Q&A.Father Daniel Berrigan has spent nearly forty years engaged in civil disobedience civil disobedience, refusal to obey a law or follow a policy believed to be unjust. Practitioners of civil disobediance basing their actions on moral right and usually employ the nonviolent technique of passive resistance in order to bring wider attention to the , protesting against the Vietnam War Vietnam War, conflict in Southeast Asia, primarily fought in South Vietnam between government forces aided by the United States and guerrilla forces aided by North Vietnam. , nuclear weapons and their manufacturers, and the Iraq War. I spoke to the trim and feisty yet preternaturally pre·ter·nat·u·ral adj. 1. Out of or being beyond the normal course of nature; differing from the natural. 2. Surpassing the normal or usual; extraordinary: calm Berrigan in his memorabilia-packed Upper West Side apartment. The Time magazine cover that featured him and his brother Philip in their heyday hangs in the bathroom amid dozens of photos with fellow historic figures, while stickers with political slogans cover his front door. Q: What do you feel about the times we're in right now? Berrigan: This is really the most dangerous time of my life. I have never seen this degree of irresponsibility, naked power, high-level duplicity DUPLICITY, pleading. Duplicity of pleading consists in multiplicity of distinct matter to one and the same thing, whereunto several answers are required. Duplicity may occur in one and the same pleading. , or the will to just own the world. I've never seen such blindness, and I'm scared, but it keeps me moving. Q: How do you maintain your faith in these times? Berrigan: I have Catholic Worker, and we've had an ecumenical group meeting in the city for the past twenty years now. I'm blessed with my family. Q: What do you think of President Bush wearing his faith on his sleeve? Berrigan: No one comes to the Bible without bringing his life and his attitudes. Bush comes to the Bible having run a human slaughterhouse slaughterhouse: see abattoir; meatpacking. in Texas for many years. He obviously seeks out parts of the Bible that allow killing. But I don't know what he does with the Sermon on the Mount Sermon on the Mount Biblical collection of religious teachings and ethical sayings attributed to Jesus, as reported in the Gospel of St. Matthew. The sermon was addressed to disciples and a large crowd of listeners to guide them in a life of discipline based on a new law of . Q: What do you think of Presidents--whether Clinton waving his Bible on the way to church each week as he's impeached for sexual improprieties or Bush weaving in Scripture as he engages in preemptive pre·emp·tive or pre-emp·tive adj. 1. Of, relating to, or characteristic of preemption. 2. Having or granted by the right of preemption. 3. a. war--who express their spirituality in public life? Berrigan: The whole thing is insane. The real unspoken credential for that kind of public office is you have to be willing to kill a huge number of people. If you don't want to play that dirty game, stay away from it. God has been part of empire building throughout history. Everybody always says we have God on our side. |
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