Fear is a powerful emotion. Fear rules human behavior so powerfully that it might as well be a dark and terrible god of its own. Fear is the heart of many evils that pervade our world because oftentimes that fear smites our better judgment leading us to make decisions we wouldn't otherwise. Fear is absolute and unavoidable. There is no man or woman on earth who can avoid the shadows of fear. Even the brave know fear.

As we move into the future we are going to be afraid. The future, by its very nature, is as unknowable as the night's sky. We will be scared of the future, but we as a people must understand that fear can be overcome. Dark can be vanquished by light. With the current policy of becoming closed off from the rest of the world, we as American's need to understand that we should not let fear rule our lives.There are refugees who need our kindness and compassion, despite the fact that they may come from a country where there are bad people. We Americans should be strong enough to lend a helping hand to the weak. I feel that this sentiment is especially true for those of us who call ourselves Christians.

There is nothing inherently "special" about being Christian, there is nothing that sets someone who is "Christian" apart from anyone else. Even still, Christians are called to make themselves be different. We as Christians are called to become the epitome of love and compassion. Love and peace are meant to be our weapons against the darkness and fear that pervades the heart of humankind. The evils of Satan and misconception are meant to be overcome by the good deeds and love of God and people. Yet, even now there seems to be disagreement as to what this means in our society. Many of us have fallen victim to the plague of fear: a malevolent sickness blackened to pitch by hate. We fear that which we don't know, and so we turn away large groups of people who need our compassion just because there "might" be bad people there. Christians and non-Christians alike have fallen victim to this virus.

This isn't meant to be a statement of politics, of Democrats or Republicans, this is merely an appeal to Christians and people in general. It is an appeal to people's better nature. For a good part of my life, Christianity has represented love, compassion, and acceptance of our neighbors. It was a light in my own personal darkness that said that all people are called to mercy. Unfortunately, it seems that a lot of people have fallen victim to this fear. It is one thing to protect your country from suspect people, it is another to bar your country from societies of people or to not aid refugees who need it. That level of action seems to be too far a step. Isolation is not the answer to a changing world. It is only by accepting other cultures, their ideas, their beliefs as being valid will we be able to improve the world. We don't have to accept violence or hate, but by truly understanding that Islam isn't evil and that the bad people of a culture don't represent the whole, we can slay the darkness.

We can be the light in the world.