‘There is a principle
which is pure, placed in the human mind,
which in different places and ages
hath had different names.
It is, however, pure and proceeds from God.
It is deep and inward,
confined to no forms of religion nor excluded from any,
where the heart stands in perfect sincerity,
In whomever this takes root and grows,
of what nation so ever, they become brethren in the best sense of the expression.’
From the essays of John Woolman
A salute to soldiers and innocent children, women and men who have fallen victim to the wars in
To this we pledge a commitment to begin to raise the consciousness of this ill-fated war and begin an honest dialogue amongst ourselves by lighting luminaries on the eve of the New Year 2007. We will attempt to inspire other high school youth to do the same in adjoining communities, throughout the state of
We are one humanity, born of a Mother’s womb and death comes to all of us. Let wisdom prevail and guide us.
10 comments:
What time is the Luminary lighting taking place? When should youth show up to help set it up? What is the location? Could this be posted in the "profile" section so it's prominent?
I'm excited to be able to take part in the event!
Could we also allow anonymous comments? Not everyone will take the time to sign up for a google account.
We will begin assembling the luminaries, in Central Park at 401 C Street (between 3rd and 5th Streets), at 10 am.
At 4 pm we will begin lighting the luminaries.
At 5:45 pm we will begin lighting participant candles.
After the event we will remove the luminaries. Youth for Hope will recycle the paper bags and compost. (We are using compost, instead of sand, so it can be donated to Central Park to support the community/educatonal garden there.)
While it is a laudable goal to create a safer and wiser world, the question is can it be done through education, knowledge and honest communication only? Everyone must remember that often the type of person engaging in destructive behavior is a thug, who delights in creating mayhem. It takes very few people of this sort to create an armed conflict. Talking to someone such as this is less than useless, because it tends to make this sort of individual feel even more powerful and emboldens him/her to do more damage. The real frustration is that most peoples, no matter their ethnicity or religion, want the same thing - a peaceful world to raise their families in harmony. It only takes a few criminals, driven by a need for more attention, to draw nations into war. Our soldiers bear the brunt of protecting us from that category of evil - and without their protection all of us would perish. We as a nation must be ever- vigilent, for ourselves and other countries who may be overwhelmed by those who support evil for their own personal gain.
I'm all for peace, but not peace at the price of my freedom. Should the enemy come knocking at my door - which has been shown to be a very real possibility as of 9/11 - I'll fight for my freedom to the death. Diplomacy, education, communication only work if both sides remain reasonable. The citizen soldier is our bulwark against those who would oppress us. We must care for them, support them, praise them, while encouraging our political leaders to get a backbone and steadfastly protect our way of life - without worrying about what the lastest opinion polls show. Take heart, the youth of our country, and vote for those who will lead through strength.
To Sofia Cortopassi, Julia Cortopassi, Elisa Espinoza, & Jessica Weidenfeld,
I applaud your efforts to organize a luminary lighting in Davis. However my wife and I will not be attending for fear Code Pink is somehow involved in what you are doing. Code Pink was mentioned in the article in the Davis Enterprise. Please take the time to read a special report titled "Anti-War Protests Target Wounded at Army Hospital". You can find it at this website: cnsnews.com. The article is by Marc Morano published on August 25, 2005. Our son has completed three tours of Iraq and has returned safely. Maybe you will want to retink who you turn over any excess funds from the event to!
Bob & Sylvia Glynn
Davis, CA
bglynn4151@aol.com
Our Candle light vigil is not an anti-war demonstration
To Anne-I will definately fight for my freedom as well. But I do not believe that the fight for our freedom lies in Iraq. Did you know that there were no Iraqis involved in the attack of 9/11. Also, American media downplays the progess of Iraq. There were many women who attended univeristies (such as Baghdad University) and received PhDs. This aspect of Iraqi culture is also ignored on a large scale in the US.
To Bob and Sylvia Glynn-
Our event is not an anti-war event.
We want to send a message of Hope to all those who have suffered because of the war in Iraq.
As for the reference to Code Pink we would like any excess funds from our event to go toward calling cards for hospitalized soliders who want to call home for the holidays. Thank you for sending us the article reference.
your message of hope is inspiring.
if no one has the vision of a peaceful world, then it will never happen. hope is what keeps us alive.
thank you, girls, for putting that idea out there and for honoring all human life.
you have big hearts.
amen.
Oh my gosh. I can barely write, I'm just covered with goose bumps. You are so awesome. I used to be like you, but then I turned 47 and I think I can't do anything to change anything.
I bow to your clarity and sense of direction.
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