The 20th Century was one of the most violent on record. We experienced 2 world wars, civil war in many countries, genocides in Armenia, Germany, Bosnia, Cambodia, and Rwanda. The 21st Century still sees extreme violence in South Africa, the Middle East and Central America. We question our faith when we think of such violence and wonder how such violence can exist.
Violence exists in our hearts and our minds and only we have the power to make a positive change in the world. Alongside the stories of violence, we have stories of immense love and passion. People who have stood up for what they believe in. People who gave their life for others and set an example for us. We have such great leaders who stood up for peace and were willing to give their life for what they believe in such as Abraham Lincoln, Mahatma Ghandi, the 14th Dalai Lama Tenzin Gytso, Nelson Mandela, Martin Luther King, and Pope John Paul II.
I am certainly not asking you to give your life, but to think about the daily choices you make. Are you willing to give a smile to stranger, help someone who is struggling, fight for a cause? We can change the world through the smallest of gestures a little bit at a time.
Today is the Feast Day of St. Stanislaus who was a Bishop and Martyr. Coming from a family with social stature, he gave up everything he had and went into the priesthood. He wanted the king to lead a more Christian life and he stood up against the king when he committed evil acts and he was eventually killed by the king. He became a martyr for the cause.
Violence exists in our hearts and our minds and only we have the power to make a positive change in the world. Alongside the stories of violence, we have stories of immense love and passion. People who have stood up for what they believe in. People who gave their life for others and set an example for us. We have such great leaders who stood up for peace and were willing to give their life for what they believe in such as Abraham Lincoln, Mahatma Ghandi, the 14th Dalai Lama Tenzin Gytso, Nelson Mandela, Martin Luther King, and Pope John Paul II.
I am certainly not asking you to give your life, but to think about the daily choices you make. Are you willing to give a smile to stranger, help someone who is struggling, fight for a cause? We can change the world through the smallest of gestures a little bit at a time.
Today is the Feast Day of St. Stanislaus who was a Bishop and Martyr. Coming from a family with social stature, he gave up everything he had and went into the priesthood. He wanted the king to lead a more Christian life and he stood up against the king when he committed evil acts and he was eventually killed by the king. He became a martyr for the cause.