Most Reverend Jerome E. Listecki
Archbishop of Milwaukee
 

As a child growing up in Chicago during the 50s and early 60s, I remember how we lived under the threat of nuclear war. The potential of a nuclear war confronted us in movies, books and TV dramas. Air raid sirens would sound on a weekly basis, reminding us of just how fragile our lives were. Of course, we practiced hiding under our desks and, during the Cuban missile crisis, collected food items to be stored in the community air raid shelters. This brought some consolation about our personal readiness and participation as good citizens. As we grew older and learned more and more about the devastation of nuclear weapons, it became obvious that survival of a direct or near direct attack was a “placebo” offered by local authorities to ease the unrest and nuclear scare. We would be pulverized.
 
The shear amount of nuclear weapons began to be calculated in overkill, the ability to kill the enemy multiple times over. The doomsday clock was ticking, and one wondered when the alarm would sound. Life went on as we knew it in this area of tension, understanding that the routine of our lives could change in an instant, and we could be struggling for survival in caves trying to remember how to make fire. With the advent of the fall of the Soviet Union and the tearing down of the Berlin Wall, a feeling of relaxation occurred. It seemed that the world was appealing to a sense of reasonability that looked at nuclear war as a no-win situation.
 
The 70s and beyond started to introduce weapons that almost made nuclear weapons seem tolerable: biochemical agents that could affect the water and food products, implanting viruses, laser weapons with the beams of light affecting transportation, cyber weapons and electronic impulses that affect energy grids. This is not science fiction; we possess these weapons today. What has changed is the emergence of “terrorism.” A war of terrorism disrupts human life with the mere threat of action. Often, it is not a clearly defined enemy with uniforms and defined geographical territory. The single individual with a knife, gun, bomb or chemical agent could radically change the lives of our fellow citizens.
 
I first experienced terror in Rome years ago (1979) when the Pan Am office was bombed. Later, a bus was fire bombed, which was attributed to the Red Brigade. A friend told me at that time that “terrorism” in Europe was the beginning of a radical approach by angry and misguided groups, and eventually it would make its way to the shores of the United States, because it was so easily accessible to the masses who wished to attack legitimate authorities by intimidating innocent citizens. On 9/11, with the twin towers being brought down by an air attack of civilian planes captured by terrorists, I remembered the words spoken in Rome and realized just how vulnerable we were. Now schools, movie theaters, shopping centers and night clubs are targets of terrorist attacks – once again causing a disruption in the way we live our lives.
 
There is a well-known Scripture passage, Matthew 25:13: “Therefore keep watch, because you do not know the day or the hour.” For Christians, the ultimate “peace” is not found in the cessation of conflict, but in a relationship found in the person of Christ. Through the acceptance of His love, we are ready for whatever confronts us in this world, and we live in that peace despite the chaos presented to us. The only power that can overcome evil is the presentation of good. As light dispels darkness, love conquers hatred. Fear loses its power over us because we are believers. As people of “peace,” we will do our best to LOVE ONE ANOTHER.
 

Note: This blog originally appeared as the June 14, 2016 "Love One Another" email sent to Catholics throughout the Archdiocese of Milwaukee by Archbishop Jerome E. Listecki. If you are interested in signing up for these email messages, please click here.