Sidebar: Recommend steps to stop terror

By MAUREEN MCGUINNESS- | Comments: 0 | Leave a comment

There are steps local Catholics can take to help put an end to terrorism, said Barbara DiTommaso, director of the Albany diocesan Commission on Peace and Justice. The first step is to examine consumerism.

"Go see the movies `Bulworth' and `The Truman Show' for insights into our humanity being reduced into consumers of products, of entertainment, of polling," she suggested. "Question how people are encouraged to live their existence vicariously through someone else's experience, whether on talk shows, soap operas, sports, and through celebrities well known for nothing except the fact that they are well known."

Simplifying our lifestyles, Ms. DiTommaso said, will lessen reliance on foreign oil and reduce our presence in the Middle East, thus reducing the risk for terrorist attacks.

Use less

"Rather than passively accepting a continuing astronomical financial outlay for an impossible `missile shield' to protect us from attack, let's simplify our lifestyles by using less energy at home -- wash dishes by hand, carry out the garbage, hang clothes up to dry, drive smaller cars and drive less."

Breaking down stereotypes is also important, she said. "Get to know someone of a different culture or religion," she advised. "In the highly unlikely event that that's not possible, read up on a different religion, especially Islam. Increased understanding of other peoples and repentance of how the forebears of our own tradition have wronged them is a focus of the Church's observance of the millennium. Jesus and the earliest churches didn't confine themselves to their own kind."

Alternatives

Both Pax Christi and Emmaus House urge Catholics to promote non-violence and diplomatic methods as viable alternatives.

"Write to President Clinton and Madeleine Albright to ask that the United States not engage in further missile strikes," suggested Fred Boehrer, of the Catholic Worker Community in Albany.

He also recommended prayer and fasting. "People can pray and fast in solidarity with the civilians killed," he said. "They can pray and fast privately or with members of their parish community. The challenge of the Sermon on the Mount was to love your enemies. As U.S. Catholics, we sometimes forget that." (MM)

(09-03-98) [[In-content Ad]]