In a Perfect World

Today I went to church.
As I walked rapidly to prevent myself from missing too much of the service, I heard the sheikh from the neighbouring mosque summoning the faithful to prayer. I was almost immediately transported to a beautiful summer's evening in Lebanon. I had been enjoying the sunset from high up in the mountains, when suddenly to my right there came from a distance the same summons; almost immediately to my left came the tolling of bells from far off. Two different religions beckoning their followers to prayer and the sounds intermixed and blended in naturally with the gorgeous Lebanese mountainsides. This is my Lebanon, a country not torn apart by war and different creeds; rather it is a world where different religions and beliefs complement each other. I believe it is the synergy of these faiths that makes Lebanon stand out among its neighbours. But it is the abuse and misconceptions of religions that tears the world apart.
Tonight at dinner, the topic came up as one discussion led to another. I know I am not the only one to believe that religion, especially in Lebanon, is not a reason for dispute and disagreement. I also take my belief a step further and believe that religion does not a good or bad person make. Marthe Robin, was an illiterate village girl who was paralysed and bedridden for decades. During this time, she neither ate nor drank and she never slept. She suffered stigmata and the passion, and had a gift of seeing into the souls of the many people who visited her during her bedridden days. When asked about Ghandi, Marthe Robin said he was a saint.
It’s not our religion that defines us; it is our deeds that make us who and what we are. A saint is not a Christian or a Moslem or a person belonging to any other denomination. A saint is someone who lives a life of giving selflessly and unselectively. We can all live together and define our religions by being saints in our various ways. When the discussion of religion comes up at the dinner table like tonight, or over a cup of coffee, or any time two Lebanese meet, I am overjoyed to find that many people do not measure people by their beliefs but by who they are. If there are so many people that think this way, why is the world not a better place?
I keep thinking of that evening not so long ago and my heart yearns for that perfect moment and I dream of a world where that harmony prevails not for a moment, but forever.

‘You may say I’m a dreamer, but I’m not the only one,
I hope some day you’ll join us, and the world will live as one’