Dealing with Cruelty and Violence in the World

We’ve all spoken to each other before, and by this I mean not just those who are here in a material sense, but that there are those around us that are also contributing to what’s happening right now. And one of the things that can be so difficult is to see the amount of destruction that’s in the world, the amount of cruelty, the amount of violence, the amount of emptiness that people seem to exist with inside of themselves. And this emptiness is not the kind of emptiness that is letting in the spirit of God, but rather it is the kind of emptiness that is closed off and hollow. There’s not a true connection there to the heart in many individuals. There’s not a true consciousness of the Divine. And, whatever spiritual intention that may be expressed with so many people, there is an element of selfishness that is quite large. 

And then there are each of you here that see this day to day, that bear witness to the violence around us—not just weapons and physical violence, but mental cruelty and fear that are induced by people that wish to control and oppress others. There are those times that have been described in sacred literature where the world is so off kilter or seeming to be falling into a pit of more and more cruelty and difficulty, and it can feel overwhelming, and it is all around us, and yet, even in the midst of all these things, God is present. And I know that you ask yourself, how can I find God in these moments or find God in these people that seem so far from me in their intention, so far from us in what we wish for and hope for as human beings? And yet, still again we hear, and we know, even if we can’t always accept it that God is present. And so, we learn to be steadfast. We gain strength through our exercise of our will. We stand up to the things that frighten us, and we endure the things that cause us suffering. And again, even in those moments, God is present. There is the hope and the faith that we have and that we are called for, called to bring forth in those moments, not just inside of ourselves, but for the people around us where our prayers are not for ourselves, but for the people that we care for. And it is in our caring that we feel the care of God for every soul.

And this is one of those times in history, in human history, where the exterior world will be seemingly so far from what is ideal, seemingly so far from justice or truth, where every side believes they’re the side that has been hurt or become a victim or that believes they’re right. And yet, you know, we know that to be right is not always the best answer for us, but to surrender to what is good and true that comes from God. Even if it contradicts us, even if it seemingly hurts us, we still, in a sense bow down to that awesomeness that is in God. We seek God with humility at the same time that we know that we will be filled with grace. And if feels as if God is asking us to endure in ways that we don’t understand. And again, we return to our faith and our hope, not knowing how long we have to work, how long we have to endure, how long we have to hold ourselves accountable even when others seemingly bear no responsibility on their own for the condition of the world. And we know that we can’t expect any kind of reward for this work because it is part of a true path that leads to a different kind of resolution and oneness with God. We know that we can feel in our own pain, the same pain that others feel. But even though there are differences, we know that everyone can express love, everyone can express hope, and if at all possible, we have to get that part of ourselves that is too selfish out of the way—to somehow get whatever that last or next obstacle is in front of us, either out of the way or help ourselves in a way that we can overcome and do whatever it takes to reach for that goodness and that truth that is in God, that is God for many of us, that is in us. The deepest part of that truth, the deepest love that exists does exist in the present moment. When we’re too preoccupied with the future or too guilty or feeling shame about the past, we can’t reach into the depth of that love. It has to be in the present moment, and so everything hinges on that moment when we can be aware, when we can act out of love, hold another with our love, and even hold ourselves in that same love knowing that in loving ourselves we sustain ourselves, we nourish ourselves, and we grow in our own strength and love.

There are still going to be things that we cannot know. And the things that we cannot know are not so much hidden from us, they are simply revealed at a different time, at a more opportune time. And the truth is that if we knew everything that there is to know about something, until we have completely mastered ourselves, and mastered the spiritual lessons of our own journey, to know everything would be a danger. And so, again, there is a certain humility that comes with not knowing and trusting that that not knowing is our path in the moment and can be our path for an extended time. And in the moment, no matter what we believe about God’s will or God’s mercy or God’s judgment, we will still be called to live and act with compassion no matter what we know. And you know that there are those who will tell you that to have compassion always reveals a weakness, but this is not true. It is in compassion that our greatest strength comes to bear on whatever concern there is in front of us. Our greatest strength to overcome any obstacle, our greatest ability to endure, our greatest opportunity to act with love happens in the present moment, happens with the intention of acting with love. In that present moment, we accept the truth, and we yield anything that we may think we want or desire over to God so that God brings the increase, God harvests the results, God returns to us with our needs met with the abundance of love.

At some point in time, all of us will be feeling anxiety or come face to face with our greatest fear. And in those moments, we cannot wait for that fear to go away before we act or to do what we believe to be necessary. It is part of our journey to act out of goodness in the presence of fear. That it is in those moments of acting out of goodness that we bring God with us into the moment. We cannot go anywhere expecting God to be there because it’s we who bring God into that place, into that moment with our consciousness and our love. When we show up, God is present.  God is especially present for us. And though God is here and now and everywhere, always, our awareness of God’s presence comes with us into the moment. It comes to us with our relationships, both in the ways that we give to and receive from our relationships. And there are so many times when we feel compelled to act and don’t know how to act, and in those moments, it’s our turn to trust that when it is time to act, we will know what to do, and when we don’t know what to do, we can be patient and wait. Wait knowing that God will find us and find that moment and fulfill all the needs that are required. We’re not to let anyone take away our hope or to fill us with despair. We can open our hearts and receive all the hope and faith that we need by simply surrendering to God. We simply surrender in the moment of not knowing. And even knowing that we don’t have to know everything there is to know to do good. In living this goodness and truth, we can acknowledge that our own souls are cleansed, knowing that we have nothing that we can do to accomplish that except by giving that over to God and allow it to be accomplished in us.

Amen. So be it.