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A War Never Really Ends
An interfaith response
March 21, 2003
We are Americans, U.S. citizens
Followers of many spiritual traditions
Compelled to speak, for ourselves and for others.
Convinced that war achieves neither freedom nor peace.
Called to speak the truth as our faiths demand.
May we be filled with the strength to seek peace.
War will not end when the guns are silent.
Violence can never lead to peace.
Our government does not faithfully represent us
Therefore it is our obligation to speak.
We will bear the responsibility.
We will willingly accept what
is required.
We will stand against the forces
of death.
We will stand for life.
May we be filled with the courage to seek peace.
Duty calls upon us to prohibit violence
Directed at our helpless brothers and sisters
To limit the monstrous domination of war
To repair the ruin, whenever, wherever we can:
The direct horrors inflicted
on the people
The damage to their homes, lands,
heritage, institutions
The disruption of their eating,
drinking, traveling, breathing, living
May we be filled with the compassion to seek peace.
We grieve for the harm to our own country
The degradation suffered here in common
The contagion of fear and distrust
The restriction of our freedoms
The quashing of our dialogue
and dissent
And there is more.
The terrible wounding of sisters and brothers sent to fight
Children captured by the demons
of war
Who will suffer illness of body
and spirit
Whose families too absorb the
blows of violence
And the rupture of families when a member is killed
Parents, spouses, infants overcome
with grief
Losing a source of sustenance
and survival
May we be filled with the endurance to seek peace.
War will not fulfill those government promises.
For it is based on lies, and lies have been told.
Here we stand on truth, and stand together.
United as one humanity, here we are.
We grasp the horror of war in all its fullness.
And embrace it with our joined compassion.
May we be filled with the vision of peace.
Recognizing our weakness
We call on the Spirit of Mercy to guide us now.
Nothing is stronger. The spirit will prevail.
Amen.
Signed on by:
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