Courage

I started this post last year and never finished it but I think it's worth completing.  It is still relevant so here it is finally posted.

This has been circulating around facebook

Hamburg, 1936; during the celebration for the launch of a ship. In the crowd, one person refused to raise his arm to give the Nazi salute. The man was August Landmesser. He had already been in trouble with the authorities, sentenced to two years hard labor for marrying a Jewish woman.

We know little else about August Landmesser, except that he had two children. By pure chance, one of his children recognized her father in this photo when it was published in a German newspaper in 1991. How proud she must have been in that moment.

We all have the ability to be courageous. We simply have to make the hard choice, and decide to strongly misbehave if our values and principles compel us to do so.

If you face a situation where the beliefs of others pressure you to compromise your own, be courageous. Even at our most ordinary, courage is our omnipotence.

V/R,
Scott Sonnon

 

So far in life most of us haven't had to choose sides at the risk of prison or physical harm.  Sure we've had to stand up for our beliefs, even if they are not popular.  We've had to be different.  For the most part I've been respected for this.  I haven't received too much ridicule for my beliefs.  Yes, there was that jerky psychology teacher in high school who liked to give me a hard time, sometimes bringing me to tears. (I saved them for after class.)  Yes, I did have a few Christian friends in elementary school who would tell me my religion was wrong. But, most of my association with people who don't share my faith and beliefs has been positive.  If that wasn't the case would I be able to have the courage of the man in the picture?  Would I have the courage to stand alone ?  Yes, I do believe I would.  I can't deny what I know to be true, just like this man couldn't be involved in something he knew was wrong.