The Transfiguration and Hiroshima
An explosion of light.
It seems to me very few Americans commemorate this day in memory of the holocaust at Hiroshima. Elena at Tea at Trianon posted a mention regarding Nagasaki, with an interesting link to a Lew Rockwell piece by Gary Kohls - which deals primarily with the Nagasaki holocaust a few days following Hiroshima. As a nation, it is often convenient for us to forget that which doesn’t seem to affect our immediate well being. (Of course, history reveals that American lives were saved by these actions, and the war came to an abrupt halt.)
It strikes me as rather providential that the radical transfiguration of a city took place so dramatically on this feast day of the Transfiguration of Our Lord. The successive detonation of two atomic bombs, which leveled these two Japanese cities are credited with ending WWII and saving countless lives. It is a stunning realization when one considers that Japan was open to negotiating surrender before the bombings, yet the Truman Administration insisted upon an ‘unconditional’ surrender, which the Japanese were not prepared to make. Amongst the terms insisted upon by the Administration was the demand that the Emperor of Japan renounce his figurehead position as the ruler of Japan. It appears this is one of the first attempts by the United States to effectively seek regime change in a sovereign country in order to impose our style of democracy.
I was deeply impressed by a verse in today’s responsorial Psalm from Mass:
“The Lord is king…clouds and darkness are round about him, justice and judgment are the foundation of his throne.
The mountains melt like wax before the Lord…” - Psalm 97
Do you ever wonder what sort of end the United States will come to?
[Thanks to Don Marco at Vultus Christi for the image - I recommend you read his posts for the day as regards the feast of the Transfiguration of the Lord.]
August 6th, 2007 at 6:51 pm
Today is also the anniversary of the death of Pope Paul VI.
August 6th, 2007 at 6:54 pm
At Mass this morning we had these intentions:
For the universal Church,
illumined by the Light of the East that shines from Mount Thabor;
that she may be transfigured by Trinitarian love,
and restored to the fullness of unity,
to the Lord we pray: Christ, hear us. R. CHRIST, GRACIOUSLY HEAR US.
For Churches wounded by years of repression, persecution, and martyrdom;
that, overshadowed by the Holy Spirit,
and comforted by the voice of the Father,
they may shine with holiness, and prosper in peace,
to the Lord we pray: Christ, hear us. R. CHRIST, GRACIOUSLY HEAR US.
For the leaders of nations and for all public servants;
that they may protect the rights of all
to worship God in freedom and peace, especially in the Holy Land,
to the Lord we pray: Christ, hear us. R. CHRIST, GRACIOUSLY HEAR US.
For all who suffer and, in particular, for the people of Japan
marked by the memory of Hiroshima;
that the light shining from the Face of Christ may pierce the darkness
to bring them hope, comfort, and a vision of beauty that never fades,
to the Lord we pray: Christ, hear us. R. CHRIST, GRACIOUSLY HEAR US.
For all monks and nuns;
that they may so contemplate the face of the transfigured Christ
in the adorable mystery of the Eucharist
as to become in all of life pure praise of the Trinity,
to the Lord we pray: Christ, hear us. R. CHRIST, GRACIOUSLY HEAR US.
For ourselves;
that, having assembled under the cloud of the Holy Spirit,
we may come down from the mountain
with eyes illumined by the radiance of the Face of Christ,
and ears filled with the sound of the Father’s voice,
to the Lord we pray: Christ, hear us. R. CHRIST, GRACIOUSLY HEAR US.
August 7th, 2007 at 7:42 am
Those Cistercians sure know how to write Mass intentions!