Those who recognize the effects of the invisible realm are not antiestablishment; they are forming what is in essence a new establishment, a much-needed correction to the overly materialized focus of the twentieth century. The significance of the founding of the United States was itself metaphysical: the declaration of a radical new possibility for the human race, a philosophical as much as a political revolution to overthrow the chains that bind. Never yet fully attained or embodied, the American Dream remains the light upon our path—our mission to ensure that all citizens, regardless of race, creed, or religion, be allowed the material means of self-actualization. This radical commitment to human possibility must be thrown down like a gauntlet in the face of oppression, in any form, at any time, and by every generation. The last thing we need to do is whine about the fact that other generations didn’t complete the task; it is every generation’s job to carry it forward, to build on the success of those who came before, and to disrupt any patterns of failure we’ve inherited. We need to emotionally recommit ourselves to the sacred charge we’ve been handed, not only for ourselves but for all the world.
Strong forces, both in the mind and in the world, would pull us down into the mire of despair. But equally strong, even stronger forces compel us to rise up. That is true for us as individuals, and true for us as a country. We must clean up the past and make way for new beginnings.
Jim Forbes, the former senior minister at Riverside Church in New York and a friend and mentor, once pointed out to me that the “end days” are not just times of “wars and rumors of war”—they are also times of “signs and wonders.” If these are the end times, they are also wondrous times. And perhaps what is ending is what needs to end, so something miraculous can now be born. For where there is love, there are always miracles. It is ours to choose, and the time to choose is now. The choice lies in what we choose to express, what we choose to foster, what we choose to embrace, and what we choose to commit to.
It is time to make the choice for love.
Love is not passive; it is active in the world. And there is much to be done. In the words of Dr. King, “Those who love peace must learn to organize as effectively as those who love war. . . . When evil men plot, good men must plan. When evil men burn and bomb, good men must build and bind. When evil men shout ugly words of hatred, good men must commit themselves to the glories of love.”
Ah yes, to commit ourselves to the glories of love. We’re a nation that has become more concerned with being rich than with being good, more concerned with getting more than with being more, more concerned with what happens on the outside than with what happens on the inside. And it is killing us. Human beings were created to love each other, not to hate each other; we were created as brothers and sisters, not as enemies; and we were created to be reverent, not to be too cool to care.
We must resist the temptation to intellectual and emotional shallowness that defines our popular culture today. We need to disavow the chronic silliness that has us playing at life like children rather than tending to life as genuine, powerful, responsible men and women. We need reverence toward each other, toward the children of the world, and toward the planet itself. We need reconciliation with the God of our understanding, and radical forgiveness toward each other. We need to look at ourselves and ask how we can do better, devote ourselves to our country and to our children’s children, to rise up from the ashes of our self-preoccupation. We need desperately to evolve from “me” to “we.” Only then will our country rise—when we rise first.
Democracy gives us rights, but it also gives us responsibilities, not just to receive the blessings of liberty but to tend to them in our time and bequeath them to our children. This is not a job for someone else. It’s a job for each of us. We the people are the only true guardians of democracy. We have a much greater purpose on earth than to just get what we want. That has always been America’s greatness: that we stood for something higher than ourselves and strove for something higher than ourselves. Until we retrieve that greatness, we will continue to go down. But as soon as we do retrieve it, we will miraculously rise up again. For on the level of spirit we have wings.