The power of words in religion,
politics
BJ Gallagher Deseret News March 17
2016
"In the beginning was the Word," according to the
Bible. God's words created the universe; he spoke us into being.
Words created our world — literally. Words have power — to uplift
or to tear down — to inspire or to incite — to heal or to hurt — to
create or destroy. Words define our reality — for better or for
worse.
In light of the escalating violence at Trump
rallies, it's time we examine the role of words in our politics and
in our society. Those — including Trump — who defensively insist
that his vicious verbal attacks on Mexicans, Muslims, women and
others, have nothing to do with near-riots at his speaking events
are fooling themselves.
We all understand the power of words. Words shape
our perception of the world; words trigger emotions; words wound;
words have consequences. Those who write books and blogs understand
the power of words; those who work in advertising and sales know
the power of words; those in the media are savvy about the power of
words; and political leaders know all-too-well the power of
words.
Words call us to action: to buy things, to vote a
certain way, to hate those who are different from us, to eat
certain foods and wear specific brands of clothes ... and yes, to
kill.
America was established by words — the Declaration
of Independence. Our rights and responsibilities are secured by
words — the Constitution. Words commemorate significant events in
history — the Gettysburg Address. Words capture the hopes and
dreams of a people — Martin Luther King's "I Have a Dream" speech.
We memorize those words; we recite those words; we refer to those
words; we call on those words to define who we are and what we
stand for as a nation.
Those who pooh-pooh the lethal power of words are
forgetting the horrific results of deadly orators such as Hitler
and Mussolini. History is replete with examples of political
leaders who used their words to incite hatred, start wars and lead
their people to commit genocide.
Throughout human history, all the prophets and great
spiritual teachers have understood the power of words. For
instance, Buddhist teachings explain:
“Be careful of your thoughts, for your thoughts
become your words.
Be careful of your words, for your words become
your actions.
Be careful of your actions, for your actions
become your habits.
Be careful of your habits, for your habits
become your character.
Be careful of your character, for your character
becomes your destiny.”
So, what about Donald Trump's words? Is he guilty of
verbal violence? Let’s take a look at his recent
statements:
“Knock the crap out of him will
you? ... I promise you I will pay for the legal fees. I promise, I
promise.”
"We’re not allowed to punch back
anymore. I love the old days — you know what they used to do to
guys like that when they were in a place like this? They’d be
carried out on a stretcher, folks.”
“I’d like to punch him in the
face! In the good ole days, we would rip him out of his seat so
fast.”
“In the good ole days we would
treat them rough.”
“That’s part of the problem. Our
country has to toughen up.”
Trump is guilty of verbal violence.
His words condone and encourage physical violence. No one —
especially Trump — should be surprised that his political rallies
are growing increasingly dangerous.
What Jesus would say about Trump: I think he'd say,
“Ye shall know them by their fruits ... a corrupt tree bringeth
forth evil fruit.” (Matthew 16-17, KJV)
But Jesus (and other spiritual teachers) would
caution us against simply blaming Trump for the political violence
at his rallies. To do so is to overlook our own responsibility in
all this. We must ask ourselves: "How
do my words contribute to
violence in the world? In what ways
do I participate in a social and
political culture of intolerance, hate, and/or violence? How do I
behave on social media? How do I behave in conversations with
friends, neighbors, family and others?”
As long as we point fingers of blame only at Trump,
we fail to see our own culpability. "And why
behold you the mote that is in your brother's eye, but consider not
the beam that is in your own?" the Bible chastises us.
Every time we yell at someone who cuts us off in
traffic, we are being verbally violent. Each time we call someone
an "idiot" or "moron," we are guilty of wrong speech. If in
exasperation we blurt out, "If
you do that I'll kill you!"to people, our words are an
attack.
Idle threats are not idle — they are seeds we plant
in our psychic and cultural soil — seeds that take root and later
blossom into violent acts. We reap as we sow.
If we want more civil discourse, we must start with
ourselves. If we want less violence in our country, we must stop
committing violence with our words.
Change doesn't start on the election trail — it
starts with each and every one of us, where we live and work.
Gandhi taught us, "We must be the change we wish to see
in the world."
And the Christian hymn echoes: "Let there be peace
on earth and let it begin with me."
The
above quote attributed to the Buddha sound nice, but is a fake. I
think the nearest equivalent can be found in the Dhammapada Chapter
1 verses 1 and 2
"In the
beginning was the Word," – I believe the word ‘Word’
here is a reference to Jesus and should have nothing to do with the
power, good or bad that ordinary written words can do when
used effectively in essays, articles, books etc .