"Whom resist ye, steadfast in faith"

 The Office of Compline begins with the words:

The Lord almighty grant us a quiet night and a perfect end

which I always think is particularly beautiful and full of peace.

After that comes the short reading from the first epistle of St Peter:

Brethren, be sober, be vigilant, 

because your adversary the devil goeth about as a roaring lion,

seeking whom he may devour; 

whom resist ye, steadfast in faith.

I think that admonition is peculiarly apposite for our times.

This last week we have seen a dizzying outpouring of responses to the death of Charlie Kirk. 

On the one hand were those from the political Left, saying such things as that they felt sorry for the bullet having to enter his body, or that they wished his whole family — or President Trump — had died as well. The more moderate among them contented themselves with a few sentences denigrating his character, followed up by a pious remark about how they, personally could never condone violence.

The political Right, meanwhile, seems to have elevated this good man to the level of sainthood, planning statues in his honour and donating huge sums of money in his memory, beyond what is moderate and proportionate. There has been a swathe of sackings and cancellations of Left-leaning people who offered tasteless and negative comment about him.

Both approaches seem to be making political capital out of what is simply sad and awful.

On the Right, many are asking what has happened to the Democrats, saying they have lost their minds.

Those on the Left have been anxious to suggest that the person arrested for the crime had nothing to do with trans-sexuality but was in fact a Right-wing heterosexual, while voices from the Right have been raised to point out that his partner was trans and insist that he had been radicalised by the Left.

Meanwhile, as all this was unfolding, the Democrats report that on Fox News a presenter, live on air, proposed that homeless people be killed: "involuntary lethal injection … or something. Just kill ’em."

The presenter made this suggestion because of the death of Iryna Zarutska, whose killer — a homeless man — left the train where he stabbed her saying (repeatedly) "I got a white girl".

Before that was the horrific shooting of children in Minneapolis by a trans person.

But of course, horrific crime continues to be committed by people who are not homeless or trans, who may be of any political persuasion or none.

Vocabulary is extreme from both Left and Right, insisting those criminals whose ideology is opposed to their own are sub-human, or not human at all, or are demons. Citations of criminals from the opposing side are brandished in increasingly toxic discourse, a dialogue of the deaf.

Meanwhile in England we are in a flag war, with Union Jacks and the English flag raised everywhere in grassroots protest against unchecked immigration, partly in reaction to the Palestinian flag being flown en masse in a variety of locations over this last year, because of the hideous situation in Gaza.

Flags in support of the various expressions of sexual identity have also been raised, or their colours incorporated into clothing and décor. Opponents have stressed the importance of family and having children.

People are being criminalised and arrested by an increasingly stressed and overwhelmed government/police force for both Right and Left opinion — whether that be speaking up for a pro-Palestinian organisation or for posting opinions online of a racist or Islamophobic nature, or for praying (silently) near an abortion clinic. One man was even arrested for calling somebody a muppet. 

I could go on, but I am sure you are aware and know all about this.

Both Left-wing and Right-wing politics have histories of unthinkably cruel régimes of oppression to cause them shame. Either the Right or Left approach could work as a method for ordering society, applied by just, moderate, conscientious, wise, humble people of integrity.

Yes, if you go through what Charlie Kirk had to say (a lot) with a nit-comb, no doubt it is possible to find regrettable remarks.

Yes, a trans person did shoot those children.

Yes, a homeless person did kill Iryna.

Many of the accusations and vilifications have evidence to substantiate them. But the thing is, this travels in both directions, so it isn't "the Left" or "the Right" at the root of the toxicity.

I have several socialist friends and several conservative friends, and all of them are kind, gentle, generous, compassionate, thoroughly lovely people. If you put them all together to run one organisation, they'd manage to do it splendidly without killing anybody at all in the process.

In times of such immoderate polarity and incontinent expression of views, it may be that we can pause and consider how we might be of help.

I expect that, like me, most people who come and read here have very little money or influence or say in how anything is run. All we can do is engage in a steady practice of quantum activism, patiently addressing ourselves to bringing about a new world of peace and kindness through the minutiae of our daily and ordinary dealings with one another, observing other people with understanding and compassionate imagination.

Looking at the modern world, I can see the wisdom of my parents' generation in keeping religion, sex and politics out of social conversation.

In the same way as it's inadvisable to touch with your bare hands a hot iron pan taken straight off the stove, so maybe for a while we would do well to take our hands off these topics, just to let it all cool down.

Surely if a person is a Muslim, Christians can respect that, or if someone is a Christian then a Muslim can likewise respect that.

Surely if there are dangers in trans ideology, one can just discuss those discreetly with one's children, without starting a campaign of hatred against people who identify as trans.

Surely a family can incorporate members whose sexuality or faith or race may differ, and still love one another.

It's not the sexuality or the race or the religion or the political affiliation, or whether people are rich or poor or even homeless, that is at the root of the problem; it's all the same old human sins — rage, greed, violence, lust for power, selfishness, discourtesy, ambition, intolerance. It's looking for where others are getting it wrong rather than taking a while to think over one's own shortcomings. 

This does not mean that we should adopt a laissez-faire approach to life, abandoning all sexual morality and celebrating unchecked illegal immigration and ceasing to put in place any kind of wise boundary.

But it does mean being kind and considerate and forbearing with the individuals we personally encounter as we travel through life, and saying sorry when we get it wrong, and helping those who are poor or ill or disabled or homeless or in trouble — helping them first, and addressing the causes after that.

We are here to hold our light steady, to anchor the light, in and for the place and circumstances and community where we personally live.

If we notice ourselves getting anxious or irritable or angry or overwhelmed, that's the time to step back before we begin to add to the toxic load.

We are here to practice simplicity, living within our means and leaving something over to help other people. We have a responsibility to live so simply that we can stay spacious and peaceful, not overrun by material possessions or oppressed by a packed schedule or bewildered by too many encounters and responsibilities. It behoves us to take the time to educate ourselves, to look deeply, to find out what causes irritation in the nervous system and discontent in the soul. We do well to practice a discipline of eating simple wholesome food and being cautious with pharmaceuticals and staying away from drugs and alcohol and sugar. And we do well to ask many questions and listen to a balance of opinions before we add our own conclusions to a conversation — going beyond habit and received 'wisdom' and preconceptions.

Perhaps if we try such a course of action, we can not only refrain from adding to this horrendous and dangerous instability, but begin to establish a radiance of kindness and peace, to facilitate a change of direction, and provide shelter from the storm to those who are battered and distressed by it all.

xx Pen