Resurrection Hope
Readings: Isaiah 65: 17-25; Psalm 118: 1-2, 14-24; Luke 24:1-10 Focus: Democratic Republic of the Congo One of the most frequently asked questions I receive is, “Is there hope?” “Do you have hope that things will change?” Is there hope is a short but profound question: one question that every person of faith should try and struggle with. I know that I have struggled with this question on many occasions. I have been asked this question in relationship to Colombia, to the Israeli Palestinian conflict and most recently to the violence and death in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). On one hand I feel there is little to no hope that the concrete daily lives of the women, children and men will change. Little hope that their lives will change from the violence of militias, multinational companies, the national military, foreign armies and from the violence of hunger, disease, malnutrition and death. 1,200 people die each day in the DRC, even though the war has been declared over since 2003. This war has killed an estimated 4.2 million people since 1998, the most people killed in a war since WWII. On the other hand I also feel a deep sense of hope in God’s presence and activity in places of extreme violence, suffering and death. A group of us who were part of the CPT Women’s Delegation to the DRC were asked if we saw any hope. Someone in the group answered, ‘I do not remember anyone talk about hope’ and others did not know what to say. Yet, I met women who were able to live through and survive brutal rape, women who are able to care for their children even with the meager resources of food and shelter available, doctors and nurses caring for the sick and injured, and men and women and children praising God and Christ for their very lives and the power of the Holy Spirit. For me this is Resurrection Hope! This is the power of the Resurrection of Christ – the power of the Spirit to give strength to people who live in these hardest and most desperate of human situations. If God was able to work life out of the suffering and death of Jesus’ crucifixion then God is able to create life out of the violence, suffering and death consuming the communities of the eastern DRC. The incredible will to live of the women and children was a revelation for me of the power of God in chaos. And the power of the ‘Resurrection Hope’ that fills us with the will to live and to work with God and Christ to make things new. I always answer the question, “Is there hope?” with a firm, emotional, faith-filled, “Yes”. Yes, indeed there is hope: God created all things new in Christ. Please read Isaiah 65: 17-25 before reading the Resurrection Story. Where do we stand in this story of faith? Are we actors in today’s Resurrection Story? Do we share in the work of God and Christ as they ‘make things new’ in our lives and in the lives of the suffering and oppressed people of this world? Life will have the chance to change for the Congolese people when the USA, European and neighboring African countries stop the arms that are sold to the militias, end their greed for the natural resources in the eastern DRC, and begin again to see the Congolese people as fully human not for sale to suffering and death for the greed of the world. Tracy Hughes Tracy is serving as a long-term volunteer. She serves with the Christian Peacemaker Teams (CPT) based in Barrancabermeja, Colombia. She is currently serving in Israel-Palestine.
Tracy is serving as a long-term volunteer. She serves with the Christian Peacemaker Teams (CPT) based in Barrancabermeja, Colombia. She is currently serving in Israel-Palestine.
Readings: Isaiah 65: 17-25; Psalm 118: 1-2, 14-24; Luke 24:1-10
Focus: Democratic Republic of the Congo
One of the most frequently asked questions I receive is, “Is there hope?” “Do you have hope that things will change?” Is there hope is a short but profound question: one question that every person of faith should try and struggle with.
I know that I have struggled with this question on many occasions. I have been asked this question in relationship to Colombia, to the Israeli Palestinian conflict and most recently to the violence and death in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).
On one hand I feel there is little to no hope that the concrete daily lives of the women, children and men will change. Little hope that their lives will change from the violence of militias, multinational companies, the national military, foreign armies and from the violence of hunger, disease, malnutrition and death. 1,200 people die each day in the DRC, even though the war has been declared over since 2003. This war has killed an estimated 4.2 million people since 1998, the most people killed in a war since WWII.
On the other hand I also feel a deep sense of hope in God’s presence and activity in places of extreme violence, suffering and death. A group of us who were part of the CPT Women’s Delegation to the DRC were asked if we saw any hope. Someone in the group answered, ‘I do not remember anyone talk about hope’ and others did not know what to say.
Yet, I met women who were able to live through and survive brutal rape, women who are able to care for their children even with the meager resources of food and shelter available, doctors and nurses caring for the sick and injured, and men and women and children praising God and Christ for their very lives and the power of the Holy Spirit.
For me this is Resurrection Hope! This is the power of the Resurrection of Christ – the power of the Spirit to give strength to people who live in these hardest and most desperate of human situations. If God was able to work life out of the suffering and death of Jesus’ crucifixion then God is able to create life out of the violence, suffering and death consuming the communities of the eastern DRC. The incredible will to live of the women and children was a revelation for me of the power of God in chaos. And the power of the ‘Resurrection Hope’ that fills us with the will to live and to work with God and Christ to make things new.
I always answer the question, “Is there hope?” with a firm, emotional, faith-filled, “Yes”. Yes, indeed there is hope: God created all things new in Christ. Please read Isaiah 65: 17-25 before reading the Resurrection Story. Where do we stand in this story of faith? Are we actors in today’s Resurrection Story? Do we share in the work of God and Christ as they ‘make things new’ in our lives and in the lives of the suffering and oppressed people of this world?
Life will have the chance to change for the Congolese people when the USA, European and neighboring African countries stop the arms that are sold to the militias, end their greed for the natural resources in the eastern DRC, and begin again to see the Congolese people as fully human not for sale to suffering and death for the greed of the world.
Tracy Hughes