"We often overlook the extraordinary courage that marks the lives of people who stand apart from the dominant culture’s endorsement of violence as a means of achieving the “good” longed for by so many. Courage is at the core of these people’s prophetic willingness to create a world of peace, and enables them to do the seemingly impossible, aware that suffering and even death may be likely outcomes of their roles in the cosmic struggle of good against evil.
In my research, I frequently encounter the seeming simplicity of the implacable commitments that lead believers to challenge the status quo in order to advocate on behalf of the oppressed, the poor and the hungry, and to protest against systemic oppression perpetrated by war, slavery, and greed. For many Christians, the history of war stands in contradiction with fundamental divine commandments: Thou shalt not kill. Love your enemies. Do unto others as you would have others do unto you. History is a witness to how often these deceptively simple aphorisms are ignored, forgotten, dismissed as naïve, or overshadowed by a battery of detailed objections."
More at http://www.friendsjournal.org/quakers-culture-and-the-transforming-power-of-love/
Artwork from Paul Peter Piech
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/people/obituary-paul-peter-piech-1327233.html
In my research, I frequently encounter the seeming simplicity of the implacable commitments that lead believers to challenge the status quo in order to advocate on behalf of the oppressed, the poor and the hungry, and to protest against systemic oppression perpetrated by war, slavery, and greed. For many Christians, the history of war stands in contradiction with fundamental divine commandments: Thou shalt not kill. Love your enemies. Do unto others as you would have others do unto you. History is a witness to how often these deceptively simple aphorisms are ignored, forgotten, dismissed as naïve, or overshadowed by a battery of detailed objections."
More at http://www.friendsjournal.org/quakers-culture-and-the-transforming-power-of-love/
Artwork from Paul Peter Piech
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/people/obituary-paul-peter-piech-1327233.html
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