Words of Advice from Jim Wallis

Wallis was speaking this at an interfaith prayer service shortly after the 9/11 attacks

Lighting a candle at an interfaith service is something may of us have done more times than we can remember. Speaking the language of darkness and light on religious occasions and in liturgical seasons has also become a matter of habit. But our darkness feels very real and powerful in this moment - almost impenetrable, and threatening to close in on us. And the light we need is feeling almost urgent.  

Old familiar spiritual words must take on a new reality for us now - and a new sense of mission. Words like "Let there be light!" and "The light has come into the darkness and the darkness has not overcome it."  

So tonight, we don't just light candles, we make a commitment. More than we knew before September 11, there are many dark places in the world where unspeakable violence against large numbers of innocent people is being planned. Let those places be exposed to the light of day and the violence be thwarted.  

There are many other dark places in the world, where grinding, miserable, and life-destroying poverty carries out daily violence to other innocents - out of the view of a fast-moving, affluent world. Let those hidden places and people be exposed to the light of justice. 

There are dark places within us and in our nation that might lash out from our deep woundedness, grief, and anger, carelessly inflicting more pain on innocent people. Let the light of compassion and reason prevent us from spreading our pain.  

There are dark places within and among us that might retaliate from fear and revenge against even our fellow citizens who happen to be Muslim or Arab American - many of whom tonight feel the darkness of their own fear. Let the light of tolerance and solidarity bind us together and not let us be torn apart.  

And tonight, most of us feel the darkness of our own confusion about how this happened, why this happened, and how to protect ourselves, our families, and the world. Let us be illumined by the light of understanding.  

So that we not just cling to old ways of thinking, but go deeper than we ever have before to seek new answers. So that we learn to carefully comprehend the connections between the violence of the world, while never allowing ourselves to tolerate any of it - ever again.  

And let the light of courage equip us to face the darkness that lies so thick and heavy before us. Courage to heal the darkness in ourselves. Courage to reveal the darkness in the very structure of our world. Courage to confront the darkness in the face of evil we saw on September 11. And let us remember that courage is not the absence of fear, but resistance to it.  

So now, let us light our candles as an act of commitment. That the darkness will not overcome the light.

Thoughts from Palestinian leaders, authors and intellectuals on Sept. 17, 2001

No cause, not even a just cause, can make legitimate the killing of innocent civilians, no matter how long the list of accusations and the register of grievances. Terror never paves the way to justice, but leads down a short path to hell.

I will add...neither does drone attacks killing innocent people or a war in Afghanistan that more and more soldiers continue to be sent to "win a war against terrorism." When you fight and ideal, it will never end...

Please pray for the government and the people of the United States to be a promoter of peace, both in our foreign policy and our general attitudes toward others different from us. Pray for this to be a Beloved Community!