“And in that day shall be heard of wars and rumors of wars, and the whole earth shall be in commotion, and men’s hearts shall fail them…” (D&C 45:26-27)
This past week has been a serious of experiences that have forced me to grapple with my own understanding of myself and the world around me. Individual, each one of these things would be a cause for reflection, but compounded, I find myself thinking of them constantly. My thoughts are still rather jumbled, but I will do my best to try and make sense out of them, and hopefully find something of worth to share.
!) Last Monday, my EC and I had the privilege of spending some time in the World War II Museum in New Orleans, LA. It was a sobering experience.
2) Wednesday was Veterans Day, where I reelected on what I had seen, and also on the role of those who fight for our country. This included my own father who fought in WWII.
3) The recent terrorist attacks in France were shocking and terrible.
As I toured the museum, (which is not for the faint – they don’t hold back) I was aghast at how barbaric people can be to each other. Yet this evil was balanced, and eventually destroyed, by those willing to sacrifice themselves.
Thought #1: I am so grateful that I was not a part of war. And I am grateful that my sons have never been sent off to war.
When I look at the scale of the horrors of World War II, I can’t help but think that my generation, and the generation of my children have never experienced anything even remotely comparable. We have no idea what it is like to witness, participate, or play a supporting role in such a man-made catastrophe.
Yes, we have had our tragedies. 9/11 cost the lives of almost 3,000 innocent victims. The attack in Paris cost the lives of another 150. It shakes us when these things happen. It alters the way our nation behaves. Today, we are all rallied behind France. After 9/11 we were all united for a brief period of time. And, interestingly, immediately following 9/11, the USA retuned to church and God – for at least a few weeks. We were all emotionally touched by these events, but in a practical way, our day-to-day lives were not really impacted for most of us.
The scale of WWII is beyond my comprehension. Almost half a MILLION US military personnel were killed. As many as 2,000 on one single day. An estimated 60 MILLION people across the globe lost their lives in that War. I can’t even get my head around those numbers.
No one was untouched. Draft notices went to all towns and cities across the country, as did the telegrams bearing tragic news. Electricity, tires, food were all rationed. Everyone was impacted. Everyone worked together. Now, crises make for fodder for the political cannons and focus groups.
Thought #2: I don’t know that, as a society, we have the heart or the stomach to do that again. Now, when barbarism raises its head, decisions are made by politics and public opinion – not moral outrage and a sense of higher responsibility.
The breadth of my personal experience does not include anything remotely comparable to wartime. I have no real frame of reference. In that regard, I consider myself soft, and naive. I think many in my generation would acknowledge that as well. The generation of my children is even more removed form that kind of tragedy and trauma. The bar that defines “Crisis” keeps slipping down, notch by notch.
We are also removed from that kind of sacrifice and commitment that people exhibit in wartime. Our perspective and empathy is not as broad as those who have lived it. Our culture’s definition of who is “heroic” has surely been diminished.
Perhaps it is our lack of exposure to the truly terrible – and truly noble – that allows us the time and energy to get caught up in the trivialities of our time – from Starbucks Christmas Cups to the latest cause de jour.
Thought #3: I find it reassuring that many of our beloved church leaders lived through those experiences. Some served in WW2, and some even had a taste of the Great Depression. President Monson, and the recently departed President Packer and Elder Perry all served in WWII. Elder Hales President Uchtdorf were both Air Force pilots.
Some might consider them “old,” but the experience they have logged throughout their long lives gives them a perspective that I can only imagine. Elder Bednar gave a great talk in the last conference about this.
“It is wonderful to have older men of great spiritual maturity and judgment serving in the senior leadership positions of the restored Church of Jesus Christ.” (Link)
It IS wonderful. They have seen so much, lived through so much. Their base of knowledge is far beyond mine – and not just in regards to spiritual things. They have lived through wars and rumors of wars. They have seen mankind at its worst on a huge scale. And yet…
…They are still happy. They still radiate hope. They still urge us to press forward in faith.
When you can experience 92 years of this world in commotion, and still wear a contagious smile – like Elder L. Tom Perry did – then you have your heart and hope pinned on something greater, something brighter.
A man with vast experience with the best and worst this world has to offer, President Monson, said this in 2009:
“It would be easy to become discouraged and cynical about the future—or even fearful of what might come—if we allowed ourselves to dwell only on that which is wrong in the world and in our lives. Today, however, I’d like us to turn our thoughts and our attitudes away from the troubles around us and to focus instead on our blessings as members of the Church. The Apostle Paul declared, “God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.”
“My beloved brothers and sisters, fear not. Be of good cheer. The future is as bright as your faith.”
I lived through WW1 under german occupation with a father who was prisoner in a camp in Germany and who came back weighting 30 kg, a squelleton who scared me to death!! He never was a normal person after that, and I grew up with a lot of horrible sights and situations.
Also I was in Paris when so many people died on the 13th of Nov. and lived again with friends through sadness and pain of losing loved ones. The troyan horse we invited in our countries in Europe is attacking us from among us. That is difficult to fight back. It is even more difficult to be of good cheer and think about bright future. I pray for help from our Lord and still am afraid for our youth who will have to live through this. Dialogue with barbarians who decapitate, burn alive human beings is NOT POSSIBLE. I think they abandoned their humanity completely. The Lord tells us to forgive, but I cannot right now. If you think you should not publish this, that is OK with me, I know I am not very positive right now, but I have my testimony and my faith to sustain me.
I’ve been listening to Dan Carlin’s wonderful (and free) series on World War I ( http://www.dancarlin.com/product/hardcore-history-50-blueprint-for-armageddon-i/ ) , and it’s astonishing how brutal and horrific these wars have been. I was surprised to learn that Mordor (Lord of the Rings) is modeled at least in part after the terrain in the area around the Battle of Verdun. In fact, if the Lord someday told us that World War I *was* Armageddon, I would not be that surprised. (Great city divided into three parts — France/England, Germany, Russia; voices/thunders/lightnings — star and HE shells; great hail out of heaven — flurry of rocks blown high into the air by massive German cannons, etc. Just a theory. 😉
I’m studying WWI with my kids in homeschool right now and it amazes me to learn what everyday life was like for everyone–everyone!–in Europe during that time. As you said, I have no idea what that kind of constant fear and hardship is like. I keep wondering what God wants us to learn from these worldwide conflicts. I know he doesn’t WANT us to fight each other. I know he wants us to turn to him. And to remember, like we did on Veterans Day, and be grateful for those who sacrificed for us. But the more I learn about the past wars, the more worried I become about the last days. I just have to look at the prophets–I loved that last quote by Pres. Monson, and Pres. Hinckley always had such great perspective too–and think, somehow they are optimistic IN SPITE of it all. And somehow I have to find a way to be too. There’s a quote by Elder Maxwell–“Real hope keeps us ‘anxiously engaged’ in good causes even when these appear to be losing causes on the mortal scoreboard.” That’s my goal. But it sure doesn’t come naturally when you feel uncertain what the future will bring!
Amen!
Our parents and grandparents did all they could to keep the world from falling into a worldwide war again. Mistakes were made. We still don’t know whether Korea and Vietnam were handled or mishandled, much less the Middle East. But these two things I know:
1. We did not have a worldwide war in our lifetimes. Yes, my service in the USAF means I’ve seen the results of war in other lands, and I have a SMALL idea of its horrors. But we have all been relatively untouched.
2. Prophets and apostles who have not only lived through MUCH worse than our times, but have a clearer knowledge of what’s coming – are optimistic. They seem to know where to place their trust and what to do. And they’re willing to share that knowledge with us.
The future IS as bright as our faith. Thank you, MMM.
I have a wonderful friend whose husband served many callings in the church. She was interviewed by 5 Prophets. She told me each one of them counseled her to Be Happy! And she is!
I’m glad that I know where to turn for peace – even as the world is filled with turmoil. I am glad I know that I, too, can be a voice of comfort and share the pain of others to make their burdens lighter… As the letter was read in Sacrament Meeting today – I thought about President Uchtdorf and realized he had first hand knowledge and experience with the pain of being a refugee – I thought of the tender mercies of the Lord – and the encouragement of our leaders to have tender mercies for each other – no matter where we live. How blessed we are … that we can bare/share one another’s burdens…
I was lucky in that my father did not get drafted into World War II. But his part in the war was building bomber planes in southern California for the war. Not to say my parents had it good. They didn’t with the rationing on everything. Of course comparing it to going to war physically is a no brainer, I was a baby so, of course, I remember nothing about it. But the stories my parents told, the sirens, the blackouts over LA, the non-ability to ever be able to buy meat, no gas…..are still horrifying to hear about. My generation and those that follow do not have any idea what it was like to live in those years. And I’ve never been able to decide if that’s good or bad.
I love this. Timely, and much needed. Thank you for being willing to put your feelings into words and share.
xoxo
Perfect. Thank you. I have had many of the same thoughts. My parents were in the prime of their lives during the depression (teenagers) and WWII (married in 1942) and it worries me sometimes how easy we have it. I am definitely soft. And although me and my children suffer our individualized trials, none of us have suffered the deprivations and horrors of this kind of suffering.