There is a Love that is deeper than love,
that fills the world,
that fuels the world.
O, give thanks and sing.
From Genesis 18:16-23 (Paraphrased):
The Lord, having heard much outcry about the sins of the two cities, was prepared to destroy them, and all the people in them. But Abraham challenged the Lord: ‘Suppose there are 50 righteous within the city; will you then sweep away the place and not forgive it for the 50 righteous who are in it? Far be it from you to do such a thing, to slay the righteous with the wicked…Shall not the Judge of all the earth do what is just?’ And the Lord said, ‘If I find 50 righteous in the city, I will forgive the whole place for their sake.’ Abraham answered, ‘Suppose five of the 50 righteous are lacking? Will you destroy the whole city for lack of five?’ And he said, ‘I will not destroy it if I find 45 there.’ “What if there are 40?” asked Abraham. “Or 30? Or 20?” And each time, the Lord conceded. Then Abraham said, ‘Oh do not let the Lord be angry if I speak just once more. Suppose 10 are found there.’ He answered, ‘For the sake of 10 I will not destroy it.’
Holy one, can we – dare we – become like you, willing to be swayed when we want to wipe out an entire group of people?
In today’s world, where Saudi Arabia just declared that all atheists are terrorists,
and two charity-operated boats full of rescued migrants remain off the coast of Italy,
overcrowded and in unsanitary conditions, unable to disembark because of feuding between Italian leaders,
while Kashmiris are once again caught between the territorial claims of India and Pakistan,
and North Korea again refuses peace talks with South Korea…
Holy one, can we – dare we – welcome those who speak with the bravery of Abraham, calling even those who seem as powerful as gods to rediscover their better natures?
We watch as 16-year-old activist Greta Thunberg of Sweden sets sail across the Atlantic on a hyper-efficient yacht, to draw attention to climate change. We read of the court in Belgium that is investigating an orphanage for alleged abduction and trafficking of children from the Democratic Republic of Congo, taking young children from their parents in the guise of giving them a holiday and instead illegally sending them out of the country for adoption. We hear calls for Google to better police the ads they accept, as studies show that Google Maps is overrun with as many as 11 million false business addresses and ads per day.
Holy one, can we – dare we – love like you, forgiving all if there are even a few righteous among them?
When the Israeli Women’s Under-19 Lacrosse team noticed that their opponents from Kenya were slipping all over the field because they didn’t have shoes with cleats, they didn’t have them removed from the game (even though playing without cleats is against the rules). Instead, they purchased shoes for every single member of the Kenyan team, and delivered them with hugs and friendship.
A group of Palestinian Authority young men wrote a moving message to the family of a 19-year-old Israeli student, after he was killed in a stabbing attack by Hamas-linked terrorists earlier this week.
A man with no family lost his wife in the El Paso, Texas, U.S., shooting two weeks ago, so he invited the public to her funeral – and more than 1000 have said they will attend in support.
Holy one, how can we ever doubt that there are righteous among those near and far to us, among both our friends and foes?
There is a Love that transcends the deepest love,
that fills the world,
that is ready to heal the world.
O, give thanks and sing.
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