Reflecting on the Knoxville Shootings

Jan & I are just back from our annual Summer dai-sesshin, a seven-day intensive meditation retreat at a rural facility in New Hampshire. During this time I had minimal connections with the news of what was going on beyond our retreat beyond what I stumbled upon checking emails briefly and mostly only to see if there were emergencies. Because of this, by Tuesday or Wednesday I was aware of the shootings in Knoxville. But, other than a brief note to my congregation’s listserv saying I would be at worship services on Sunday and hoped to speak with anyone who wished on this subject, I set most anything more aside until my return…

I’m now home.

Frankly, I’m too bleary-eyed to focus very much. I’ll be getting up early tomorrow to re-read and try to understand what happened. Although I suspect my inability to comprehend much of this will not change much, even with some serious sleep…

There is such sadness in the world.

And the hatred that bubbles has poured into one of our liberal congregations. A crazed man with a shotgun.

I’m not sure of the details.

It appears he had trouble finding work and through some convoluted logic available only within the mystery of his brain blamed Unitarian Universalists and other liberals for not only his ills but the ills of the country. He appeared to particularly hate blacks, gays and lesbians. I gather there were several screeds by popular right wing commentators in his house. On his person were lots and lots of shotgun shells…

My first thoughts are those words attributed to the Buddha.

I am of the nature to grow old.
There is no way to escape growing old.

I am of the nature to have ill health.
There is no way to escape having ill health.

I am of the nature to die.
There is no way to escape death.

All that is dear to me and everyone I love
are of the nature of change.
There is no way to escape being separated from them.

My deeds are my closest companions.
I am the beneficiary of my deeds.
My deeds are the ground on which I stand.

These are dangerous times.

Of course all times are dangerous.

So, I think the Buddha is right and for me, the deep call is to how I choose to live.

And with that, how I choose to die.

There appears to be little else in the deal…