In order for a war to be just, three things are necessary. First, the authority of the sovereign. Secondly, a just cause. Thirdly, a rightful intention…
…nothing, except sin, is contrary to an act of virtue. But war is contrary to peace. Therefore war is always a sin.
Saint Thomas Aquinas
I was reading a novel the other day that was puslished in 1995. The book was written by the late author, Tony Hillerman, entitle, “Finding Moon”. The plot was set at the end of the United States’ involvement in the war in Vietnam.
As I was reading cuts from the news of the day, I was struck by the similarities between our most recent and current wars. In each case, soldiers were sent to a foreign land, fought and shed blood on the promise of liberating foreign citizens from the encroaching stranglehold of seeming tyrants and terrorists, only to be pulled out before they gained the victory.
The retreats were caused by the stoke of a presidential pen. Both American citizens and terrified nationalists remained trapped and forgotten in a nightmare scenario as only the choice individuals were allowed to flee the coming onslaught. Expensive military equipment was left as well and landed easily into the hands of the formerly declared enemies.
Gains…
Money flowed from the wars. Lives were lost. Families were torn apart. No real victory was ever won. Empty promises destroyed, leaving the tyrants in place. And lost lives only a number in someone’s record keeping.
Only the corporations and governments directly involved made any profit of the losses. Profits affecting their bottom line.
But to what end?
Unanswered questions…
Parallel wars. Strings of them since WWI.
Questions plague the human race on so many levels. Societies try to forget the horrors and devastations left behind. They write them out of their histories. The victor always changes the outcome in the minds of their citizens.
But these scenes haunt the human psyche – especially those who lived through it. The only life that seems to emerge from these conflicts is the consolidations of globally controlled powers of the few over the many. Money flows into the coffers of corporations, industrial and medical complexes, and the wealthy in control of the narratives.
But to what end?
What human being is so unaffected by the suffering the masses than the power hungry who foist this evil on the world for their own gain, willing to destroy the lives of the innocent in the process. They disdain the human race and the attainment of real peace.
Parallel wars do not exist in a vacuum.
Parallel wars do not exist in a vacuum. But when our past memories are void (forgotten on purpose by the individual or removed from the collective memory by others), these same problems repeat themselves with the full consent of those upon which war falls. The innocent become the victims, and those who have raised the clarion warning call are silenced forever.
It may not touch our comfortable lives – yet. But evil never leaves stones unturned. Where the slightest neglect of any good exists, evil takes advantage of the opportunity.
So what is there we must do?
We must never forget.
Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.
George Santayana, “The Life of Reason, or The Phases of Human Progress”, 1905
We have, at present, forgotten to teach the young both history and objective truth. Society teaches that the children should grow up unfettered by any preset notions so they can “decide for themselves”. After two generations, we have adults who have no moral or ethical bearings. Understandable, as the lack of any foundation upon which to build their understanding has left them a hollow shell.
Add to this the modernity of communication in the hands of the children. It is unavoidable for them not to be subject to the influences of social media and the educational system in place, they are undergoing a radical shift in the mindset of our culture.
What we knew to be true is no longer true for them…
That needs to change. And it will not be without much effort. But at lease we must try – beginning with our own memories, and then passing those on to the children. Teach them right from wrong, good from evil. Without a firm grasp on what their boundaries should look like, they will waver constantly, trying first one path, then the next, yet never finding their place because they were denied that in their childhood.
Right now the wheat is ripe for the harvest.
Right now the wheat is ripe for the harvest. These spiritually hungry souls are now seeking places of refuge…and finding them. And that can turn the tide of our current course.
And in the end, good will always triumph after the darkness has exhausted its course. In but a little while, after the worst of the evil that exists in our world today will be exhausted. The evidence will be shown when the parallel wars will be no more.
Then the Good will ultimately be victorious.