Peace on Earth and Goodwill to Men

 by Rev. Amari Magdalena

A year is closing, the first year of the 20’s decade. Turned out to be not what we were expecting or wishing for as we rang it in 12 months ago.  Physical, economic, mental, and emotional challenges were presented to us on so many fronts of life that we had come to accept as ‘normal.’ We had a rude awakening!

We had to surrender physical touch with many in our groups.  Many people could no longer go into their work settings. Those that did, because their profession was considered ‘essential,’ were much more exposed to the deadly pandemic that was sweeping across the globe. Others worked from home.

Political battles took horrendously ugly turns as citizen against citizen flashed in mobs on our visual devices.  Families became unraveled over their political differences.  Hate bubbled up along with growing prejudice broadcast in living color from law officers choking a man to death with a neck hold.

We ran out of toilet paper and other essentials as hoarding cleared shelves at our local stores. Supplies of other things we had taken for granted, disappeared.  In most places shutdowns to help prevent the spread, caused local businesses to close as big box stores had better distribution systems to deliver goods survived.

Sadness, anger, despair, hate, and depression visited the emotions of many of us as the world we had come to assume permanent began to unravel.  The disease began to spread and reach into sections originally spared as many chose to deny the crisis and leadership labeled it a hoax.  First wave penetrated the populous as medical facilities became overwhelmed.  Pictures of body bags stacked on racks haunted our dreams of reality.

As the pandemic grew exponentially, so did enmity and harsh political oppositions.  We had to fight for the right to vote in absentia.  Yet the election finally happened and a winner by over 7 million votes was evidenced.  Yet, enmity and divide did not abate fueled by denial of the outcome by leadership and cult followers.

Now we have arrived at the closing curtain of 2020 and are holding our breaths with hopes for 2021. Some will imbibe in alcohol or drugs to enter 2021.  Others will hide hoping that a repeat year will not be seen.  Songs of love and peace and holiday lights may remind many of us to breathe and begin to bridge the chasm of divide and reunite with our families.

Peace on Earth and Goodwill to Men will play loud enough for us to hear over the din of descension.  Many of us will be reminded to set aside our staunch postures of “they are wrong, we’re right” and remember our mission is peace.  Others will, yet to be freed of egoic positions, deny any possibility of reunion.

Yet reunion is no longer a subject of maybe, it is an imperative for salvation.  The salvaging will not be just mere humanity.  The ecological damage to our planet and human sustainability will be demanded of us to remedy.  We will be faced harshly with the reality of what kind of world we will leave to the coming generations who are bluntly holding us responsible for our poor choices.

So, beyond the horns blowing, fireworks exploding, campaign bottles popping and a sigh of relief, will be the loudest call for humanity ever to do a search and rescue operation for Peace on Earth and Goodwill to Men.  We can pretend, yet not escape the truth.  Foolishness of submersion in self and fueling division will render a massive annihilation. If seventy-years are to be repeated it will indeed be the war to end all wars.

Thus, I appeal to you this pivotal night to lay down the swords of hatred, division, and separation. Become soldiers for peace. Demand a Department of Peace among our governmental agencies. Check yourself out in terms of your biases.  Be bold enough to embrace differences until you can distill the points of dissention down to commonalities that clearly bring peace among people and goodwill to all sentient beings on the planet. Time for the resurgence of the Flower children’s mantra “Make love not war!”

 They asked her, “What is the key to saving the world?”

She answered: “You! You are the key.  Heal yourself, know yourself, make yourself whole and free.  Release all limits so that your love can flow unconditionally for yourself and the world, this will open the heaven of your heart completely and it will guide you without fail.” Yung Pueblo

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

  

Quotation used in El Mundo Bueno: Saving Humanity and Our Glorious Planet by Amari Magdalena