An Interfaith Leader’s Twelve-Step Response to the Pulse Massacre
June 13, 2016
by Caryn Riswold
In an article in The Chronicle of Higher Education today, Eboo Patel says: “An interfaith leader is someone with the vision, knowledge base, and skill set to create the spaces, organize the social processes, and craft the conversations such that people of different religions can share a common life together.” While the essay doesn’t talk about the horrific events in Orlando this weekend, it’s easy to see how and why the vision, knowledge, and skills to bring together people of different religions is more important with every passing week.
Here, then, is how an interfaith leader can and should respond to the Pulse Massacre:
Anger. Because over a hundred young vibrant people were killed or injured by a deranged gunman. As Audre Lorde said, “Anger is loaded with information and energy.”
Silence. Because nothing that can be said is enough, is appropriate, or is right. (“When words are many, transgression is not lacking, but the prudent are restrained in speech.” Proverbs 10:19)
http://www.patheos.com/blogs/carynriswold/2016/06/an-interfaith-leaders-twelve-step-response-to-the-pulse-massacre/