To My Grandchildren and Their Peers - November 2019

TO MY GRANDCHILDREN AND THEIR PEERS

How can I save the world for you? 

I know I can’t save it by myself. 

I wonder, sometimes, if the values I have taught and tried to put into practice are still guiding my brothers and sisters in the human family. 

I have seen bullying, but never thought it would be admired and supported. 

I have witnessed, and been the target of, ridicule, but I never imagined that people would so readily join in demeaning and denigrating others. 

I have seen the environment exploited without limits, without a concern for the future, and I thought that decades-long efforts to diminish that lack of care for the world would succeed.  They have, but only up to a point. 

I have seen people harbor hatred for others and participate in dehumanization and discrimination.  I thought that more members of the communities in which I have lived were opening their hearts to others in a way that would end.   And they were, but it seems that others are not ready to do the same.   

So how can I save the world for you? 

There are answers in prayers of the tradition which you are inheriting from your family and which, I know, you will willingly share.  

If God creates and re-creates the universe every day, we can find ways in which we can be God’s partners in preserving the earth to ensure its future. 

When we praise God, we are expressing wonder at the world and also showing that we are humble, acknowledging we are but a part of creation but always beloved in God’s eyes. 

When we voice our love for God through our words and actions, divine love will guide our hands, eyes, and hearts so that we will all be closer to one another.  

When we give thanks, we admit that we don’t expect to receive anything.  Simple appreciation for all that is ours in our lives can inspire us to be generous and giving to others. 

When we praise God who makes peace, we commit ourselves to suffusing the world with God’s blessings: goodness, kindness, grace, compassion, mercy, light, righteousness, and a zest for life.  

When we offer our support and assistance to people in need, we demonstrate that the teachings of our heritage are not just words.  They chart a course for our personal journey. 

So what can I do to save the world for you? 

I will do my best to treat people with decency and respect, and to hold up every person as valued and precious.  

I will perform the small acts that can preserve the world in which we live.  

I will speak in ways that will enable people to hear and consider my words and the values I espouse.   

I will answer hatred with consideration and with understanding, within and between faith communities and among people of all backgrounds.   

And I will pass these tasks to you when your time comes, for I know that you will stand for love, generosity, compassion and hope.