Genocide

The genocide in Rwanda is an illustration of spiral violence because the mass murder is not really unexpected it is somewhat planned because there are 8 steps for genocide. Most genocide is committed under cover of war or during the conduct of it. But war is related to genocide for other reasons as well: for people and societies who believe that war is a good way to deal with quarrels, it's easy to go further and believe that war is also a good way to harm and even get rid of other people. People think it is the right thing to do and killing just one person leads into killing hundred of innocent of people. It can be stopped by demanding action, stop the enablers, and even make human rights and genocide prevention core values in the United States foreign policy.
Violence in today’s society is at an all time high. There are many causes for the increase in violence in our society. Some examples would be, criminal law, the illegal use of unjustified force, the use of physical force to injure somebody or damage something, rape, homicide, assault and burglary. Our society today is full of evidence of violent behavior. Everywhere we look there is violence on television, in our home, school and community. I think this can all be stopped if we try and make a difference in our society. I think more laws should be enforced because violence has been a part of our evolution as far back as the days of our relatives. We all need to open our eyes and take action in what we say because violence is not the answer!

Restoring Justice in Rwanda

Rwanda’s population mainly was composed of two ethnic groups: Hutu and Tutsi. Hutu extremists within Rwanda’s political elite blamed the entire Tutsi minority population for the country’s increasing social, economic, and political pressures. Tutsi civilians were also accused of supporting a Tutsi-dominated rebel group, the Rwandan Patriotic Front . The Rwandan genocide resulted from the conscious choice of the elite to promote hatred and fear to keep itself in power.  They believed that the extermination campaign would reinstate the solidarity of the Hutu under their leadership and help them win the war, or at least improve their chances of negotiating a favorable peace. They seized control of the state and used its authority to carry out the massacre. Solidarity is major theme because Rwanda is trying to find peace among the community and others and stop killing the neighbors. Another theme would be Respect to Human Life. The genocide is nothing but pure hatred and massacre of killing millions of people. Life is precious to everyone and God taught us that and need to follow his teachings. The third theme would be Rights and Responsibilities. The Catholic tradition always teaches us that human dignity can bed protected and a healthy community can be achieved only if human rights are protected and responsibilities are met. Therefore, every person has a fundamental right to live life. Corresponding to these rights are duties and responsibilities. These duties are to respect and make peace with everyone and not take people hatred and fear out on other lives. That is why Rwanda is making a difference and putting her voice out to our society to make peace and justice in this world. 

Lethal Injection

The death penalty is defiantly a hard subject to learn and read about but it is part of our society today, which is sad. I am still against the death penalty but lethal injection is probably the easiest way to die. The injection is less painful and the procedure is quick. Watching someone get the injection defiantly would not be as painful as watching someone being hung, fire squad, gas chamber, and the electric chair. It is weird to say that lethal injection is a better way to die because i am not 100 percent for the death penalty. I believe that serving life in prison is worse than dying. Serving a life sentence would be drawn out, as opposed to death, which is fast and over with within seconds. Also, as a Christian, life in prison would provide the opportunity, time for someone to be saved and learn about Christ. I also believe it is inhumane and that the death penalty gives our government too much control.

Greening The Ghetto

Majora Carter redefined the field of environmental equality, starting in the South Bronx at the turn of the century. Now she is leading the local economic development movement across the USA. The South Bronx native draws a direct connection between ecological, economic and social degradation. Hence her motto: Green the Ghetto. Majora Carter quotes in her speech that “we might have come to  from very, very different stations in life, but believe me, we all share one incredibly powerful thing: we have nothing to lose and everything to gain.” She is saying we are all followers of Christ and each one of us come from God and we all need to work together to help make this environment better and healthier. 

Majora Carter helps the environment and follows the themes of CST. She build park for people so people will be able to breathe healthier air so it's not toxic air. Her acts are wonderful and reach out to the community and she cares for this environment and we should all follow her lead. 

Justice for Immigrants

I agree with our Archbishop. The immigration program proposed by the Bishops is a simple matter of Christian charity, nothing more and nothing less. After all, God taught us to love god, others and love our neighbor which means that any other principal to which all other concerns are outranked. The Archbishop only wants what is best for the people in the Catholic Church and the bishops are trying to make a difference and to take a stand. To make this difference in immigration, the bishops came up with five rules. The first element is giving the immigrants an earned legalization program with an opportunity for eventual citizenship. The second rule is saying that the preservation and enhancement of family unity, based on the unit of a husband, wife, and children. The third rule is stating that it will open doors to possibly legal channels for laborers to enter safely and work legally in this country, protecting the labor rights of U.S. and foreign workers. The fourth element strictly claims renewal of due process protections for immigrants. Lastly, the fifth rule brings constructive attention to the root causes of immigration, such as economic hardship, political oppression, or religious persecution. Together, these five elements provide an integrated and comprehensive system of reform and each element rebuilds upon the other.

            The Catholic Social Teaching has many themes in involving the immigration reform. The Catholic questioning instructs the faithful that good government has two obligations, both of which must be carried out and neither of which can or should be ignored. The first obligation is to welcome the foreigner out of charity and respect for the human person. Immigrants have the right to immigrate and therefore the government must amend this right to the greatest extent possible. The second obligation is to secure one’s border and enforce the law for the sake of the common good. This is our faith and we need to help out those in need even if it is the immigrants to get better life in the United States. Many people may agree or disagree but I the bishops are doing the right thing and doing a good act. 

It's all about forgiveness...

     Forgiveness is letting go of the need for revenge and releasing negative thoughts of bitterness and resentment. Forgiveness is not forgetting or pretending it did not happen. We can forgive Osama Bin Laden but we obviously will not forget the attack on September 1, 2001. We need to retain the lesson learned without holding onto the pain. Even though it is hard for some people to let the pain go because they lost loved ones but God has taught us to forgive others just like he has done for us. This subject is important that our eternal destiny depends on it. 

     For an example through the Bible work, Adam and Eve disobeyed God in the Garden of Eden, and human have been sinning against God ever since. So my point is that if God can forgive us for all our mistakes we should at least try to forgive Osama Bin Laden even though it is very difficult for others Americans to forgive. However, I was only in kindergarten when this terrorist attack happened so i do not understand what was going on in the world. Forgiving and letting go can be a very difficult challenge, but it is even more stressful to hold onto grudges.

      Forgiveness does not mean what happened was okay, and it does not mean that person should not want full reconciliation. Forgiveness just means that you have to make peace with the pain before things get better. Even though 9/11 was such a scary and tragic event in the United States, we should by now except what happen and be able to forgive those who were involved in the attack against our own Americans. Just like Mahatma Gandhi once said, " The weak can never forgive. Forgiveness is the attribute of the strong." I really love that quote because it speaks the absolute truth. Relating that quote back to 9/11 is saying that those who are weak can not forgive but those who do forgive are strong. So us Americans are strong and we need to prove to the world that no matter what happens to us we will be a strong community and stand as one  to forgive Osama Bin Laden for what he has done wrong. We need to accept the fact that people make mistake and God will always be there to forgive us and we need to follow his actions and do the same.  

The limits of Charity

According to Hilfiker, the difference between charity and justice is that charity does little to change the wider social and political systems that sustain injustice. That is why justice work is necessary. But what charity does, that justice does not do is keep individual people from suffering or dying. Yes, I agree with Hilfiker's distinctions because I completely agree that charity does little to change the social and political system because most charities depend heavily on volunteer work and individual donor. And charities who do well in a system are usually not interested in changing it. In fact, charities may oppose changing it. Charity is both necessary in our current situations and a requirement to our faith.  Our community need to see and value equally, both sides of justice and charity. But help build a more just and peaceful society. We must end this enmity and competition between justice and charity. They are both twin actions for the Christians. Appropriate sense of outrage means in order to get what you want and change to the community and to create justice among all people, people need to be forceful and vigorous sometimes with their preaching to get a solid point across.

Syria

Recently, Pope Francis has written a letter to Russian President urging world leaders to oppose a military intervention in Syria. Pope Francis want a peaceful world and so should other people. The Pope made a heartfelt  appeal for the leaders to help find ways to overcome the conflicting positions and to lay aside futile pursuit of a military solution. In a region that has been increasing threats to ancient Christian communities, the Catholic Church is helping millions refugees of Syria's civil war. Besides physical aid and other ways, Church workers have offered the Syrians the simple truth that they have not been forgotten and they have been in each and everyone of our prayers. Because they are loved and will be cared for. There are a pros but a lot more cons. In my mind, it is not something that should be taken lightly. I feel horrible about the chemical weapons that have been used, however we know that chemical weapons have been used in other instances and we did not take military action in it. So whats the point of getting involved now? The pro argues that the US should intervene in Syria since Syria is a dangerous country, they should be stopped. Syria is a disturbance to the Middle East, but developing US troops and opening fire on a third country in the Middle East, intervening in Syria may cause more problems than it solves. Plus it will cost a lot of money sending troops over to another country when we know we should not even get involved because other countries are not backing up us. So the US should not get involved. Chemical weapons are bad. The cons is that it will build tension with other countries and come back to the United States and hurt us even more then it is now. The Catholic Church and Tradition would suggest not to get involved and not start a war. I would hope the Church would want nothing more than make peace.