I cannot imagine what the Parrish family must be going through. The questions, the anger the pain and loss. When someone dies that young all of us want some answers – to demand accountability from those who had his life in their care – for a ‘simple’ procedure.

At 62 my Dad had a burst aneurism. Over the next few years he suffered most dreadfully. Some of his pain was caused by repeated mix ups with his medication. This kept happening we later discovered because there was another man living in the same city with the exact same name being treated for a completely different condition. His medication was repeatedly given to my Dad. Eventually my Father ended up in hospital again where he died. We all believed he died because of medical misadventure and we wanted to hold someone accountable.

Our Mum, while she knew that this was most likely the truth, recognized the complexity of his condition and decided that what we all needed more than revenge was to move on with our lives and grieve our dad in dignity.   She made the decision on behalf of us all to forgive. She told us that Dad was finally at peace and we should find our own peace in that knowledge. This was so hard for her and us but looking back I realize the wisdom of her choice.   Legal action wouldn’t have brought our Dad back again, or changed the past few years. Instead my Mum showed us the gift of forgiveness and gave us the freedom to move on with our lives.

Thanks Mum!.

As I reached again for my wallet to contribute in a small way to the relief, I read that the Pakistani Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi said troops fighting insurgents in the north had not been redeployed to help the relief effort and that he feared the growing desperation of flood victims could play into the hands of extremists who were delivering aid..

I felt my heart sink at the thought that once again war and politics would reign over compassion and human crisis.

This might very well be an irreconcilable conundrum for a politician – but for a follower of Christ the answer is very clear – love and the lives of the people especially children come first.

Ok so I’m a Pollyanna:  I think that when you have 20 million people at risk of dying from starvation and disease then that‘s where your troops go – not to the border to continue fighting insurgents.

To further seal my fate as a Pollyanna, might I suggest that this catastrophe could be an opportunity for all – the Pakistani Government, their Military, the Insurgents and the International Community to come together to fight a common enemy, disease, starvation and death.

I had to question myself, was my small donation in fact only contributing towards the Pakistani war effort? Maybe – but I also know that it is irrelevant what others do – I am responsible to God only for the choice I make.

Lord give me the wisdom and strength to only see others as you do, so that the worlds last will become my first.

There has been talk for many years about arming the police; policing has always been dangerous. But each day as you don your uniform and step out to serve the community you fully understand the risks. The recent shooting of two policemen and a police dog in Christchurch is shocking and unacceptable, but should not cloud our judgment. We cannot fall prey to the fear and emotion of this terrible incident and be manipulated into giving the police increased access to firearms. Research indicates that arming the police would not mean less, but more deaths. Studies from the States have shown that the only gun present in many shooting incidents was brought to the scene by the police.

Since my days, public perception of the police has changed.  Police were seen as a benign professional organization whose main purpose was to serve, care and protect. Now Police are seen as something to be avoided, a “force” that is separate, punitive and aggressive. The majority of people the police interact with are ordinary law abiding members of the community.  The Community and Police should be able to work together recognizing the humanity (or Christ) in each other. In my experience the uniform alone already creates a barrier. To add a gun would create a gulf too large, after all a gun exists for the sole purpose of killing; nothing else.

If we want a better society and work towards the fulfillment of the Kingdom of God we should de-escalate the arms race not escalate it.

I am reminded of Jesus’ response when Peter cut off the ear of the high priest servant.
‘When Jesus followers saw what was going to happen they said “Lord should we strike with our swords?” And one of them struck the servant of the high priest cutting off his right ear. But Jesus answered “No more of this” And he touched the man’s ear and healed him’. (Lk22:49-52)

My father spoke to me about it afterward; his sadness and sense of failure and betrayal of the values he had taught us. Then he told me of his pride and admiration for her maturity and dignity as she faced up to what she had done. After she admitted her part in the theft, the store manager told her off blaming “people like her” for closing businesses in the town and the subsequent loss of income and finally when he calmed down a bit he asked why she took the goods. My dad recounted that she never blamed or mentioned the other girls involved, nor did she cry or winge about how difficult her life had been lately, she stated simply and quietly that she knew that what she had done was wrong and that at the time she never gave a thought to the effect it might have on the store owners or the people working in them. She apologized and told the store manager that she was prepared to accept the consequences. With that she handed back the stolen goods and the money.

My sister was 9 years old. Boy she won my respect!!

We are all broken, we all make mistakes, and we all sin. Len Brown’s shameful response when called to account for his actions was not the action of a leader. It was wrong to use tax payers money for personal use, there is no getting around that but an open honest admission may well have resulted in forgiveness and perhaps even some respect. My dad taught us you can have my pity or you can have my respect and frankly my 9 year old sister showed more leadership in her actions that did a Mayor who draws a huge salary to be a leader. I don’t favor John Banks at all but I certainly wouldn’t want a wimp who deserves nothing more than my pity to lead a super city

Sexual abuse of a child causes the death of the life of that child as they know it. From that moment forward everything that happens to that child either re abuses them or begins a path to healing or new life. When I saw this cartoon I immediately thought of the McCarten Family who in June 2003 wrote an open letter to the driver of a car that killed their four year old daughter. I think their words apply here. They said “You have taken Georgia’s life and there is nothing you can do that will bring her back or ease our suffering. The only thing you can do is stop running away. You must face up to this and accept your punishment with all the grace dignity and fortitude you can muster. You must do this if you are to ever find the kind of peace you speak of in your letter.” They continue “There is nothing to forgive. There is nothing to beg for. Georgia is dead by your hand. That is all. Only you can redeem yourself. Only you can redeem your family and people’s honor”

My answer was yes, I did go to the protest out side the court, but I knew he would challenge me further with “Why?  And, “on what did you base that decision?”

Reflecting on my actions, the “why” had more than one answer.

It was not so much my conviction that the Waihopai protest action was the right thing to do, but I wanted to learn more than what I would read in the newspapers or see on TV.

I also felt the need to do something to protest against the Waihopai satellite dishes, our country’s silent consent and contribution to the killing of hundreds and thousands of men women and children. But most of all because these men, Adrian, Peter and Sam (whom I have never met) are my brothers.

On what did I base my decision? That’s easy; I am a follower of Christ and am called to love unconditionally.

Several years ago, one of our sons made several court appearances resulting from his actions. I went to court each time to support him, and not once was I asked if I agreed with or thought his actions were acceptable. I guess it was a given that because I loved my son unconditionally I would be there.

The same applies here; these courageous men are my brothers, and while it is not a comfortable place to stand I will if for no more than to offer a gift of solidarity and unconditional love to them and their families who may face some pretty tough consequences of doing what they believed to be right.

This week’s reflections

• NZ Protestors saving overseas lives (News item)
• Solidarity with my brothers whom I’ve never met
• Infantile protest, serious consequences
• Give them “VC’s” not punishment

It would be easy to make the mistake of interpreting these passages literally or simply dismissing them as raving fantasy. Sometimes strong language and extreme rhetoric is needed to shake us out of our complacency and force us to sit up, listen and look deeply within.

Possibly like many of you my first reaction to Hone Harawira email was “oh dear…not good”. But as the week has progressed I find myself remembering that the prophets of the Old Testament and Jesus himself said and did things that caused outrage and even their death. Perhaps the price of this out burst may be the death of Mr. Harawira’s political life. But the question I have been asking myself is this, what is it that has made this man so angry that he reacted in this manner?

The prophets of old and today all point to where we have broken covenant and the path back to Shalom.  Sure his language was inappropriate, but I we should not condemn or dismiss too quickly. Instead, overlook that factor and really see what Mr. Harewira is pointing to:  Generations of colonial land thefts and most recently the NZ foreshore and sea bed.

I think that this is an opportunity for us look deeply within, and begin the process of reconciliation. But in order for this to happen we need to rectify the many wrongs inflicted upon the Maori people.

It is true that the Waitangi Tribunal has gone a long way towards this, but you cannot wipe generations of betrayal and hurt with money. We have to show by our actions now and in the future that our apology is real.

As a follower of Christ I feel called to accept this challenge he lays down before us and one way is to work to put pressure on our Government to repeal the Foreshore and Seabed legislation.