This headline on the editorial page of the NYTimes for December 3 is amazing.
Our Agency for International Development has come up with an offer of all this money for "interested parties" to design and implement plans for stabilizing some strategic cities in Iraq. This offer of money comes with no strings attached.
Is this our new victory plan? Let corporate America make much money from this war? Maybe we should make this offer to the Iraqi people, not to corporations.
None yet have given thought to the words of Jesus that he gives us peace, not as the world does. Our whole world still imagines it can bring about peace by guns and bombs. It imagines we can have peace by having more bombs, smarter bombs. This seems to be the firm belief system of those in our government. We are the largest maker and seller of arms in the world.
Peace is both a gift and a task. In no words of Jesus does he tell us to go to war. Rather Jesus has said:
You have heard that it was said, You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy. But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be children of your Father in heaven for he makes his sun to rise on the righteous and on the unrighteous.The task of peace is learning to love as Jesus loved. It neever includes doing harm to others in any way.
Matthew 5:43
Let us pray for the gift of peace in our hearts and minds. From there we can start practicing ture love. See 1 Corinthians 13 in the Bible.
They will be called oaks of righteousness.Isaiah 61:3
