“You cannot fight violence with violence.” That thought kept rolling through my head as I retreated from my bed after a very strange dream.
The dream takes place at a church gathering where a group of young men begins carrying out activities that would enrage any faith-filled person. One by one, people stood up, ready to expel them from the building, and I stood too. Yet, a person whom I respect told me to wait – to hold off. While the actions of those men enraged me, I was urged to resist the physical-ness of throwing them out.
Somewhere deep in my inner self there is anger I cannot identify. It shows itself in my dreams. When I awake, I stuff it away to carry on my peaceful life. So, I awoke from that dream with this thought. You cannot fight violence with violence. And I wonder, as much as good people seek peace, is some violence within each of us?
We see violence on the news and read about it every day. So, is this a more violent time than before? I doubt that. There have always been those who use power to overcome. The caveman had a club; the club became a spear; the spear a bow and arrow. Enemies fought on their feet, then on horses, then in wheeled vehicles. With the 20th century we took to the air. With the dawn of the 21st century we’ve taken to the airwaves.
The violence is not in the tools we use, but in the hearts of those who use them. So I wonder, how does one deal with what’s happening? Good people who want to find ways to counteract the violence, must not use violence in return. We need to focus on the example of others who refused to fight evil with violence.
Jesus of Nazareth is one such example. Whether you believe He was God, or not, you cannot deny His existence. Through what is written one cannot find a better example of “Love your neighbor”. Sure, history shows that He was crushed by others. In the end, though, who do we know more about, Jesus or those who seemingly crushed Him? Another example of non-violence is Nelson Mandela. Persistence in his non-violent pursuit of justice IS the story of his life. Anyone who has seen or read his story cannot help but admire his peaceful demeanor during 27 undeserved years in prison. Finally, who would not agree that America’s Martin Luther King is non-violence personified. He preached it to congregations in small churches everywhere he went. He delivered his powerful message to 250,000 people assembled on the Mall in Washington.
These men set the tone for a just person. To love those who seemingly do not know how to love, takes courage. To find peaceful solutions for potentially explosive situations takes patience and careful thought. But, as Oprah says, “These things I know…”
- There is nothing new about violence in the human race.
- We have been given good examples to show us how to act.
- Each of us is capable of pursuing non-violent solutions.
All that’s left is for us to try.
Flying with Rick... 
I agree violence has always been part of human nature and probably always will be with us. The question is can we express that trait in less destructive ways. I’d like to believe yes, but I suspect that as long as there are real or perceived upsides to violence we will fail.
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As a society, I tend to agree. As individuals, I believe each of us can make a cognitive choice whether to follow our “animal” (Is that a reasonable choice of words?) instincts, or find a better way. That’s why I like to point to such great examples as the three I wrote about. They did big things and paid a big price. In our day to day living, it seems we can each find little ways to follow their example.
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