Perserverance in Peace-Making

I came across an article by Patricia LeFevere in the National Catholic Reporter about how to keep confronting the powers that be when things look bleak. Here are some excerpts, focusing on the ideas and activism of now 84-year-old Jesuit and peace activist, Daniel Berrigan:

"For Berrigan, showing up for prayer or to struggle for peace are not disconnected. Both are means of summoning hope and love in times that seem bereft of compassion and charity. . .

Those troubled by the U.S.-led war against Iraq want to know from this aging protester, poet and oft-imprisoned peace prophet whether there are reasons for hope now that support for the war is fading and a drive the bring the troops home shows signs of burgeoning--even in the halls of Congress.

[At a talk] Berrigan challenged them to identify their own sources of hope. The priest read Ezekiel 37, the story of the resurrected dry bones. It was, he said, a tale about a people after a disaster had befallen them, a people who had given up on life, on the future, and on God.

The Jesuit made comparisons between the exiled Israelites in captivity in Babylon and Americans who feel 'exiled' by their government's war and antiterrorism policies. He also found similarities between the captivity of the ancient Jews and the occupation of Iraq by U.S. and foreign forces.

Berrigan quoted a Cold War-era letter from Thomas Merton to Polish poet Czeslaw Milosz in which Merton writes that 'despair is the normal form taken by hope' in a time of enmity and war-making.

Many attendeess spoke of their own near despair and their concern about a new kind of 'suppression' and 'censorship' emanating from Washington.

'I can't get over the anger I feel that my government continues to commit the crimes it does in my name,' said Mary Ring of Wall, N.J., who said she struggles to retain hope.

When viewed in the light of violence and evil, 'anger is a good pro-human activity,' Berrigan said. 'It keeps us walking the talk.' . . .

Berrigan told NCR that the antiwar movement is only 'slowly building momentum.' He urged patience, pointing to the campaign against the Vietnam War that operated almost a decade before it had much effect on altering the course of the conflict. 'Everyone back then thought William Stingfellow' -- a lawyer and civil rights fighter and one of the first to oppose the Vietnam War -- 'sounded ridiculous.'

What is retarding the current antiwar movement is a lack of support from mainline media, he said. Major communications outlets have failed to investigate and critique the reasons for the Iraq invasion, he said, adding that many in the press and broadcasting industry were 'complicit' in the rush to war. . .

Too often peace activists become disillusioned by their seeming failure to make a difference. His advice: 'Do the good and let it go. Don't get too addicted to success.' "

Thanks for reading,
Mary