I must confess: I only know what it feels like on this side of war. I’ve never been in the middle of a military conflict, where the sights and sounds cause me to shudder on a daily, hourly basis… where my external and internal peace is threatened by a fight seemingly so bigger than me. “Why can’t we all get along?” many must mutter in their disgust.
But people don’t all get along. They don’t. And unfortunately, we, at times have encouraged the not getting along. How many times have we been disrespectful in our words, diminishing the opinion of another? How many times have we been judgmental — not judging in the sense of wise discernment, but rather, passing judgment on opinions, as to which one is to be preferred as the more correct? We do that all the time. Our leaders do that all the time. They look down on others every time they denigrate or refuse to debate.
That’s been happening in recent weeks, for example, regarding climate change. Many are refusing to discuss. Stop it. I get that many scientists believe man’s actions are directly responsible for the planet’s perceived warming. But why must the debate be extinguished? Note what happened with Charles Krauthammer, a well respected conservative journalist. He prepared a piece for the Washington Post in which he challenged the premise that the science on climate change is settled. Environmental activists petitioned the Post not to publish Krauthammer’s column.
Let the debate proceed. Let the people talk. If a person’s perspective is good and true and right, it will persevere. If the only way a perspective can persist is by eliminating diverse opinion, then the perspective is not rooted in wisdom. Allow the people to talk. Hear them. When we don’t allow people to talk, when we don’t listen to them, when we shut them (and their opinions) down, we move eerily closer to the other side of war.
The world is a volatile place. Look around us. Conflict spans the globe. From Afghanistan to Syria to Venezuela, to the Middle East and now the Ukraine. This is scary, friends.
Ukraine is a country of approximately 45 million citizens, situated between Europe and Russia. The citizens are divided as to which of the two they identify with more. Ukraine was actually part of the Soviet Union until 1991, when they declared their independence, with 90% of Ukrainians voting affirmatively. As with any new nation, economic, social, and political struggles ensued.
In the past decade, some of their leadership embraced more West-leaning, European policies. Russia — and specifically, Pres. Vladimir Putin — seemed wanting to punish Ukraine for their newfound Western affinity. Putin cut the flow of gas to the country in 2006 and 2009. In November of last year, the Ukrainian Prime Minister embraced more Russian policy. Large numbers of people felt the government was no longer listening to them. Hence began an initially peaceful, public protest. But the protest turned violent when clashing with law enforcement. The Ukrainian government then passed a series of laws that essentially banned all public protest. And with the cameras rolling from the recent adjacent, Olympic Russian slopes, the protest has significantly escalated. The Russian military has moved into Ukraine, attempting to regain control.
The world is in a tough place. There seems little we can do, this side of war. It’s not an enviable position for Pres. Obama or for any president for that matter. What president desires war? (… geepers…) While there is certainly a time for peace and a time for war and a time for every season under the sun, no wise president earnestly desires engaging in military combat (… the only persons I know who earnestly engage are teenage boys playing the latest “Call of Duty” game).
Hence, keep watching. Keep praying. And be thankful to be on this side of war, where our peace is not threatened… and we are still, hopefully heard.
Respectfully,
AR