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By John T. Crestwell, Jr.
October 31, 2004
At the UU Church of
Annapolis
I bring you greetings from
Davies Memorial Unitarian Universalist Church in Camp Springs, MD
where I am the Intern Minister and Director of Outreach. We are
actively engaged in a growth plan to become a more diverse
congregation and it is a great challenge that I and the church
welcome. I am thankful to Rev. Muir for inviting me to what is known
as one of the great and thriving UU churches in America, and I hope
this message from a city boy can give you a bit of food for thought…
That’s right I grew up in Washington DC in a modest apartment. My
mother kept the place very neat and tidy. We had old furniture and
old carpet and old appliances but everything was always organized
and clean. But, with that said, we had a HUGH roach problem. Any of
you suburbanites heard of roaches? Perhaps a few of you have—maybe?
J Well, you can spray, sweep, mop, you can bomb (yes there’s really
a roach bomb); you can put down some boric acid, and try whatever
you will, but these are some of the most tenacious creatures I have
ever seen! You may get rid of them for a few days but sure enough
you look up and you see one, then 3, and then God knows how many….
Then you have to spray again but you have to use something a bit
stronger because they develop immunity to whatever you use if you
use it too much. You mess around using the same thing over and over
and you’ll look up and have bionic roaches that are bigger, stronger
and faster! Did you know that scientists say there’s one species
that will probably survive a nuclear bomb? Guess which one? Yes, you
got it—roaches. Well, you know, it’s funny because our plan to rid
the world of the “evil people” is quite similar to eliminating
roaches. What am I talking about? I’ll get to that in a moment but
let me rush on…
In the 1800’s a poet, writer and Unitarian named William Cullen
Bryant, in one of his writings titled “The Battlefield,” said a most
profound thing: “Truth crushed to earth will rise again.” This very
concise sentence has been used countless times in decades past—to
the present— to say that no matter the evil in the world; no matter
the hate, the voice of truth will be heard. You may use your power
to oppress the message. You may use your influence to suppress it.
You might use your money to depress it; and you might kill the body
and attempt to exterminate people. But the message of truth will
live on, and it will manifest in other individuals and peoples of
the world who will carry the message forward. As it is said, you can
kill the messenger but you cannot kill the message. There’s a
similar theme in Christian theology. You have the term “Theodicy”
which says that evil exists in the world but ultimately, God’s
justice will prevail. This agrees with the statement by Bryant—
“Truth crushed to earth will rise again.” But Theodicy says that it
will rise and rise until “justice rolls down like waters and
righteousness like an ever-flowing stream.” Now, this is one
viewpoint. But, you have to think to yourself, if the tide of truth
rises, when it subsides, is it not true that it’s opposite, the
winds of hate will come in like a whirlwind? And so, for me, if
truth crushed rises, hate crushed to earth rises as well. What am I
talking about? I’m talking about a cycle; a cycle where people
promote their truth. But as they promote their truth there is
another side that says what is virtuous to you is vicious to me.
Deep hatred cultivates within the minds of people and cultures, as a
result of not having their voices heard. This hatred is passed on
from generation to generation. It festers and grows. The messengers
from these groups are silenced by varying power structures, and they
are often killed and again, what happens is their followers develop
an anger that cannot be tempered. And the cycle of one group’s truth
being promoted which becomes another group’s hatred and
bitterness—this cycle continues and instead of creating a world that
shares a “we are together reality”, the “us against them mentality”
prevails…
Our world lives by a mythological construct that in many ways needs
to be deconstructed and perhaps reconstructed. Our present way of
life lives by the premise that violence in the human species must
exist. And if violence exists, as a higher species, there must be
justifications for us to use primitive force. Therefore, there has
to be clear conceptions in our culture, and in various cultures
around the world, that say this is good and that is evil. The “I
versus it” relationship must prevail in this construct where, as Dr.
King said well, “we relegate people to the status of things.” I’m
talking about a mythology that says we must use physical muscle to
keep control of the masses. And as it is said, whoever has the power
makes the rules.
It is clear that those who administer their power in our system
continue to promulgate the idea that evil must be exterminated; that
evil must be eliminated. If you look at this on the surface, you are
prone to say “yes”. But if you look at the statement in depth
something else emerges as we shall see in a moment…
Now, this idea of good and evil, our take on it that is, comes from
the Judeo-Christian conception of good and evil. Our entire moral
code is based around this. God is good, Satan is evil. But the first
problem with this mythology is that life is just not that simple.
Life is not that Black and White. What is evil to you may not be
evil to me. What you consider good may not be good to me. If you
look at the news in America you can clearly see images that will
construct a reality that says Arabs are bad. But I am sure if you
look at the news in the Arab world, you will say to yourself,
“Americans are bad”. Who’s right? That depends on your worldview
doesn’t it? But whether you’re Arab or American in both
mythologies there is that “eye for an eye” mentality that is alive
and well! And what does this solve? Is there peace on earth and
goodwill for all people? Do you think that there is love, equality
and reciprocity on a global scale? From my vantage point, one
group’s truth becomes another group’s lie; and hate creates more
hate. Societies all across the world live with the guilt of
civilizations they have wreaked havoc upon because of their truth,
yet they/we do not seem to learn the lesson that history teaches,
and history tells us that you cannot crush humans to the earth
without a deep animosity that lives on and on and on…The hate will
come back on you! What you put out in the universe you eventually
get back. You reap what you sow.
The thing that is remarkable to me is that people think they can
exterminate groups of people. We think that we can get our raid and
boric acid and bombs and rid the world of its roach menace. You
kill one roach another one comes in its place. We kill thousands.
And we keep killing. And we say that it is for the sake of our own
kind. Kill every roach in the world. I’m reminded of what John
Mason said in 1637 during the massacre of the Pequot (Pecoy) Native
American Tribe. He said, “God laughed his enemies and the enemies of
his people to scorn, making them as a fiery oven… Thus did the Lord
judge among the heathen, filling the place with dead bodies.”
It is quite outrageous to think humans can wipe out everyone they
perceive to be a problem. Genocide is a sick practice. Do we
believe that? Do we believe that the quote, unquote, “Evil ones”
must be destroyed?” Be careful what you say! The evil one could be
you. Yes, I hear a hymn crying in my soul: “Can I see another’s woe
and not be in sorrow too? Can I see another’s grief and not seek for
kind relief. Can I see a falling tear, and not feel my sorrow’s
share? No, no never can it be—never, never can it be!”
Then I go on to ask myself, “Are we that primitive? Are we that
basic in nature and substance that we want to annihilate human
beings? Where is the depth of thought? Where are our reasoning
powers? Is the human condition that sick?” I will not accept war
and barbarity as a virtue of humanity. I will not accept the idea
that violence is necessary and that extermination is needed no
matter how you put your spin on it; no matter how you construct your
mediated reality, I will not accept it! When I look at war and
murder you know what I see? I see the images of the dead who’ll
never get a chance to enjoy the blessing we call life. I heard a
soldier say, “When I have to take a life, a part of me dies.” So
true if you are in touch with the spirit of humanity…
It’s funny because we call Dr. Martin King a martyr. We praise
Gandhi for his wisdom and sacrifice. They are icons in the world.
They were prophets of peace and yet we accept violence and war as
reality and necessary. We mock these fallen leaders with our
foolishness.
But you know something, we created the mythology and we can change
it. It would call for a radical restructuring of values in the
world. And that transition might prove painful. But it is quite
necessary. We can deconstruct and reconstruct our world to be the
place it should be for all souls to enjoy.
We heard from William Whipper (reading) a contemporary of Frederick
Douglass. Douglass disagreed with Whipper’s call for non-violence.
Douglass, an eventual supporter of the Civil War, felt physical
force was needed to free his people. Nevertheless, Whipper reminded
us that humans must use the power of reason to overcome a very
biological instinct that calls us to use force. Listen to what he
said again: “If humankind ever expect to enjoy a state of peace and
quietude, they must at all times be ready to sacrifice on the altar
of principle, the rude passions that animate them. This they can
only perform by exerting their reasoning powers.” You see,
force—violence, goes well beyond rational thinking into a very
primitive mindset. Just like when you see a roach you (smack) squish
it almost immediately! It’s instinctive, “Kill that roach quickly!”
your brain says to you… Then you run, emotionally, and get the raid
and spray the whole area and you say yourself, “I have solved the
problem!” while you cough from the toxic fumes you’ve just inhaled
into your lungs. And a few days, a few weeks later, there are more
roaches bigger and stronger. A rational mind will say, “Your
fumigation plan does not work and has not worked in the history of
the world.” In fact, the toxic fumes are infecting your lungs.
Maybe you need a new plan!” Somebody knows what I’m talking about!
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