Seeing the Globalization of Darkness
I don’t know if we are meant to comprehend global violence. When everything appears as darkness, we can’t really visualize, let alone understand the violence. It’s like trying to understand what appears to be thousands of billion-year-old stars dying in multiple galaxies. And we tend to highlight one violent death over another based on location, skin color, religion, or political ideology.
In light of incomprehensible darkness, what does God tell us to do? Put Paris flag colors over our Facebook pictures? “Pray for Paris.”? “Stand with Paris.”?
Yes, of course, as Western allies, we do and will. But what about the people on a remote mountain experiencing terrorism? Why do I need to remind myself to “pray for” or “stand with” Paris, but not necessarily for the innocent people who happen to live in Syria or another country worse off than Paris, because they have no one to “stand with” them?
Globalization. The terror of many. What a great weight for each of us to bear. It’s hard enough for me to “stand with” and “pray for” and help my family and my neighbor. Let alone all of Paris, thousands of strangers I’ll never meet.
Nevertheless, we mourn with the humanity we are made aware of the best we can, as humanity continues on its journey of violence; and Light–which we declare removes all darkness. We believe that light destroys darkness because it is true in nature. And we desperately hope the human world at the very least will choose to obey the laws of nature, if not the Laws of God: Justice, Love, Peace, and Forgiveness.
Light and Life has to win, right? Death serves Life, not the other way around, yes? Somehow we all desire this to be true.
Darkness absorbs darkness, making those who have chosen it nothing consequential.
Be light. Be an active force. Be something rather than static stale dark nothing.
In nature at least, we know that a lack of oxygen, too much water, and a strong wind have the power to extinguish a flame, but “All the darkness in the world cannot extinguish the light of a single candle.” - St. Francis of Assisi