We are All Precious Children of God

April 23, 2013
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When I write, I try to find words not only in my head, but the words that dwell within my heart as well. So as I reflect on the terrorist bombings in Boston, I must tell you as I watched the explosions and their aftermath, I kept seeing as well, over and over again, the bombing scenes that have been repeated over the decades in Israel. The blood and severed limbs, the deaths in Boston all somehow joined with those past explosions in Israel to form a tragic mosaic painted by the brush of hatred.

As theories begin to trickle in, as we try to learn the motivation behind the Boston bombings, we try to discern the truth as to how these two brothers inflicted such horror on Boston and our nation. Will the whole truth ever be known? Possibly. But what matters most is the question, “where do we go from here?”

Certainly, there will be ever tighter security measures. That is a given. But a much more difficult question is how can we break through the walls of hatred that exist in those who hate us? Perhaps I am going out on a limb here. But it appears there is a strong possibility that these two young men were influenced by radical Islamists. Therefore, I appeal to my Muslim brothers and sisters please, please exercise every fiber of your being to try to get through to those who would hate in the name of Islam. Pierce their fortress of hate with your true understanding of Islam as a religion that is not bathed in the blood of innocent lives, but a religion that understands each of us, no matter the religious label we wear, as a precious child of God.

AMS