Will the suicide "martyrs" who blow up people in the name of Allah share heaven with their victims?
Will the plantation owners of the Old South share heaven with their slaves? What about the Irish Catholics and Protestants who killed one another in the name of Jesus? Or the millions upon millions of people throughout history who have killed, tortured or otherwise mistreated one another simply because they prayed to a different God -- or prayed to the same God in a different way? Or for no other reason than that they could?
What about the American soldiers who have tortured prisoners at Guantanamo, Abu Ghraib and elsewhere? Or George Bush, who claims to be pro-life and pro-family? Will he share heaven with people whose lives he destroyed or disrupted by fighting the wrong war at the wrong place in the wrong way?
This is not a trivial question. One of the seven habits espoused by Stephen Covey in The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People is to "begin with the end in mind." He suggests visualizing yourself on your deathbed. What would you want your friends, family and colleagues to say about you as they look back on your life? Is that what they will say? If not, Covey says, then change your life to change what they will say.
But what if we take it a step further. When you die, will you go to heaven? Will you have to share heaven with your enemies? If so, what will you say to one another? What will you say to God to justify being allowed in despite what you've done to your enemies?
If there's a heaven, I hope to be there. Someday. Not for a while, I hope. But there are some people I've wronged along the way that I'm not looking forward to seeing there. I wonder if saying I'm sorry will be enough.
What about you? If you claim to be a Christian and say the Lord's Prayer, what treatment are you asking of God when you pray to have your trespasses forgiven in the same way you've forgiven those who have done you wrong? I think that's a dangerous prayer for many of us.
That's my two cents' worth. What's yours? -- Jerreigh@contemplayshuns.com
Photo: NASA, ESA, and The Hubble Heritage Team (STScI/AURA)
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