
the world "leave us alone." Isolationism is not what this
world is built for.
All of this brings us back to the question: How do we respond nonviolently to terrorism?
The consequences of a military response are not very rosy. Many
thousands of innocent people will die both here and the country or countries we
attack. Militancy will increase exponentially and, ultimately, we will
be faced with another, more pertinent, moral question: what will we gain by
destroying half the world? Will we be able to live with a clear conscience?
We must acknowledge our role in helping create monsters in the world and
then find ways to contain these monsters without hurting more innocent people and then redefine our role in the world. I think we must move
from seeking to be respected for our military strength to being respected for
our moral strength.
We need to appreciate that we are in a position to play a powerful role
in helping the "other half" of the world attain a better
standard of life
not by throwing a few crumbs but by significantly involving ourselves in
constructive economic programs.
For too long our foreign policy has been based on "what is good for
the
United States." It smacks of selfishness. Our foreign policy should
now
be based on what is good for the world and how can we do the right thing
to help the world become more peaceful.
To those who have lost loved ones in this and other terrorist acts I say
I share your grief. I am sorry that you have become victims of senseless
violence. But let this sad episode not make you vengeful because no
amount of violence and killing is going to bring you inner peace. Anger
and hate never do. The memory of those victims who have died in this and
other violent incidents around the world will be better preserved and
meaningfully commemorated if we all learn to forgive and dedicate our
lives to helping create a peaceful, respectful and an understanding
world.
Arun Gandhi
Founder Director
M.K.Gandhi Institute for Nonviolence
650 East Parkway South
Memphis, TN 38104
Tel:(901)452-2824; FAX: (901)452-2775
email: gandhi@cbu.edu
web: www.gandhiinstitute.org
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GA actions
ratified (or not) by the presbyteries
A number of the most important actions of the 219th
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confirming most of them as amendments to the PC(USA) Book of Order.
We provided resources to help inform the
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Our three areas of primary interest have been:
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Amendment 10-A,
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Amendment 10-2,
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Some blogs worth visiting |
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PVJ's
Facebook page
Mitch Trigger, PVJ's
Secretary/Communicator, has created a Facebook page where
Witherspoon members and others can gather to exchange news and
views. Mitch and a few others have posted bits of news, both
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You can post your own news and views,
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Voices of Sophia blog
Heather Reichgott, who has created
this new blog for Voices of Sophia, introduces it:
After fifteen years of scholarship
and activism, Voices of Sophia presents a blog. Here, we present the
voices of feminist theologians of all stripes: scholars, clergy,
students, exiles, missionaries, workers, thinkers, artists, lovers
and devotees, from many parts of the world, all children of the God
in whose image women are made. .... This blog seeks to glorify God
through prayer, work, art, and intellectual reflection. Through
articles and ensuing discussion we hope to become an active and
thoughtful community. |
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John Harris’ Summit to
Shore blogspot
Theological and philosophical
reflections on everything between summit to shore, including
kayaking, climbing, religion, spirituality, philosophy, theology,
politics, culture, travel, The Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), New
York City and the Queens neighborhood of Ridgewood by a progressive
New York City Presbyterian Pastor. John is a former member of the
Witherspoon board, and is designated pastor of North Presbyterian
Church in Flushing, NY. |
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John Shuck’s Shuck and Jive
A Presbyterian minister, currently
serving as pastor of First Presbyterian Church of Elizabethton,
Tenn., blogs about spirituality, culture, religion (both organized
and disorganized), life, evolution, literature, Jesus, and
lightening up. |
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