for an inter-faith memorial service at Macquarie University, Thursday October 24, 2002 by Rod Benson, Baptist chaplain

[I was asked to reflect for three minutes, at the end of an hour-long University memorial service, on human nature in the context of a liberal democracy. Representatives of Anglican, Baptist, Uniting, Catholic, Brethren, Greek Orthodox, Baha'i, Jewish, Muslim and Buddhist traditions were present, along with many students, faculty and staff of the University. Here's what I said. Feel free to use it as you see fit.]

The Somme. Auschwitz. Port Arthur. September 11. The Kuta nightclubs in Bali. In one sense we are all involuntarily silenced by the monstrous presence of evil in our world, and by the terrible face of terrorism so close to home. Silence is good, serene, therapeutic.

But in another sense we do need to speak words of wisdom into our collective silence.

Look at the twisted rubble, the critically injured, the body bags, the grief-scarred faces of relatives. Smell the shocking stench of evil in the air. Feel the threat of further terror lingering like acrid smoke. Where has freedom gone? Who murdered beauty? What about truth? Why can’t we all love one another?

My cousin had a pet guinea pig. One day it strayed across the border into his neighbour’s yard. The following day it was returned, with its legs broken. Distressed and sickened, my cousin called the authorities, who prosecuted the neighbour. And in response, the neighbour beat up my cousin, leaving him injured in hospital.

That’s a metaphor of what occurs on a global scale. What motives give rise to evil? Why does evil happen? Where does it end? After September 11, 2001, I suggested that what the world saw on that day is only the tip of the iceberg of what human nature is capable of.

Don’t misunderstand. Human nature is astonishing in what it can achieve. We celebrate that. But we need to transcend the dark side of our human nature – at the level of the personal as well as the global.

We sense the need for someone to stand alongside us in the darkness, clothed with humility and wisdom. We yearn for someone to take a deep breath and boldly raise the candle of justice, peace, compassion and understanding. And that’s where we all fall silent, and are stilled.

And then I find this guy called Jesus who walks through the pages of the Christian Scriptures, saying, “Blessed are the meek . blessed are the peacemakers . blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness.”

To one of his more ambitious followers he said, “Put away your sword.” To all of us he says, “Love one another as I have loved you.”

Here is a person who, by the quality of his life and death, earns the right to stand tall and speak wisdom into our silence, to offer us the freedom, beauty, truth and love that are so elusive yet so necessary for us to live well in a global community.

Peace be with you today.

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E103 Copyright (c) 2002 Rod Benson. Unless otherwise noted, Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible: New International Version (London: Hodder & Stoughton, 1980). To talk with Rod about this message, email To subscribe, email with “subscribe” in the subject. To unsubscribe, type “unsubscribe” in the subject.

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