The horrendous news emanating from Gaza as people face an unbelievable human catastrophe of epic proportions, fills us with great sadness and feelings of helplessness.
As believers in a loving God, when one views the atrocities that human beings can inflict on each other, one cannot but cry out: “Where is God in all this?”
Atheists will be only too ready to remind us that belief in God and religion is at the root of this orgy of hatred and violence. They conveniently airbrush out of their memory the horrors of WWII unleashed by the ideologies of Nazism and its counterpart communism that were anything but theistic.
One indulges in hatred so easily. Very often, we do not bother to seek reconciliation with people we strongly detest and disagree with.
We should seek out reconciliation and avoid the trap of the blame game and nurturing resentment
Some people seem blessed with apparent perfect equanimity and feel no ill feelings about anyone or anything. Yet, on closer examination, for the vast majority, such serenity is the result of total indifference of other people and events so long as these do not impinge on their apparent highly protected and secure life.
For those who claim to be Christian, such an attitude is anathema. We are called to be aware, concerned, and wherever possible, involved. To see injustice and suffering and walk away, lies at the core of the parable of the Good Samaritan. In no uncertain terms, indifference and egoism are condemned.
In the face of the tragedy of war, violence and hatred, we have to take a stand. We must appeal for outrageous injustices to be exposed, and condemned and every effort should be made to address them.
Political expediency often demands public opinion to blindly take sides or to conveniently avoid looking at the stark facts dispassionately. But when we look at the wounds inflicted over the centuries on so many communities in so many ways, we may ask ourselves: “Is there hope, is there a way out? Can we live together in harmony?” Logic answers us with a resounding ‘No’.
Security is the logic that leads to the frightful arms race that drains the economies of so many nations, especially those who can least afford it. Such resources should go towards education, health services, and empowering the disadvantaged. Above all, we should seek out reconciliation and avoid the trap of the blame game and nurturing resentment which are so easily indulged in.
In the tragic drama unfolding in Gaza, one must pray and hope for such a miracle. Contrary to what people think, this has happened. Desmond Tutu, the South African who championed the fight against the evil of apartheid, was exemplary in promoting and upholding reconciliation. His ‘Lord Longford lecture’ deserves to be revisited.
In the case of the tragedy between Israelis and Palestinians we can access the heart-rending witness of the Gazan gynaecologist and obstetrician, Izzeldin Abuelaish, who lost three of his daughters in an Israeli bombing raid, and that of Judea Pearl, the father of the slain Jewish journalist Daniel.
In both cases, these men sent us a powerful message that reconciliation is possible. They are not alone in peacebuilding. Their courageous witness underscores that the logic of Cain is not the answer.