"[Rev. Donald Ward Sr.] got through the initial waves of mourning, thanks to a network of Seattle pastors, including the Rev. Sanford Brown, the executive director of the Church Council of Greater Seattle, and the love of family and friends. Then, he cried alone.
"Ward has read the Bible from beginning to end many times. He is a careful student of history. But knowledge doesn't explain what his son died for.
"I reflect on it and compare it to Vietnam," Ward said. "I think of the statements by General (William) Westmoreland and other people. What they said back then is what some are saying now. I just don't see us winning over there."
"At times, his flock wonders why the president paints Iraq and the war on terrorism in black-and-white religious terms, invoking stark words to suggest an epic struggle between Christianity and Islam, good versus evil.
"What I try to teach, preach and live is that the moment we think we are better than anyone else, we've made a mistake," Ward said. "We aren't better than any one nationality or economic group. We're supposed to be about love."
"The nation needs a new direction," the pastor continued. "We were once respected in the world, not hated, and a lot of that is because of what we are doing. We've moved away from the Kennedy years and the mission of the Peace Corps and helping nations as opposed to ruling over them. Boy, I could go on."
"But he did not. He caught himself and softened.
No comments:
Post a Comment