Art v.s. Terror: Balm for Bomb
Terrorist attacks on the U.S. have wounded the American psyche, a wound which our most powerful tools, like money and technology, are inadequate to heal. We respond with, as it turns out, equally brutal violence- the oldest and most pointless reaction. Though directly providing the personal remedies to grief of religion or family love is beyond the capacity of a free society, there is one balm that can succor all universally. Art.

We sink to violence only when we have run out of ideas. Terrorism tears out the roots of a community, shatters trust and leaves in its place the disease of fear. In Iraq we discover- as if for the first time- that we reap what we sow. We are shocked to find that no quantity of gunfire produces good will.

Art is the opposite of violence. Art is a synthesizer, illuminating the truth of the basic goodness of creation and human unity and as such it offers a unique emotional bond that can re-connect the most despairing person with the rest of humanity, re-forming hope in human goodness. Art affirms that the true essence of humanity is not that of hell-bent destruction of the other, but rather of joyful cooperation and compassion.

In a culture with few mourning rituals, art provides a means to connect with our own grief. And having acknowledged and grieved our loss, art is the only means of expressing the immensity of who we really are. I offer this in the spirit of balm in the face of frightening but ultimately impotent brutality. Violence appears to take the upper hand in the short term but always emerges as the wimp of eternity- overcome by the slow but inevitable progress of love.