“War will exist until that distant day when the conscientious objector employs the same reputation and prestige that the warrior does today.”
–John F. Kennedy, Letter to Navy friend, quoted in Arthur M. Schlesinger, Jr., A Thousand Days: John F. Kennedy in the White House (Houghton Mifflin, 1965), 88.
I love this post for so many reasons, dear Heather: the content, the quotes, the photos, and all the memories that come flooding back. I remember reading "A Little Princess" many times, and later, learning about intentional communities such as Bruderhof and l'Arche. I know that what you are referencing goes much deeper than my youthful memories, but I also appreciate you recommending the "Plough Quarterly", a publication I was familiar with but had forgotten about.
Thank you for blessing us all with your blog, books, essays, and other articles. You continue to keep your eyes unwavering on truth, beauty, and answering the call of Christ. A good way to enter into a new year, especially this one. Love and prayers, Heather. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.
Mary Beth, may the good Lord bless you, sister! As you may know, the Bruderhof community publishes the Plough Quarterly, and Jean Vanier of L'Arche has always been one of my heroes. Thank you so very much for your continued readership and kindness–let's aim in 2017 all to be kinder to ourselves!
I will have to check out Plough Quarterly.
I'm a little confused by the second quote, I wasn't really grasping the meaning in reference to the first quote.
I like the first quote but do you think or do you find it incomplete?
Does that make sense?
Together, the two quotes are meant to point out that to want to foster non-violence, and to avoid the horrors of war, means to be very much for, not against, the soldier. Also, we are all called to be good "soldiers" in our daily lives, as Christ was, which often means bearing a ton of suffering without crying out. Happy New Year, Alice!
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