The Struggle Continues

While in Northern Ireland/UK I took a tour of murals which illustrated the storied struggle between the Catholics and Protestants.  The eye opening thing for me was this (Protestants Vs. Catholics) is a GROSS simplification of the situation.  As I am not versed enough in the particulars to do it any justice, I will not attempt to expound on the situation.

With that said, I will say that seeing murals/reminders on both sides of the debate was a humbling experience.  Like any conflict, there are damages sustained by either party.  As an outsider  hearing/looking in I was saddened by what the tour guide said and what I saw.  I was shown a wall which is used to this day to separate the two sides the guide continued and stated the gates are closed at 9p.m. and others are not opened on the weekends.

From my perspective, and what I witnessed, the Irish people have soo much life to share and how much more amazing might it be if they were unified - I pray that day will come.  As the tour was ending, I was shown a few murals/art designs which seemed to indicate that some of the Irish people were trying to bridge the gap.

While it may not look like much (more so due to the picture), this art piece was filled with encouraging statements and is located on one of the walls seperating the two sides.

As I finished the tour I could not help but reflect on the struggle between good and evil.  Ephesians 6:12 (NRSV) "For our struggle is not against enemies of blood and flesh, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers of this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places." 

It is easy to look at someone elses struggles and not be able to see your own struggles.  For we all are involved in a conflict of some sort.  Some are worthy of the effort, others are us trying to fight through our fears and find meaning and some are just not worth the fight.  We each make this choice through each of our struggles.  It is often good to pray, reflect and get a different opinion on the trials we face.

Blessings,
-d