Shared grief

  • The terror attack in the city of Stockholm Friday afternoon have forced four people into death and several, maybe fifteen people are injured. We all share grief with the families  around the victims.

Condolences are expressed around the world.

We are also sharing a deeper grief. The way we have mistreated our relationships in the world. I still remember how we in Stockholm, not far from the terror attack, gathered in huge demonstrations to try to prevent the invasion of Iraq. It seems that this war opened Pandora’s box for all the violence our world has experienced since then, at least in the Middle East and Europe. It is a hard world with only the arms dealers benefitting from the situation. The arms industry is a structural sin. Human lust for power and greed is a personal sin that can be transformed only by warm hearts and the grace of God.

It is not easy to know how to do justice to the victims in the streets of Stockholm. Maybe a renewed commitment to justice, peace and Creation is the best way of honouring their lives.

My mother in law died at old age just a couple of weeks ago. She was a pioneer in psychoanalysis in Sweden with a culture of dialogue as also a family value. I would like to honour her death with a renewed commitment to dialogue, also and not least with our opponents. Dialogue is different from discussion and debate and it is indispensable for people who desire to be understood. Maybe it is one of the great gifts of humanity to be able to dialogue and communicate in depth.

Let us unite in care for one another and for our wounded world.

  • Anna Karin Hammar