Thoughts on Manchester –Joy Daley
It has been said that after people die that survivors must adjust to a “new normal” in which we acknowledge that the world has changed and we learn to live with loss. In some ways I believe that this is wisdom that we need to take to heart.
I do have a fear, however, that we can come to accept the violence that erupts repeatedly in unexpected places as the “new normal.” This can lead us to minimize what happens in our world and the degree of loss that so many of our brothers and sisters suffer. In our humanity it becomes difficult to take in one more devastating event. Compassion fatigue may lead to a desire to just turn away. Our desires are not all of who we are though, so we take another look and realize that we are all in this together. There was a Vigil on Tuesday in Manchester that brought together representatives of Muslim, Christian, Jewish and Sikh communities in a show of defiance and unity. Here at St. Thomas we offer our prayers and recommit ourselves to being a community of welcome. May this one day become the new normal.
