How can we expect revival when we won’t get right with those we’ve hurt?
Let’s repent and be clean!
I signed the petition; will you?
Jesus in Matthew 5:

3 “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven.

4 Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.

5 Blessed are the gentle, for they shall inherit the earth.

6 Blessed are those who hunger and thirst after righteousness, for they shall be filled.

7 Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy.

8 Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.

9 Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called children of God.

From: readersupportednews.org

An Open Letter of Reconciliation and Responsibility to the Iraqi People

From Current and Former Members of the U.S. Military

By Josh Stieber

(Written with Ethan McCord, who pulled injured children from van in Wikileaks ‘Collateral Murder’ video)

Peace be with you.

To all of those who were injured or lost loved ones during the July 2007 Baghdad shootings depicted in the “Collateral Murder” Wikileaks video:

We write to you, your family, and your community with awareness that our words and actions can never restore your losses.

We are both soldiers who occupied your neighborhood for 14 months. Ethan McCord pulled your daughter and son from the van, and when doing so, saw the faces of his own children back home. Josh Stieber was in the same company but was not there that day, though he contributed to the your pain, and the pain of your community on many other occasions.

There is no bringing back all that was lost. What we seek is to learn from our mistakes and do everything we can to tell others of our experiences and how the people of the United States need to realize what have done and are doing to you and the people of your country. We humbly ask you what we can do to begin to repair the damage we caused.

We have been speaking to whoever will listen, telling them that what was shown in the Wikileaks video only begins to depict the suffering we have created. From our own experiences, and the experiences of other veterans we have talked to, we know that the acts depicted in this video are everyday occurrences of this war: this is the nature of how U.S.-led wars are carried out in this region.

We acknowledge our part in the deaths and injuries of your loved ones as we tell Americans what we were trained to do and carried out in the name of “god and country”. The soldier in video said that your husband shouldn’t have brought your children to battle, but we are acknowledging our responsibility for bringing the battle to your neighborhood, and to your family. We did unto you what we would not want done to us.

More and more Americans are taking responsibility for what was done in our name. Though we have acted with cold hearts far too many times, we have not forgotten our actions towards you. Our heavy hearts still hold hope that we can restore inside our country the acknowledgment of your humanity, that we were taught to deny.

Our government may ignore you, concerned more with its public image. It has also ignored many veterans who have returned physically injured or mentally troubled by what they saw and did in your country. But the time is long overdue that we say that the value of our nation’s leaders no longer represent us. Our secretary of defense may say the U.S. won’t lose its reputation over this, but we stand and say that our reputation’s importance pales in comparison to our common humanity.

With such pain, friendship might be too much to ask. Please accept our apology, our sorrow, our care, and our dedication to change from the inside out. We are doing what we can to speak out against the wars and military policies responsible for what happened to you and your loved ones. Our hearts are open to hearing how we can take any steps to support you through the pain that we have caused.

Solemnly and Sincerely,

Josh Stieber, former specialist, U.S. Army
Ethan McCord, former specialist, U.S. Army

Sign the petition here.

Related:
See the author speak here: The Contagious Love Experiment: Two soldiers who have returned from Iraq to speak about their personal transformation into a more compassionate being — Tremendous forgiving example!
Why does the world hate US? We say we’re ‘Christians’ while too many Americans are heartless, reverse-Christian, human being haters! Consequently, much of the world will cheer when we go down. In this video, released by WikiLeaks, hear our servicemen calling Iraqis reprehensible things and laughing — as we gun down photographers and children from the sky.
Glenn Greenwald discusses the WikiLinks tape on Democracy Now: “This is something that takes place on a virtually daily basis in Iraq and Afghanistan…. This is what war is. This is what the United States does in these countries”
Glenn Greenwald: Iraq slaughter not an aberration
Pastor Chuck Baldwin: Not Your Father’s Army — “Our military today is quickly morphing into the TIP OF THE SPEAR for a burgeoning, global NEW WORLD ORDER.” “American forces have been used to both put people in power and take people out of power all over the world. And as often as not, the people we put in power were counted among the ‘bad guys,’ while the people we removed from power were ‘good guys.’”
Lose your empathy, and you’ve lost your soul: “Republicans still support Bush’s torture and murder of about two million innocents, and Democrats overlook Obama’s expanded war and torture.” “Once a combat soldier kills a defenseless non-combatant…”
Boot camp kills the conscience so soldiers can do evil without being convicted in their hearts
The Boot-Camp Factor: The Hate & Anger Factory Where Men are Programmed to Kill and Then Become Our Dads?!! Our Pastors?!!!