There is no shortage of bad news in our world, no lack of evil, no scarcity of suffering. It would be all too easy to live our lives in miserable anticipation of whatever wretched event will befall us next; or in bitter hatred of whoever or whatever we hold responsible for our last tragedy. Every day it's another bomb, another shooting, another genocide. In this age of the internet we are not only subjected to the problems in our personal lives and immediate communities, we become witnesses to the sufferings and injustices of the entire world and we can literally watch in real time while they happen. We can tune in daily to hear our televisions proclaim the bad news: Rape, murder, war, oppression, poverty, disease, disaster, greed, slavery...Our newspapers ooze treachery, they reek of evil and despair. We live in a world where evil is common and in a time known as the age of information, it should be no surprise to us that we get bombarded with negative information every day.
The question is; how do we handle it? What do we do with all of this information?
With so much bad news it is easy for one who cares about freedom and peace to become overwhelmed and disillusioned. These frustrations then turn to rage, hate, and prejudice: The very same emotions that most likely brought about whatever it was that made us feel that way in the first place. It's a vicious cycle that has fueled violence throughout the course of human history. It is a cycle that must be recognized and ended on an individual level.
In the next few days my Facebook news feed will be flooded with calls for war and conspiracy theories. Opinions will be formed. Alliances will be made. The war drums will beat. Angry mobs armed with keyboards will shout at each other across cyber space, oblivious to the irreverent manner in which they are trampling the still warm bodies they argue over. Those bodies will be "the remembered", "the mourned", and "the celebrated' to some, but to most they will become "the point". Conclusions will be jumped to and lines will be crossed. Premature presumptions will be clung to and emotions will outweigh reason.
Some will blame the U.S. government, which isn't too far fetched, but they will draw biased conclusions haphazardly and promote them as fact. Some will blame foreign terrorists and demand war with little to no facts, willing to sentence millions to their graves on a whim. Politicians and special interest groups will pull at America's heart strings with phony empathy and eloquent speech. You will be told that it is necessary to sacrifice just a little more of your personal liberty so something like this will never happen again. They will be convincing and many will enthusiastically follow, yet somehow the followers will only end up with more bloodshed and less freedom.
So what did we do with this news? How did we process this information we so regrettably received today? Aside from those directly affected by today's incident, how will hearing this news affect our lives and interactions with other people? This is how it goes in the scenario I just described (which I promise will happen):
Something horrible happens----news is received----anger/sadness sets in----evidence/ points of view/ lies are introduced----opinions are formed----animosities are kindled by disagreements----government gets involved----Something horrible happens...
It is amazing to live in a time where practically any information fathomable is literally at our finger tips. It's wonderful to be able to know what happened across the country, or across the globe just a few minutes ago . But what's the use in such incredible progress in our ability to receive and share information if we don't do anything worthwhile with that information? In the scenario above there is no insight gleaned and there is no positive reaction to the news. In reacting to terrible news in this standard fashion we only make our situation worse by causing more strife and contention, more hate and fear.
Over the next few months there will be bitter debates over what happened in Boston. Folks will argue over who was responsible and why. We already know we can't trust the government so many will question their version of the truth before it even comes out. Maybe this was a foreign terrorist. Maybe it was a false flag attack carried out or ordered by the government. Hey, it could even be some angry kid who got his hands on a copy of The Anarchist Cookbook. The truth is that we may never know the truth. I don't expect the truth from any government, terrorist organization, or media outlet and since I wasn't at the Boston Marathon today and it's too early to tell if there will be substantial evidence to back up any theory from any of those sources I won't claim to know the who's and why's.
But what do we know for certain about today's attack? We know that it was a cowardly act of aggression against unsuspecting civilians.
No matter who did it or why, when the average person sees the kind disregard for human life seen today they recognize that it is evil (unless it is disregard for human life by their government in which case the television tells them not to notice). I am convinced that most people who do evil things are not the pure evil bad guy types you see in the movies. Of course, the psychopaths are out there but they are far from the majority. People who do evil things are usually misdirected and consumed with some type of emotion, desire, or sense of duty. Thus hate, fear, and greed are what we find to be responsible for these despicable acts. This is truth. This is certain. We can attack these three enemies vigorously, knowing that there is no ulterior motive, only peace.
We can take a stand against aggression wherever we see it and we can counteract the violence of the world by treating people with love and respect. We can raise our children to seek peace, and to be kind in their interactions with others. We can help to educate each other on things like U.S. foreign policy, history, blowback, etc. and we can respectfully discuss solutions to our problems. All of these would be positive reactions to negative information, but when I log into Facebook tomorrow I'll be ready for the far different reality of irrational and heated arguments riddled with fallacies and hate. It is my sincere hope that I am wrong.
I will pray for those affected by today's events, and I will continue to pray for those suffering from the effects of hate, fear, and greed around the world every day, that they may come to know God and discover the good news that will edify them despite any affliction they may encounter and bless them more than abundantly.
Spread Love. Seek truth.
