Forgive Them Lord: They Know Not What They Do
This is an awful truth: Barring the unforeseen, Terri Schiavo is going to die. She has now been without food and water for so long that even if she were rehydrated, her organs might be so damaged that she would not regain her health.
How are we to act in the face of such a profound injustice? Many are feeling deep anger, fury, even hate. Some are tempted to act on these feelings. They must not! All of us must resist surrendering to the cancer of recrimination and embrace what Lincoln called the better angels of our nature. Moreover, giving vent to rage would not save Terri and would only reinforce the slanderous beliefs of those who are emotionally invested in seeing Terri's defenders as merely an irrational mob.
The better approach at this awful moment--the RIGHT approach--it seems to me, is to simply be in solidarity with Terri and her family.
For those who are Christian, during this Holy Week, the Lord showed the way. Pray. Pray for Terri at this, the time of her death. Pray for those doing this to Terri, "for they know not what they do." Pray for Terri's family that they find the deep peace that is beyond human understanding.
Torah and the Psalms offer much wisdom as we read of those being persecuted unto death who found wisdom and solace in the face of lethal societal rejection--which is precisely what Terri is experiencing.
Readers who are not sectarian but generally spiritual, I ask you to turn to that Source you perceive as governing life and seek solidarity with your dying sister at the level of the sublime. Contemplate what she is experiencing, be with her in your heart as she moves into whatever comes next.
For those without metaphysical beliefs, perhaps deep reflection and sober analysis are the right responses.
However we empathize with Terri and her family, our actions must always be, as we have the ability, centered in love.
And then, once Terri is gone, let us mourn her passing and always remember her sweet face as we strive unceasingly to create a society where all human life truly matters.
posted by Wesley J. Smith @ 6:30 AM
7 Comments
7 Comments:
This is good advice. I'm going to get off the computer right now so that I can pray and reflect as you suggest and to thereby gain the strength not to hate.
After that, I am going to get involved in trying to change these awful reductionist laws that deny the human spirit.
It is good advice, our family grieves for Terri and her family, my favortie prayer from the Torah is:
The Lord bless you and keep you
The Lord lift His countenance upon you,
And give you peace, and give you peace;
The Lord make His face to shine upon you,
And be gracious, and be gracious;
The Lord be gracious, gracious unto you.
In Christ,
The Gibbs Family
Villa Ridge, Missouri
It is good advice, our family grieves for Terri and her family, my favortie prayer from the Torah is:
The Lord bless you and keep you
The Lord lift His countenance upon you,
And give you peace, and give you peace;
The Lord make His face to shine upon you,
And be gracious, and be gracious;
The Lord be gracious, gracious unto you.
In Christ,
The Gibbs Family
Villa Ridge, Missouri
It is good advice, our family grieves for Terri and her family, my favortie prayer from the Torah is:
The Lord bless you and keep you
The Lord lift His countenance upon you,
And give you peace, and give you peace;
The Lord make His face to shine upon you,
And be gracious, and be gracious;
The Lord be gracious, gracious unto you.
In Christ,
The Gibbs Family
Villa Ridge, Missouri
Thank you both.
Thanks, Casey. Easy to say, hard to do. I almost went in the wrong direction on a radio program today. But that would not have been honoring to Terri.
Wesley,
I have had plenty of time to reflect upon what has been happening to Terri and how it has been played out in Holy Week. I have reflected upon how the story of Terri's betrayal served as a stark reminder of the betrayal of Jesus at Gethsemane.
Then as Terri lay dying, our beloved Pope John Paul II began his own dying journey. There was a stark contrast in what was played out. Terri's forced death lacked the dignity that the pro-euthanasia crowd claim that it would have, and Pope John Paul's death was very dignified, right up until the last breath. What a lesson for all of us.
Terri has not died in vain, and many of us, from all over the world are prepared to join together to ensure that we do not continue the descent into the hell of another holocaust.
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