Justice and Iran's elections

Iran held its presidential elections over the weekend and President Ahmadinejad declared himself the victor, despite protests from his challenger Mousavi who claimed the elections were corrupted by fraud.

Whether the elections were corrupted, I cannot say, but the heavy-handed actions Ahmadinejad’s government immediately took against Mousavi’s supporters to silence them and prevent protest cause one to wonder what motivated Ahmadinejad to act in such a paranoid defensive way.

My heart went out to the masses of young people of the country yearning for reform and more liberal policies. When ruled by authoritarian governments and “supreme rulers,” the chances of reform can seem hopeless at times. But I thought about Jesus’ promise, “Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth.”

Jesus Christ knew from experience what kind of attitude and state of mental and spiritual composure puts one in a position of strength to have the final say in human affairs. The battle for justice may seem intense and foreboding for long periods of time, but divine will always wins out in the end.

My mind holds the picture of tens of thousands of citizens in Eastern Europe holding candles and assembling for peace before the fall of the Iron Curtain. It was meekness that toppled that wall of intransigence, stubbornness, coldness, misguided ideology and ego of mortal mind that tried to divide the family of man into isolated camps. And it is meekness and divine Love that will topple other forms of injustice and unfairness that mankind faces for centuries to come.

Stones, bullets and other missiles of hatred do not promote peace and harmony around the world. They often vent frustration and anger, but the ultimate weapon against injustice is meekness, wisdom, and love, like the Master proved.

Jesus Christ faced gross injustices throughout his ministry. He was treated unfairly, evilly, and without understanding. Yet, he prevailed, and has been changing the world for the better ever since. His weapon of mass destruction was not a nuclear bomb or any type of terrorist tactic. It was love. The divine Love he lived and taught destroyed, and is still destroying, the ways of the evil one.

“Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth.” I pray that all enlightened reformers around the world working for the betterment of humanity, are blessed with huge doses of genuine meekness that enables them to feel the presence of divine Love, find hope and promise in its strength, and maintain confidence to continue on their progressive path.

Elections are upon us...

With elections for a president fast approaching in the United States, there is much discussion and concern about which candidate should be elected into office. McCain or Obama? And opinions fly in all directions about who is most qualified and worthy of the position.

I like to keep a spiritual perspective during elections. Politicians come and go, but the government keeps on ticking. Like the revolutions of the earth, day and night switch off and on, mornings come and evenings go, people go to work and come home, and the earth keeps on turning. There is a higher order at work that prevails regardless of daily details that occur in between.

There is a higher order over the government of our land, also, that prevails regardless of who temporarily occupies the political offices of our land. As we, the people, understand this higher order and live it out as citizens, politicians are required to live by it.

I think of the rules of my home. Many people come and go from our house as guests, workers, family and friends. Each person has a particular code for life they live by, and I don’t agree with all of them, but when they are in our home, they respect certain rules we’ve laid down.

For example, there is no smoking in our house. Smokers can leave and puff elsewhere, but not in our home. Also, we don’t slander each other or speak evil of one another. Anyone in violation can go elsewhere. Our home environment is the effect of how we live our lives in our house and expect others who come in to abide by as well.

Likewise, in the thought environment of our country, the citizenry lays down rules and expectations for conduct that all citizens are governed by, including politicians. The more we as citizens expect nothing less than integrity, honesty and principle to rule our daily lives, politicians will conform to those expectations. Morality will be the rule of the house, rather than immorality. If officials do not uphold the expectations of "our house," they will be asked to go elsewhere, or essentially, elected out of office. And the more clear voters are about acceptable moral and spiritual guidelines, the sooner candidates that uphold those virtues will be elected in the first place.

So, in many ways, the outcome of the election has already been determined by the present collective thinking of our country. We will elect whoever reflects the majority opinion of how our government should operate.

We may not agree with the majority opinion, but that is not license to get angry and upset with the outcome, and become distressed and discouraged. It’s a call to pray more and leaven communal thought with the spiritual principles and understanding that serve the higher order of God in control where love and truth prevail no matter who is elected into office. It’s a call to go above person to Principle.

No human is going to be the perfect candidate. Humans are not perfect. But God’s guidance is perfect.

I pray that we all continue to grow in our understanding of how to live moral and spiritual lives and I rest assured that the collective growth we experience will be reflected in political officers who reflect those improving ideals.

This may be a work of time and eternity… :-)