I look on the America I was born and raised in, and I hardly know it. Somewhere, we really got off course. Christians say it is because our nation needs Christianity and if we would return to our religious roots, our problems with morality would be solved. However, these are the same men being arrested for child pornography and other "sins." The Bible was right when it said: "All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God" (Romans 3:23). So, it does not matter what religious title you carry, even the title of Christian, because according to their own Bible, we are all equally sinners. No religion can make violence, greed, or sexual deviancy disappear. And given how many churches there are, it would have by now if it could have. What then is the answer?
So many Americans were raised on capitalism, a theory that promised that the almighty dollar would insulate against hardship. And to a certain extent it does, except we have watched the wealthy turn into selfish misers who refuse to share and only want more, when clearly, they have more than enough. It seems capitalism taught us: greed begets greed. We learned that money cannot heal us. But these two golden idols, religion and money, have gotten intertwined so that a new Jesus has been born from the two, and boy does he want you to be rich! The problem with the modern-day Super Jesus is that he does not reflect who Christ really was. The Bible says he was so poor that "the Son of Man has no place to lay his head" (Mathew 8:20). Jesus was a transient. If there had been parks back then, I am sure you would have found him there, and ICE would have thrown him in a camp. But Jesus got a makeover so that now he totes a gun in one hand and carries the American flag in the other, and he looks pretty slick-but as I said, not who he really was.
The only satisfaction and peace I have discovered is in the blessed realization that despite my mountain of mistakes, God still loves me. Call God by whatever name you will, but at the end of the day if you can turn inward and connect with your Higher Power, somehow it sets everything right. And despite my weaknesses and failures in life, I can look myself in the mirror because I am at peace with every living soul (whether they are at peace with me). Additionally, I do my best to contribute something positive every day, even if it is only to write a new poem. Finally, I try and treat everyone with kindness, because kindness is the hallmark of a truly great person.
It seems to me what our government is attempting to do is to separate us; to pit us against each other according to gender, race, and religion. When I say our government, I mean the rich corporations that own our politicians. They do not want us working together because then we could stop their agenda of remaining in control of the resources. The only obvious answer is to refuse, in every way possible, to hate. We must stop thinking with our heads and start seeing with our hearts. We can only be pit against our neighbor if we agree to be. I don't know about you, but I do not want hate in my heart. It is not the other guy I am mad at anyway-it is the system that they have set up where you can never get ahead.
The America we need is not made of religion, money, or hatred. To get back on track, each of us needs to return to our hearts; to the love at the core of us. Without brotherly love it does not matter what plan, project, or technology is implemented. Without a return to love of one another, we are a soulless people. Return to love, America, because we are better than this.