Students are always asking me bizarre questions. They think I'm a bit strange, so they expect an answer that will entertain them or at the least give them a good laugh. I could explain to them the idea of peaceful resolutions, and a roar of laughter would erupt. In fact I have, and it did. So when I was asked the day before Veterans day if I would celebrate those that chose to protect our country, I had a difficult response in front of me. My dad is a veteran. My grandpa was a veteran. My great grandpa was a veteran. My response took a minute or more, but it ended up being something along the lines of, "I will celebrate those people, yes, but possibly not the actions they performed or the country they served. That I will forever lament"
You see, I won't pledge my allegiance to this country, or any other country for that matter. I joined a Kingdom much larger, and that is the only place/people to whom I give my following. There would be no conceivable way to give my allegiance to two authorities, because those two authorities are bound to contradict. And when they do, I have two separate places I have pledged to serve, and ultimately I have to choose just one of them.
In this Kingdom peace is the true action of courage. This Leader has told us that war and retaliation will cause more war and retaliation. This Leader has told us that we have no need to fear an attack on our people, because our people are protected by His blood. This Leader has told us that those who die in His name will create more people who die in his name. This Leader has told us that the courageous action is not what it appears. If our people, in this Kingdom, are killed we have the assurance that has allowed us to live without defenses and retaliations. To live with the Freedom that we can die, at anytime, and spend an eternity with the same Kingdom to whom we gave our allegiance.
