This morning after 18 days of protests in Tahir Square, a 30-second announcement ended a 30-year reign of Hosni Mubarak in Egypt. The scenes being televised by the media are priceless; people dancing, wide-eyed children riding high on the shoulders of their parents, fireworks exploding, and soldiers smiling and taking pictures with their fellow countrymen. It is a day to celebrate!
Unless, of course, you live in FEAR.
Some of my friends choose to compare today’s toppling of a tyrant to what happened 32 years ago (to the day) when young revolutionaries overran the government buildings and radio stations in Iran. My conservative friends’ concern is that Egypt will become an Islamic controlled state and that world terrorism and Christian persecution will multiply.
Other friends choose to contrast this overthrow in Egypt with what the United States forcefully did in Iraq; observing that the overthrow of Saddam Hussein destroyed a country, killed thousands upon thousands of their population, fractured their people into opposing forces, and has nearly bankrupted our own country.
I’m wondering how the churches in my neighborhood will respond.
I drive to the grocery store to pick up items for tonight’s dinner. I flip through the news channels so I can continue hearing updates. Our President is scheduled to give a speech in a short time. Instead I find the channel with Rush Limbaugh’s rants. The first words out of his mouth suggest that Obama will try to take credit for what happened in Egypt. I’m pretty sure that isn’t what the leader of the free world will say. I think it will be more like, “Can you believe what just happened?!” but in a presidential tone.
I don’t hear anyone in the grocery store talking about Egypt, but when I get home I see lots of social media comments on Facebook and Twitter. Glenn Beck thinks this is all one big conspiracy and tells his critics that they can “Go to Hell.” Other people online are sharing stories about Christians and Muslims protecting each other’s religious freedoms and expressions.
Again, I wonder what I will find in my neighborhood. There is only one way to tell. I could choose to be afraid of what might come, or I could purposefully work on creating a better tomorrow starting here in my own town.
As soon as the President is finished speaking, I’m on my way to the local Mosque to attend a service and get to know some people.
