Kerry's thoughts for the day, take them for what you will:

Today I think that most of us are accepting that there will military activity in Iraq. It is only a question of when it will be announced.

I have heard a lot out there lately about the peace-preaching of clerics of various sorts. I have a few thoughts on this. First, it depends on where you live. The military is a vital part of our own parish, without the Navy base, our parish school numbers would be cut such that the school would not be able to operate. Thus, our religious community and our military community are entwined. Our religious community depends on monetary and populist support from our military, as our military community depends on our religious one for mostly "moral support" (you can take that both ways). Our priests verse their homilies accordingly, we have large services for Veteran's Day and Memorial Day. We had a parish school/parish/Navy/police and fire dept combined service for 9/11 this year. A "peace plant" shares a spot with a tribute to our military in the school. What is realized here, is that the desire for peace courses in the hearts of most all of us. It is especially desired by those that desire to follow Christ's example in their lives, particularly clerics. I believe that what is being missed here is in the translation of what that means. Our enemy, in this case is not the Iraqi people, as it was not the Afghan people, or the German people, the Vietnamese, or the Japanese as individuals. Being the largest "superpower" country and one of the largest Christian poplulated countries left on the globe, if we are to wait, and follow Jesus to the cross, to be nailed upon it and die, so that then, in our name, some may rise up in idignation and realize what our quiet suffering was for would be too late. There would not then be enough left to carry on the exact thing that we are trying to perpetuate, the freedom to live as Christ meant us to. All of this talk of "just or unjust war", of whether or not we are giving diplomacy enough of a chance, are we being the merciful people that we purport to be as Americans is to be expected.

Truly, our religion is dual in nature. We realize that evil can work through humans, but that the ultimate triumph over evil is to love in spite of it. NOT to love the evil itself though. That is where I think things get confused. I would imagine that even the Pope would see someone that has done the things to untold numbers that Saddam has as evil, but would he smite him down with might, or try to win him over with the "love of Christ"? I often think of St. Paul riding along persecuting, killing Christ's followers, and then having his "epiphany" whereupon Christ comes to him in a vision of sorts and questions him, and the change in him is immediate. In a religion that believes in such things, it is not hard to understand the desire to believe that with Christ's love anything is possible. The difference is in the nature of the man to begin with. Does torture, killing, and power over others give him an inner satisfaction; a happiness of the most perverse nature, or is it that he has been raised to do such and knows no other way? In Saddam's case, I think that the answer is clear.

Most of you will realize that I am speaking as a Catholic, but that Catholicism is one of many Christian based religions, so that this applies to many.

We are the most altruistic nation in the world. We give more aid in money, food, supplies, and untold needs to others more than any other country in the world. We are filled with people of many cultures, religions, and beliefs. Most of them, however share one common ideal, that of what America stands for. Freedom. It comes with a high price sometimes, but it is a price that we must pay, just as our founders did, just as Jesus did, as Moses did, as so many did in the history of time, for it to still be alive today. We are the keepers of that freedom, and we must defend it now, or peace and mercy shall die alongside it.