Sunday, November 9, 2008
What can we do?
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TIME has had several articles recently about the fighting, displacements and rapid deterioration of peace in Congo. Like Rwanda, Darfur and the many unknown regions of Africa, the violence is severe and many thousands are forced from their homes into IDP camps.
As I read the article, I was grieved by the continuing strife and the Western world's lack of ability to help. There are already more than ten thousand UN troops in Congo, and the EU is only considering sending a few thousand more, but clearly little is being accomplished. Any treaties or peace agreements have been broken by both sides. I was disgusted by the reports of Western business turning profits by harvesting resources. I was sickened when I learned that one such resource is a mineral that is commonly used in cell phones.
And so as I sit in my warm, safe, home with a full refrigerator, internet access, television and my cell phone only a few feet away, all I can do is learn, grieve, and pray. I pray that God has mercy on the people, especially the children, who are in need right now. I pray that the people of Africa will have mercy on me and other Americans, when we meet in a later life. That they will not judge my inactivity, my greed, or my ambivalence too harshly. That they will know - perhaps even now as they wander across their country - they might know that if I could, I would offer food, shelter and love.
But right now, all I can offer are my prayers.
TIME has had several articles recently about the fighting, displacements and rapid deterioration of peace in Congo. Like Rwanda, Darfur and the many unknown regions of Africa, the violence is severe and many thousands are forced from their homes into IDP camps.
As I read the article, I was grieved by the continuing strife and the Western world's lack of ability to help. There are already more than ten thousand UN troops in Congo, and the EU is only considering sending a few thousand more, but clearly little is being accomplished. Any treaties or peace agreements have been broken by both sides. I was disgusted by the reports of Western business turning profits by harvesting resources. I was sickened when I learned that one such resource is a mineral that is commonly used in cell phones.
And so as I sit in my warm, safe, home with a full refrigerator, internet access, television and my cell phone only a few feet away, all I can do is learn, grieve, and pray. I pray that God has mercy on the people, especially the children, who are in need right now. I pray that the people of Africa will have mercy on me and other Americans, when we meet in a later life. That they will not judge my inactivity, my greed, or my ambivalence too harshly. That they will know - perhaps even now as they wander across their country - they might know that if I could, I would offer food, shelter and love.
But right now, all I can offer are my prayers.
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