July 12th, 2020: The Need to Remember

 Day of the fallen: Remembrance day coverage across Calgary ...


There is a beautiful street in my city dedicated to the memory of men and women who made the ultimate sacrifice while serving in the Armed Forces. "Memorial Drive" is the name. We went for a walk there yesterday. We can see the beautiful red colour of the poppy flowers for miles along the drive. That is why we wear the red poppy pin as the symbol of remembrance.

A thought came to my mind during the walk. What would happen when some people decide to rewrite history and accuse our Armed Forces of participating in "unjust wars"? Would the name of this beautiful drive be changed? Would we deny these men and women their rightful place in history because they died for their country?

America has taken a long time to come to terms with the place of the Vietnam War in her history. Some still prefer the term "Vietnam Conflict" instead of the "Vietnam War" when talking about it. It was a war that divided and tore the USA apart. The most recent document by Ken Burns and Lynn Novick (The Vietnam War) has renewed some of these conversations. Yet, how should we grant the servicemen and women of that war a proper acknowledgment in history?

Somehow we feel so free to judge and to condemn men and women who were responsible for the birth of our nations. None of them was perfect, and neither are we. Taking down George Washington or removing Sir John MacDonald's statues tells us that we are unable to understand people's actions and choices within the context of the larger picture at the time. Have we ever asked the question: "Where would we be without their contributions to our nations?"

As we grow in our knowledge of who we are, we should have a comprehensive ability to appreciate our human courage in our human ignorance and limitations. We cannot walk in that tension without the understanding that none of us is free from it. If we claim that we are in the complete right position, we are running the risk of furthering our own ignorance.

The walk reminded me that although the history of Canada is not without errors, I still need to remember that many have done great things for this nation even with the mistakes they made. Our acknowledgment of the mistakes should not be our denial of their contributions.

Roman 8: 6
"The mind governed by the flesh is death, but the mind governed by the Spirit is life and peace."

Popular posts from this blog

Aug 31st, 2024: Confession

Image
Dealing with pain sometimes affects our ability and flexibility. A physiotherapist friend gave me a set of home exercises to help with that. They are simple yet intense at the same time. Dealing with our human brokenness sometimes affects our ability to see and hear God. Our commitment to spiritual disciplines must be at the core of our relationship with God. One of the disciplines I have been trying to embrace more fully is confession. It’s not just about recognizing where we have gone wrong; it’s about how we have chosen to live our lives independently from God. It’s about whether we truly want God to be part of our lives. The absence of meaningful confession will damage our freedom to experience intimacy with God. "Whoever conceals his transgressions will not prosper, but he who confesses and forsakes them will obtain mercy." - Proverbs 28:13
Read more

Sept 4th, 2024: Praying in Images

Image
It has been a rough few days. Living in immense pain does not allow us much energy to think about anything. I ended up praying in images, and not many words came out of my mouth. Most of the images were of people I know. God knew that I was praying for them as their faces came to my mind. I did not need to mention the circumstances or situations of their lives—He knows. My heart was at peace as I ended my days with these images. He will take care of my body, and I know this because I was able to get some sleep. Tomorrow is in His hands.
Read more

Oct 1st, 2022: Be With Those Who Suffer

Image
  Listening to a young woman who shared her experience of being raped repeatedly by a family member for over four years as a teenager made my heart ache. The man who did that was a leader of a church. He was imprisoned for seven months and released. He was her stepfather. Her mother chose to pick him over her after his release. Her life has changed forever. She had to go to a foster home. Her foster parents helped her with her restoration and her faith in God. Her supervisor at work asked me to see her because someone at work was inappropriate toward her. That triggered many emotions within her. I did not expect the story I heard from her. The meeting took longer than I thought, and it was toward the end of the day. She kept talking about her anger and the pain she felt when men treated her like a subject. I knew that the best I could do was to listen. She told me she had not been able to tell anyone as much as with me. God reminded me of the true calling of being a pas...
Read more