Lethal Weapon

Walking the way of peace and mercy  

Jeremiah 26:11-16, 24  

The priests and prophets said to the princes and to all the people, “This man deserves death; he has prophesied against this city, as you have heard with your own ears.” Jeremiah gave this answer to the princes and all the people: “It was the LORD who sent me to prophesy against this house and city all that you have heard. Now, therefore, reform your ways and your deeds; listen to the voice of the LORD your God, so that the LORD will repent of the evil with which he threatens you. As for me, I am in your hands;  do with me what you think good and right. But mark well: if you put me to death, it is innocent blood you bring on yourselves, on this city and its citizens. For in truth it was the LORD who sent me to you, to speak all these things for you to hear.”   

          One of the great blessings of my trip to India was being able to see something beautiful in the blood of Indians, namely, the spirit of non-violence. That is, there is a willingness to suffer injustice, inequality, and ingratitude without fighting back, without killing in return. We wield the weapon of non-violence. In the movie “Gandhi,” the great Indian liberator said, “In this cause I am prepared to die. But there is no cause for which I am prepared to kill.” Then he continued with these eloquent words: “They may torture my body, they may break my bones, they may even kill me. Then, they will have my dead body, but not my obedience.”   

          And Indians wield the weapon of non-violence not only for political purposes, but also for religious ones. Do you remember reading in the newspapers back in March about the one Indian nun (among other sisters) who was killed in Yemen and an Indian priest who was abducted by ISIS terrorists? In the attack on a home for the elderly run by the Missionaries of Charity, the terrorists wielded the weapons of guns and machetes; the only weapon the Indian priest carried was his rosary. And may I suggest that on the spiritual level, the rosary is the far more lethal weapon.

          In the first reading the prophet Jeremiah, too, is willing to die but not willing to kill to fulfill God’s will. He says – in terms strikingly similar to Gandhi – these lines: “As for me, I am in your hands, do with me what you think good and right. But mark well: if you put me to death, it is innocent blood you bring on yourselves, on this city and its citizens.” Jeremiah didn’t carry a rosary, but he had the same lethal weapon of non-violence that Indians love to carry. In other words, often non-violence is able to effect more lasting change than violence, hatred and inhumanity. After all, who’s in charge of India now?  

          My friends, what weapons do you use to fight injustice, inequality and ingratitude in your own life, or to fight it in the world at large? Often our anger at these problems tempts us to use force and to fight, like shooting police officers or riots and looting in the wake of brutality and bloodshed. Closer to home: we harbor hatred in our hearts for family and friends who hurt us, which (Jesus said) is like killing someone in your heart. But there is a better way in the beautiful blood of Indians: the path of non-violence and peace. There is a lot that needs to change in our world, and in our country and in our hearts: but the big question is what weapons will we use to make that change? Will we brandish a rifle or bring out our rosary? On the spiritual level - and that’s the level that ultimately matters - the rosary is the far more lethal weapon.

          Do you remember the advice Mr. Miyagi gave to Danielsun on the eve of the big tournament? He said: “Here are the two rules of Miyagi-Ryu Karate. Rule number one: ‘Karate for defense only.’ Rule number two: ‘First learn rule number one’.”  

          Praised be Jesus Christ!