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The Story of the Three Wise Men
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by Susan Giesen, W A M M
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On October 2nd I joined hundreds of other peacemakers to celebrate Gandhi’s birthday and to try to preserve peace in the world by not cooperating with weapons makers. We wanted our community to know that we did not support the making of weapons that were being used in an illegal war on Iraq where over 650,000 civilians have been killed—mostly children. The weapons were used in Lebanon—hundreds of thousands of landmines planted to maim and kill civilians (farmers in their fields, children playing)—and left in other countries whether they be our deemed enemies or not. Weapons get sold to the highest bidder, not to the buyer with the most noble cause. Children are killed with these weapons not because they are a threat to us, but because they are vulnerable and become “collateral damage.”
I must premise my story with another story. It is the biblical story that we call the Nativity. It is the story that has most formed my conscience and my actions as a Christian. I probably do not interpret this story as other Christians do, but this is my interpretation.
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© 2006 CircleVision.org |
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Susan and her granddaughter on Gandhi's birthday at Alliant Techsystems in Edina.
(images from the action - click here - opens new window). |
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It is the story of an expectant couple fleeing from a country and brutal ruler who has threatened the life of their unborn child. They are poor. They are people of color. They are migrants. The story even leaves us wondering about the paternity of the unborn child. And yet we are called to worship this child. I must confess that this story only came to mean something to me after the birth of my firstborn child. It was in the instant of holding my child that I knew the sacredness of my child, and that, of course, all children must be held in the same reverence.
And so there I was trying to tell our community that children were being put at risk by these weapons. However, we were told that if we were arrested we would not be having a jury trial. No jury would hear this story. Every media source in the area had been contacted to cover the demonstration and arrests. No media showed up. No media would tell the story.
Well, I had to tell the story to someone. Someone was going to hear why I was there. I had come to be arrested, and my husband, my son, and my three-year-old granddaughter had come to demonstrate their disapproval of weapon making.
After I was arrested with 77 others, I looked around to see the many police officers standing between us and the office building of the weapons makers. There were three officers standing fairly close by. They looked approachable. With my granddaughter in hand, we approached the officers. I greeted them with a hello, and told them that I knew that they were just doing their job, and that I respected that. I also said that I knew that a very important part of their job was protecting children. And I said, “That is why I am here . . . to protect children.” With that all three officers immediately dropped to their knees before my three-year-old granddaughter. One fumbled in his shirt pocket while asking her, “Would you like a stick of gum?” Another said: “I have a badge for you that looks like mine, would you like that?” And the third said: “Wait a minute, I have something for you also.” He ran to the parking lot and in seconds returned with a teddy bear.
I was in awe. These officers were not “the Other” or “the Enemy,” these were “the Three Wise Men.” We had just experienced Christmas, the Nativity, in October. The innocence and vulnerability of a child is transforming. The sacredness of all children is what we all know.
Sometimes life tells us a story. |
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© 2006 Women Against Military Madness. All rights reserved.
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Complete December 2006 / January 2007 Index - click here
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