Overcome evil with good.
~ Romans 12:21
Today much of the Western world marks the occasion of St. Patrick's Day. It seems a cruel cosmic joke that this joyous holiday, traditionally celebrated with song, dance, parades, and an abundance of feasting and toasting, intersects with the tragic aftermath of Friday's horrific massacre in New Zealand.One of my closest family members always cites New Zealand as a haven of refuge from the world's hate and violence. For the past several years, after each mass shooting that occurs in the United States, he vows to move to New Zealand.
The lesson here is that New Zealand offered only an illusion of peace and safety. Evil lives everywhere, even in a small nation of breathtaking beauty half a world away. If any answer is possible, what is the righteous person to do?
Do good. Contribute time or money to a favorite charity. Call or visit a friend or neighbor who is old, ill, or sad. Forgive a past hurt. Do one or all of these things. For just as lives can be destroyed by one brutal action, so too can they be gently healed by one small act of kindness.
