November 1st - All Saints Day
This Halloween approaching All Saints Day tomorrow, I find myself pondering those who have gone before us, in particular the generation named by Tom Brokaw as "the Greatest Generation," those who were born in the years 1905 through 1925. In my pastoral ministry career, which began in 1980 in seminary and formerly with my ordination in 1984, I have ministered with and to this age group and have officiated at the funerals for a lot of them. Before that as a high school trumpet player from 1968 through 1972, I played taps at my community's Memorial Day Ceremonies. My heart aches at the thought of what they must be thinking as they watch from life's balcony the socio-political climate of our country and world.
They grew up amidst the horrors of WW1 and the rise of fascism in Europe in its aftermath of economic depression in Europe in the 1920's then here at home in the 1930's. They came of age overhearing their parents concerns of news in Germany and Italy, fear mongering, identifying groups as the scapegoat causes of society's ills, the demonizing of Jews, homosexuals, the disabled, non-Aryan people of color and mixed race; the push for the racial purity; the idealization and defense of the homeland; and concentration of power. As young adults, they fought and defeated fascist totalitarianism in WW2 and then communist totalitarianism in the Cold War which included the Korean Conflict and Vietnam War! They grieved fallen warriors who fought by their side and buried them in cemeteries in Normandy and around the world, and remembered them their whole lives.
They came home with nightmares of horrors, this time experienced first hand in that second war that engulfed the whole world. They returned grateful to be alive. Their haunting but mostly unspoken questions were portrayed by the character Private Ryan in the closing scene of Steven Spielberg's movie "Saving Private Ryan," when visiting the grave of his captain who saved his life. With his family watching at a distance, he asks his wife the question which most of them never articulated, but which motivated their lives, "Have I been a good man? Am I worthy of their sacrifice to save me?" Silently they wondered and privately with their rabbis, imams and pastors like me, "Why did I survive to live and not them?" Yet, they married, had children like me, which filled schools and Sunday Schools causing a construction boom to accommodate us all. They gathered in churches, synagogues/temples, and mosques to worship God, who they believed answered their prayers and delivered them and civil society.
They created institutions like the United Nations and in 1948 adopted the International Declaration of Human Rights. Not wanting to make the same mistake twice, they invested in the rebuilding of Europe's and Japan's infrastructure through the Marshall Plan lifting up their former enemy. Later the Peace Corp was formed sending their young adult children to underdeveloped countries to address poverty and to build cross cultural relationships. Our Laura Schuring is a veteran Peace Corp worker. Rotary International organized as a society of professional leaders in local communities around the world with the mission of learning from each other and about each other's cultures with the hope of avoiding the travesties of war caused by the demonization of others out of ignorance. To demystify "the other," Rotary established student exchanges, and group study exchanges of young professionals to learn about different cultures and share their experiences with others back home. I participated in such a group study exchange touring Brazil as guests of Brazilian Rotarians for five weeks in 1987. Costly investments such as these were made to built a more peaceful world.
What must this Great Generation be thinking as again today one group after another is labeled "the other," demonized and scapegoated as "the problem" to society's ills, named the enemy to be feared and fought in defense of the homeland and way of life? What must they be thinking as the freedom of the press established in the very first Amendment to the U.S. Constitution and a hallmark of a free society America champions is questioned, their role of asking questions, demanding answers, and reporting the words and actions of the administration is called into question, belittled, dismissed as "fake news," and charged "the enemy of the people?" What must they be thinking as our president defended white supremacists Neo-Nazis as good people after the violent counterprotest in Charlottesville last year? What must they be thinking as the president proudly self identifies as a Nationalist, a code name for white supremacists, who seeks white control and dominance? What must they be thinking as he cuddles to Russia and spurns NATO and our allies? What must they be thinking as his crowded rallys cheer on his belittling, bullying, hate invoking words, of his familiar sounding promises to save them and make the homeland great again? To what greatness is he returning us? A time when white men were clearly running things, when people of color and women suffered diminished subservient roles and and highly defined restricted rights, when LGBTQ persons had no rights at all and treated as criminals? My father bailed my gay uncle out of jail for solicitation in a public restroom in 1950 in Philadelphia! My uncle only dreamed of such new found civil rights. What must they be thinking as separation border walls are constructed and mare the landscape and civility in Israel and on our southern border; as I.C.E. agents like the Gestapo round up undocumented persons; as detainment camps are constructed and to house them at the profit of private corporations; as children are separated from their families; and their possessions....WHAT IS HAPPENING TO THESE FAMILIES' POSSESSIONS? Millions of dollars worth of art was stolen from the Jews. What is happening to these detained family's things today? What must they be thinking as our military is sent this week to our southern border to stop "an invasion" of Central American political and economic refugees fleeing violence and economic conditions at home, conditions exacerbated by our U.S. foreign and corporate policies? What ever happened to our being that shining city on a hill to which former President Reagon fondly refered, and what happened to the aspiration of Emma Lazarus's sonnet engraved on the Statue of Liberty, "Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free." https://www.theatlantic.com/entertainment/archive/2018/01/the-story-behind-the-poem-on-the-statue-of-liberty/550553/
They would remember how in 1939 the MS St Louis filled with Jewish political refugees fleeing Nazi containment policies was turned away, and there shame and grief afterwards for having done so when they learned how Jews had been systematically eradicated by extermination. Horrific! Have we learned nothing from history? What must they be thinking of the murder last week of 11 Jewish congregants as they gathered at the Tree of Life Synagogue in Pittsburgh stirred to action by anti-semitic speech? What must they be thinking as a supporter acts on the president's words sending pipe bombs in the mail to his identified political opponents? What must they be thinking as the president at the same time announces intended executive orders that will remove the right of citizenship from children of undocumented born in the United States, a right established in the 14th Amendment, and that he will repeal the rights of extended to transgendered citizens by the Supreme Court? What must they be thinking? I suspect they are rolling in their graves!
Mass rallies; hate speech; appeals to violence; demonization of the the other; undermining trust in public institutions: the Department of Justice, the FBI, CIA; lies which are either psychological projection or intentional misdirection or both; fueling division rather than appealing to unity; policies which overlook and violate our Constitution, obsessive documentation as a way of restricting voting rights protected in the 15th and 24th Amendments and disempowering the marginalized; and the ghettoization of the unwanted are all drawn from the fascist playbook of the 1930s, and what the Great Generation fought and died to protect against, and worked to never let happen again.
Fascism is not something most of us have given much thought until President Trump's candidacy and election. Most of us have been loathe to name it. But it's time to break the silence. We have now seen it's implementation. It's time for a history lesson, before we follow this path any further. Wikipedia provides the following definitions and etymology.
"Fascism (/ˈfæʃɪzəm/) is a form of radical authoritarian ultranationalism, characterized by dictatorial power, forcible suppression of opposition and strong regimentation of society and of the economy....Etymology: The Italian term fascismo is derived from fascio meaning a bundle of rods, ultimately from the Latin word fasces. This was the name given to political organizations in Italy known as fasci, groups similar to guilds or syndicates. According to Mussolini's own account, the Fascist Revolutionary Party (Partito Fascista Rivoluzionario or PFR) was founded in Italy in 1915. In 1919, Mussolini founded the Fasci Italiani di Combattimento in Milan, which became the Partito Nazionale Fascista (National Fascist Party) two years later. The Fascists came to associate the term with the ancient Roman fasces or fascio littorio—a bundle of rods tied around an axe, an ancient Roman symbol of the authority of the civic magistrate carried by his lictors, which could be used for corporal and capital punishment at his command.
They grew up amidst the horrors of WW1 and the rise of fascism in Europe in its aftermath of economic depression in Europe in the 1920's then here at home in the 1930's. They came of age overhearing their parents concerns of news in Germany and Italy, fear mongering, identifying groups as the scapegoat causes of society's ills, the demonizing of Jews, homosexuals, the disabled, non-Aryan people of color and mixed race; the push for the racial purity; the idealization and defense of the homeland; and concentration of power. As young adults, they fought and defeated fascist totalitarianism in WW2 and then communist totalitarianism in the Cold War which included the Korean Conflict and Vietnam War! They grieved fallen warriors who fought by their side and buried them in cemeteries in Normandy and around the world, and remembered them their whole lives.
They came home with nightmares of horrors, this time experienced first hand in that second war that engulfed the whole world. They returned grateful to be alive. Their haunting but mostly unspoken questions were portrayed by the character Private Ryan in the closing scene of Steven Spielberg's movie "Saving Private Ryan," when visiting the grave of his captain who saved his life. With his family watching at a distance, he asks his wife the question which most of them never articulated, but which motivated their lives, "Have I been a good man? Am I worthy of their sacrifice to save me?" Silently they wondered and privately with their rabbis, imams and pastors like me, "Why did I survive to live and not them?" Yet, they married, had children like me, which filled schools and Sunday Schools causing a construction boom to accommodate us all. They gathered in churches, synagogues/temples, and mosques to worship God, who they believed answered their prayers and delivered them and civil society.
They created institutions like the United Nations and in 1948 adopted the International Declaration of Human Rights. Not wanting to make the same mistake twice, they invested in the rebuilding of Europe's and Japan's infrastructure through the Marshall Plan lifting up their former enemy. Later the Peace Corp was formed sending their young adult children to underdeveloped countries to address poverty and to build cross cultural relationships. Our Laura Schuring is a veteran Peace Corp worker. Rotary International organized as a society of professional leaders in local communities around the world with the mission of learning from each other and about each other's cultures with the hope of avoiding the travesties of war caused by the demonization of others out of ignorance. To demystify "the other," Rotary established student exchanges, and group study exchanges of young professionals to learn about different cultures and share their experiences with others back home. I participated in such a group study exchange touring Brazil as guests of Brazilian Rotarians for five weeks in 1987. Costly investments such as these were made to built a more peaceful world.
What must this Great Generation be thinking as again today one group after another is labeled "the other," demonized and scapegoated as "the problem" to society's ills, named the enemy to be feared and fought in defense of the homeland and way of life? What must they be thinking as the freedom of the press established in the very first Amendment to the U.S. Constitution and a hallmark of a free society America champions is questioned, their role of asking questions, demanding answers, and reporting the words and actions of the administration is called into question, belittled, dismissed as "fake news," and charged "the enemy of the people?" What must they be thinking as our president defended white supremacists Neo-Nazis as good people after the violent counterprotest in Charlottesville last year? What must they be thinking as the president proudly self identifies as a Nationalist, a code name for white supremacists, who seeks white control and dominance? What must they be thinking as he cuddles to Russia and spurns NATO and our allies? What must they be thinking as his crowded rallys cheer on his belittling, bullying, hate invoking words, of his familiar sounding promises to save them and make the homeland great again? To what greatness is he returning us? A time when white men were clearly running things, when people of color and women suffered diminished subservient roles and and highly defined restricted rights, when LGBTQ persons had no rights at all and treated as criminals? My father bailed my gay uncle out of jail for solicitation in a public restroom in 1950 in Philadelphia! My uncle only dreamed of such new found civil rights. What must they be thinking as separation border walls are constructed and mare the landscape and civility in Israel and on our southern border; as I.C.E. agents like the Gestapo round up undocumented persons; as detainment camps are constructed and to house them at the profit of private corporations; as children are separated from their families; and their possessions....WHAT IS HAPPENING TO THESE FAMILIES' POSSESSIONS? Millions of dollars worth of art was stolen from the Jews. What is happening to these detained family's things today? What must they be thinking as our military is sent this week to our southern border to stop "an invasion" of Central American political and economic refugees fleeing violence and economic conditions at home, conditions exacerbated by our U.S. foreign and corporate policies? What ever happened to our being that shining city on a hill to which former President Reagon fondly refered, and what happened to the aspiration of Emma Lazarus's sonnet engraved on the Statue of Liberty, "Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free." https://www.theatlantic.com/entertainment/archive/2018/01/the-story-behind-the-poem-on-the-statue-of-liberty/550553/
They would remember how in 1939 the MS St Louis filled with Jewish political refugees fleeing Nazi containment policies was turned away, and there shame and grief afterwards for having done so when they learned how Jews had been systematically eradicated by extermination. Horrific! Have we learned nothing from history? What must they be thinking of the murder last week of 11 Jewish congregants as they gathered at the Tree of Life Synagogue in Pittsburgh stirred to action by anti-semitic speech? What must they be thinking as a supporter acts on the president's words sending pipe bombs in the mail to his identified political opponents? What must they be thinking as the president at the same time announces intended executive orders that will remove the right of citizenship from children of undocumented born in the United States, a right established in the 14th Amendment, and that he will repeal the rights of extended to transgendered citizens by the Supreme Court? What must they be thinking? I suspect they are rolling in their graves!
Mass rallies; hate speech; appeals to violence; demonization of the the other; undermining trust in public institutions: the Department of Justice, the FBI, CIA; lies which are either psychological projection or intentional misdirection or both; fueling division rather than appealing to unity; policies which overlook and violate our Constitution, obsessive documentation as a way of restricting voting rights protected in the 15th and 24th Amendments and disempowering the marginalized; and the ghettoization of the unwanted are all drawn from the fascist playbook of the 1930s, and what the Great Generation fought and died to protect against, and worked to never let happen again.
Fascism is not something most of us have given much thought until President Trump's candidacy and election. Most of us have been loathe to name it. But it's time to break the silence. We have now seen it's implementation. It's time for a history lesson, before we follow this path any further. Wikipedia provides the following definitions and etymology.
"Fascism (/ˈfæʃɪzəm/) is a form of radical authoritarian ultranationalism, characterized by dictatorial power, forcible suppression of opposition and strong regimentation of society and of the economy....Etymology: The Italian term fascismo is derived from fascio meaning a bundle of rods, ultimately from the Latin word fasces. This was the name given to political organizations in Italy known as fasci, groups similar to guilds or syndicates. According to Mussolini's own account, the Fascist Revolutionary Party (Partito Fascista Rivoluzionario or PFR) was founded in Italy in 1915. In 1919, Mussolini founded the Fasci Italiani di Combattimento in Milan, which became the Partito Nazionale Fascista (National Fascist Party) two years later. The Fascists came to associate the term with the ancient Roman fasces or fascio littorio—a bundle of rods tied around an axe, an ancient Roman symbol of the authority of the civic magistrate carried by his lictors, which could be used for corporal and capital punishment at his command.
"The symbolism of the fasces suggested strength through unity: a single rod is easily broken, while the bundle is difficult to break. Similar symbols were developed by different fascist movements: for example, the Falange symbol is five arrows joined together by a yoke.
Historians, political scientists and other scholars have long debated the exact nature of fascism. Each group described as fascist has at least some unique elements, and many definitions of fascism have been criticized as either too wide or narrow. One common definition of the term focuses on three concepts:
- the fascist negations (anti-liberalism, anti-communism and anti-conservatism);
- nationalist authoritarian goals of creating a regulated economic structure to transform social relations within a modern, self-determined culture; and
- a political aesthetic of romantic symbolism, mass mobilization, a positive view of violence and promotion of masculinity, youth and charismatic leadership." For further see https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fascism
On this Halloween and All Saints Day, my thoughts are on those who have been here and done this. They wanted to avoid going down this path ever again. They did their part. Now it is our turn to wake up, to break the silence, to resist, to claim our shared values of basic human rights enshrined in our Constitution, the dignity of all persons, the right to medical care, the welcome and hospitality to the resident alien commanded in the Hebrew scriptures (Deuteronomy 10:18-19), the beauty and strength of diversity demonstrated in nature, of public education (democracy does not work without it), the importance of the role of effective government for the common good, and an interdependent sustainable just economy that works for everyone including the environment of which we are stewards. The earth is our habitat and we are dangerously messing up our home!
Abraham Lincoln in his Gettysburg Address following that bloody civil war battle, one of America's most celebrated speeches, appealed to the sacrifice of the lives lost on that battlefield. He urged, "that these dead shall not have died in vain — that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth." The Great Generation, of which I've remembered here, came along 40-60 years later. Ironic how as most of them are now laid to rest our civil life together teeters again in peril. It is now our turn to step up, break the silence and stand up as patriots of this fragil American experiment. Fortunately, I still have the right to vote, and I intend to do so kicking and screaming for candidates who support the U.S. Constitution and these values I hold dear, and implore you to do so as well.
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