I was watching a documentary about cock fighting in another country, when I saw a brief clip of such a fight. These are roosters bred and trained to fight, often to-the-death, with razor-sharp knives strapped to their feet.
Two of the birds are released in a ring to fight it out. As soon as they are released, they will charge toward each other and attack by pecking, biting, and kicking with those knives attached to their feet. When one of the birds goes down, the other does not stop attacking, even after the opponent is dead. The handler in this video threw a blanket over the winning bird to get it off the dead bird.
I have seen this kind of thing before, but this time, something different came to mind. I began thinking about how many people have become like that. When someone insults them, or displeases them in some way, they are ready to attack. It is often not enough to strike-back. Many times, they will continue attacking, even after they have inflicted a serious blow.
What makes humans feverishly attack one another, and seemingly be unable to stop? It is even dangerous to express an opinion about anything these days. It seems like everyone has reached a boiling point and could explode at any moment.
St. Paul, in writing to the Christians at Ephesus, explains how Jews and Gentiles have been brought together under the reign of Christ. This section of scripture also explains how Jesus completes the act of uniting and reconciling people, even from diverse cultures, into one body for the sake of His Name and Kingdom.
“… remember that at one time you were without Christ … strangers to the covenants of the promise, having no hope and without God in the world … For He is our peace; in His flesh he has made both groups into one and has broken down the dividing wall, that is, the hostility between us.” (Ephesians 2:11-22)
In the name of Jesus, we must be reconciled to Him and one another. We will not find peace until we accept the reconciling power of the blood of Jesus. By his flesh we are made one flesh. I pray by the power of the name and blood of Jesus that America will learn reconciliation, stop beating each other up, and practice love and acceptance. I pray that we will create and sustain new ways for all Christians to worship and work together to improve our communities and our Nation.
I pray that the full peace of God will rain down on our Nation and the world, and we will be reconciled to God, and healed of our wounds.
Blessings and Peace to You All,
Fr. David+
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