A Radical Response by Jimmy Twyman

The Spirit of Ma'at called Jimmy Twyman and asked if he would write something just for our readers. This was his radical response. It is as if we have awakened from a dream. It may have been easy to think that terrorist attacks like the ones we experienced on September 11 happen to other countries, but not the US. We may have once set ourselves beyond the problems and challenges of most other people in the world, as if we were somehow buffered from such illusions, but those days are definitely over. All I can say about that is, ''Fare thee well.'' We have awakened from a dream, and now is when the real work begins. Most people in the Western world have been asleep for a very long time. I remember my first response when I heard about the terrible tragedy of the World Trade Center, and seconds later when I was told about the Pentagon. I literally pinched my left arm and said out loud, ''Wake up. This is a horrible dream, and I don't want to see it anymore.'' But I wasn't sleeping. . . or at least my body wasn't asleep. When I finally realized that, then I had to begin dealing with the issue at hand. Radicals had suddenly struck a terrible blow to civilization. It wasn't the United States that had been attacked, but people everywhere. Radicals! They even claimed to be doing it for God, to secure a place for themselves in Heaven. Kill thousands of innocent people and God will applaud. What an idea. What a ruse. So what do we do now? It seems that 80 percent or more of the American population feels we are justified in attacking back, in venting our anger with bombs and ''intelligent missiles.'' It doesn't matter that it means sinking to the same level as the terrorists, risking the lives of thousands of people who had nothing to do with the crimes we experienced. An eye for an eye. . . onward Christian soldiers. Once again, what a ruse, what a distraction. I'm not saying that something doesn't need to be done, only that our palette is much broader than we may think. We have weapons at our disposal that we have never used before, never even thought of using. The perpetrators of these violent acts need to be brought to justice, but will that solve the real problem at hand? And what is that real problem, anyway? As A Course in Miracles says: ''There is only one problem and one solution.'' The problem is that we think we're separate from one another and God. The solution is that we're wrong. But how do we go about applying this solution in the so-called ''real world.'' Ah, that's the real question we need to ask, isn't it? I would suggest that we become just as radical as the men who committed these crimes, but in the opposite way. What if we committed ourselves to becoming radical peacemakers, whatever that means to each one of us? What if we looked around ourselves and took responsibility for everything we have created — the good and the bad? Could it be that easy? Committing ourselves to creating a new world, a world based upon compassion and peace? Would this kind of a bomb eradicate the hatred and violence that we are now the victims of? I can't answer that question for you, but maybe you can make your own decision. I'm calling you to join a new kind of army, one that uses peace and compassion as its sword. Will it work in the end? How could it not work, though it may take time and infinite patience? Become a radical; live in a radical way, revealing peace wherever you go. Decide today, and let the chips fall as they may.