Living by Fear, Hate, Indifference, Money, or by Faith:

Hi Gary,

I have comments on Living by Fear, Hate, Indifference, Money or by Faith. It inspires thought in me about why I am so involved in this and I'm not sure I'll ever find the complete answer. It also makes me see that I am by standard definition a very strange person as I just don't fit any of the criteria you outlined for getting involved, and yet here I am. Maybe it's faith, maybe it's fate, or maybe just maybe there is a higher power that made it happen. This I do not know.

As you know I am not religious, but I do not think that faith is illogical at all. I believe that to have complete faith in anything requires a little extra step beyond just the facts and what a logical conclusion about a situation may bring, but there is something (unseen for many of us) that just makes perfect sense and we simply know it to be true. There is not always a concrete logical scientific explanation for what we have faith in but we know it's true, and it can not be taken away from us. This applies to anyone who has faith in anything( in my opinion.)

Most associate faith with god or religion. I believe that puts something far too big to ever be contained into a little box. My view of what faith really means has been transformed a great deal since October 15th. I came to march onto DCE, to see what would happen, to see how many people would show up, to see what kind of resistance we would face, and to hear what someone who had the intestinal fortitude to even suggest walking onto DCE was going to have to say. I don't know if I came to fight. I remember clearly the night before the March for Freedom I emailed you to find out what the scoop was on marching to DCE and all you said was " If you come in peace you are welcome. If you are coming to fight stay home".

I was angry and confused by what was going on, but that was simply what got me to that one event with no intention of having any further involvement. Your words that day gave me faith that there was a way to do something to stop this nightmare, and made me realize that I simply had to get involved. I believe they are also what kept violence from breaking out. The unbelievable passion with which you spoke about how and why it was so important that we don't fight violence with more violence was inspiring.

I grew an interest in psychology early in life and have long studied it both in text and by watching the people around me. I could make an easy case that you used simple reverse psychology on the crowd that day to keep them from trying to storm DCE, but I don't believe that's the case. It can't be a fluke that none of the March for Freedom events ever turned ugly, and I am certain it can't be a fluke that this specific group of people from very different walks of life have come together the way that we have. Our numbers will no doubt rise in the future, but at the very core of this will be the same small group who truly matter to one another on a level and for reasons that defy traditional logic, and can never be written off as a fluke.

In that I have a great deal of faith

Where is the Church in Caledonia?

Very strong. Hard hitting. Well done. 

I know the Anglican and United churches are still reeling from their financial hit after being sued by natives for the abuse at the  Regional Schools". The Alliance church in Caledonia has lots of nice new objects in their nice new building and they play lots of nice, new up-beat music. But to quote Mrs. XXXXX: "They don't mention Jesus." Perhaps he's too old to fit in.

If I have written this before, pardon my redundancy. I talk to a lot of people during the course of the day and besides, I'm getting old!

I grew up going to the Baptist church. Every Sunday. On Sunday afternoons,  my sister and I would be invited, by our little friend and her family, to attend the local Pentecostal church. My late ex-husband and I were married in and attended the Anglican church and now I drop into the United Church when the spirit moves me!

History tells me that during WWII, the church, for the most part, tried to stay under the radar and not attract any attention.  The old "Out of sight, out of mind" philosophy. Don't bring the eye of the Eagle to fall on you if you can help it. We also know that a few very brave men and women of the church risked and often gave their lives to save others. These men and women went against the fear fuelled policies of their controlling council.

Many times during the last year in Caledonia, I have heard people tell me that their Pastor, Minister and Priest has cautioned them to pray and not involve themselves any further.

Recently, I responded thus to a person who told me they could not get involved.

"Your right not to get involved was fought for and hard won with the blood of tens of thousands of our beautiful children, called soldiers. Do you have any idea how many countries in the world you could be living in where you would have no choice. Your husband and sons would be dragged from their beds in the dead of night, marched into the back of a truck, given a weapon and told to fight. So look down when you speak of your non-involvement. You're standing knee deep in the blood of those who did get involved."

Caledonia Resident