Wherever there is an absence of love, injustice can take root. Love in this case is not the affection we feel for our spouses and friends. This love requires neither affection nor fondness. It comes when we are able to see the full humanity of another person and the full “being-ness” of creatures and the Creation. When we can see the Truth and Reality of the other, there is Love. In the presence of this love, it is impossible to be apathetic about the suffering of others. As we witness the suffering of whales caught in fishing nets, children used as suicide bombers, families without homes, civilians trapped by war, land stripped for coal, or women assaulted by their partners, we can see injustice rise in the absence of love.
The good news is that the power of love is strong, and all of life grows in that direction. As a people of faith, we have the special task of reminding others and ourselves of this truth. The various faith communities will package this good news in different ways, but they are saying the same thing–Love is the Way. And our spiritual practices help us to grow in our capacity to see the full humanity and the full being-ness of others.
With this religious understanding of love and injustice, we are called to “stand on the side of love” (www. standingonthesideoflove.org). This means standing outside of the culture. It means taking our bodies and voices to places that make us targets for criticism, ostracism, and vilification. This may be more than some of you signed up for when you found this pretty little white sanctuary backed into a quiet wooded lot on Ironbound Road. Perhaps you came to find new friends and to hear beautiful music and poetry. Yes, we have that. But remember that all of that beauty is a means to a greater good. It helps us to renew our souls, to open our hearts, to learn to love, so that we can once again go into the world to preach the good news!
May it be so. Amen!