Hardly a day goes by when the media doesn’t offer us further evidence of man’s devastating effect on the diversity of human life, as we destroy the atmosphere, coral reefs, ice-caps, the earth – our home. As the climate warms many species vanish into extinction. Rhinos, tigers, elephants and other major players earn the ‘protected’ label, and the only way we view pandas is through bars in captivity. We were hugely responsible for killing off the ‘megafauna’. We supplanted the Neanderthals (although I think I may have seen a few still lurking around). There’s no getting away with it – we humans are indisputably the most violent of all species.
And not too many species kill their own, but since the dawn of time humans have been killing humans. Whether it be one-off murders, or mass genocide, the killing just goes on ad infinitum.
We never learn from history. It’s possible we are killing less than we used to, but we have certainly not learned the lesson yet that war is futile and a senseless waste of human life. Anyone who has lost someone (and, like me, whose faith is built on quick-sand) believes that once a human being is dead, that’s it. There’s no going back. With loss of life goes their future, ambitions, promise, creativity, emotions and so much more. Nonetheless the “kill or be killed” mentality seems alive and well.
On one hand man’s creativity and brain have given rise to astounding architecture, art, music, cures, science, discovery, philosophy, reason, and then on the other hand earlier this year we were unable to avoid disturbing grizzly pictures of war correspondents kneeling in front of their executioners before their beheading, those reporters/journalists risking their lives, ironically reporting on ‘humans killing humans’. On one of our many Middle Eastern trips I spoke to an engineer after a show who ditched his post in Saudi Arabia as he was tired of being forced to attend public executions.
As I dropped from the womb I was waving my anti-bloodsports banner, and have always been anti-killing. Surely lack of respect, badly managed anger, resentment, revenge, anti-social behaviour, the gun/knife culture, and domestic violence can all lead eventually to that strange inclination to kill, and to spitting on the sanctity of life.
The Bible says “Thou shalt not kill”. Most religious faiths have a loving forgiving God, yet their followers kill “in his name”? Is there some subtle difference between killing and murdering? Probably. But it’s still ‘humans killing humans’. The Bible says it’s wrong to kill, yet preaches ‘an eye for an eye’ revenge, and in the Old Testament God killed millions through flood, famine and plain old murder. In other religions if you kill you are rewarded with vestal virgin pleasures in paradise. Is it any wonder people are confused when our religions, teachings and ‘holy books’ are founded on contradictions?
Surely as humans with hearts we ought to just know that killing/murdering is wrong, and perhaps especially in the name of religion or an invisible deity. If you find yourself killing in the name of your ‘God’, then maybe you need to question your ‘God’ and your faith, and ask why he or she is not a positive loving force.
Whether you’re Protestant, Catholic, Sunni, Shiite, Muslim, Jew – whatever – please let’s stop playing “My imaginary friend is better than your imaginary friend”.
We should have learned by 2014 that humans killing other humans is not only wrong, but doesn’t work as a solution. Let’s focus on resolving personal, social, political and religious conflicts by building respect, and by talking.
Talk, and listen. Most of all listen.
Maybe then we can start loving, rather than fearing/hating our neighbours. “Omnia vincit amor” – “Love conquers all”. Stop preaching hatred.
In our set we sing a moving Eric Bogle song called “All the fine young men”. The closing lines of the song sum up war’s futility. “They’re just forgotten bones…as forgotten as the cause for which they died. Oh young men, can’t you see now how they lied?”
On this 100th anniversary of World War 1 we remember with respect those brave souls who fought for our freedom, fought to stay alive, laying down their lives for us, while clinging steadfast to that romantic and idealistic vision of defending the homeland.
However let’s also remind ourselves that “Guns don’t kill people, people kill people”.
