It’s time to move forward. Last week one morning I woke up thinking about Alexei Nevalny, locked in a Russian prison in Siberia because he dared to speak out against the corruption and injustice of the Russian government. He ran for President of Russia. The last guy that did that died of poisoning. Nevalny survived poisoning, but barely lives in a Siberia prison.
I should be thanking God we can speak out in America. I wish we would speak, not in ugliness, carping and criticising, but pointing out the problems and helping to come up with solutions. This morning I woke up reciting a poem about peace. I’ve forgotten the words already, they are lost in the dream, but the feeling is still with me. Lately I’ve been waking feeling the rocks of the streets of Northern Gaza under my feet. I heard yesterday that the streets are so bad with shooting and bombing that the people who are supposed to be evacuating are cowering in their houses. It’s too dangerous and awful to go outside so the people are not evacuating. Gaza is a story of sadness all in itself isn’t it? Let’s see. If I hide a terrorist under my house or under our hospital in the basement, should I expect to be bombed? Well, maybe. Our world is filled with crying children and dying babies. And so I change my view and I look… up. And I look for Advent.
In November, the Catholic Christian prays for the dead. For people who have lost loved ones, November is a special time. We put the names of our loved ones on the altar, and we offer Mass and prayer for the “holy souls.” We pray for the mercy and the loving kindness of Jesus to save the souls of our loved ones as he promises “in the words written in red.” We pray for peace in bereaved hearts. My sister died last month, and my Mother died in November a few years ago, so I pray they are at peace with my sister who died when I was two, and with my grandmothers. Peace. I pray with my friends in church. We pray and we put our hands on our hearts and we believe Jesus is taking care of our loved ones. Jesus is in our hearts. Well! Today I ask if it is OK to skip forward to Advent. I’m tired of death and dying. I’m so done with war and exploding rocks and gunfire. I bow my head and I pray for peace, but quite honestly, I can’t see the solution. In the past, and now again, we put the whole sad situation into the laps of the UN. Well that isn’t working is it? It hasn’t worked in the past and it isn’t working now. Countries are fighting like my sister and I fought 70 years ago about who gets the little rocking chair for our dolls. My mother took a photo of us both holding onto that rocking chair, and the look on our faces is pure “MINE… you get away!!!” If looks could kill, Donna and I would be in Gaza, fighting over belief and land. So I ask, “Lord God, could we fast forward to the end of November; to the feast day of Christ the King; to the celebration of Advent when we look forward with candles to light the way of the Lord? Come Lord Jesus. We need you because we just can’t solve these problems ourselves. Come Lord Jesus.” … “OK. I’ll wait.”