“Whatever faith may be, and whatever answers it may give, and to whomsoever it gives them, every such answer gives to the finite existence of man an infinite meaning, a meaning not destroyed by sufferings, deprivations, or death.” .― Famed Russian author, Leo Tolstoy.For reasons which I'd rather not say, I know that evil exists. I just don't want to go there. It's too personal. We've all had experiences, right?.Recently, I visited a friend — a very good, old friend..After a wonderful dinner, he tossed a DVD into a player, and we watched a fascinating documentary about legendary British test pilot, Eric "Winkle" Brown. Perhaps the greatest British pilot who ever danced in the skies. His life story is astounding, to put it mildly, and I strongly urge you to Google this amazing naval aviator..However, in this piece I want to refer to his various interrogations of high-level Nazis, following the Second World War, in particular, that of Irma Grese, the legendary Beast of Belsen..Grese, a Nazi camp guard, reveled in the torture and murder of internees. At age 22, she was the youngest war criminal hanged..The Americans let Brown interrogate her, and other top Nazis. She stood silent, like a stone, never answering. During interrogation, she suddenly stood up and gave a loud "Heil Hitler" salute, then sat down again..It is a matter of record, that Grese committed innumerable acts of sadism and roamed the women’s camps at Ravensbrück, Auschwitz, and Bergen-Belsen looking for victims..Brown said she was the most evil person, he had ever met..Even when they pulled the bag over her head before her hanging, she showed not a single trace of human emotion, or of regret..Fast forward to today, and the terrible situation in Ukraine..On television, we are seeing the devastation on the Ukrainian City of Mariupol, by the Russian invaders. We see the dead bodies on the streets of Bucha — an alleged war crime being investigated by the United Nations..Many of my friends, are aghast at what is going on in Ukraine. They don't understand it. Can't comprehend it. Why, they ask?.Have we learned nothing, as a society? How in hell, did we get to this point?.Worse still, the brutality and butchering of a nation dominates social media and our television screens, yet this is more reminiscent of things that happened at the turn of the last century, not in our century..This leads us to our pal, Vlad Putin. A man who has seemingly lost his mind, or who has turned so evil it confounds our senses. Exactly why does evil such as this still exist? And why now?.To seek out some solace and some answers to these complicated answers, I spoke with my friend, Erik Freiburger, holder of a Masters of Religious Education and Mission leadership and a Bachelors Degree in Theology. He also led a house church independently for 10 years..Put it this way, when times get tough, I count on Erik for his wisdom.."These are certainly extremely deep questions that humanity has struggled with since time has began. It is not easy to answer them with just a few sentences," Freiburger began.."Perhaps, the first thing to ask is what do we mean by evil?".He explained, by its simplest definition, that evil is the act of deception — a twisting of the truth — a perversion of the way things were meant to be.."It is why when someone speaks the name of Satan in scriptures, it can take many forms — demonic, creaturely, human, etc. But all that is meant to be understood is that he/she/it is a deceiver.".Evil is the uninvited guest we must learn to discern and live with until God, or that which is outside of our creational order, transforms it into its ultimate end, Freiburger said.."Our hopes lie not in focusing on the evil within the world, but in trying to hold onto and keep our humanity within the midst of it.".So how do we, as Christians or non-Christians, rationalize all this, and not lose our faith in God or humanity, I asked?."Faith was never meant to be confined to the institutions of religion, alone. It was meant to be an artistic masterpiece of how we as human beings created and found relationship with God, humanity, and creation all around us," said Freiburger.."It is here we can begin to do the work of caring for those who have witnessed and experienced the horrifying realities of war, injustice, and the oppressive violence brought on by brutal domineering powers such as those we have seen on our news today.".And yes, there is hope, said Freiburger '”in those searching for lost loved ones and mourning with those who have also experienced great losses. Hope is rebuilding with a knowledge of the truth behind Voltaire‘s words that, ‘The burning of a little straw may hide the stars, but the stars outlast the smoke.’”.Love is the binding force of all things, he adds, referring to the great South African theologian, Desmond Tutu.."It is the revelation that we can never truly exist without recognizing our greatest need in our relationship with the rest of humanity. Bishop Tutu called it Ubuntu, describing it as, “My humanity is caught up, is inextricably bound up, in yours.”.According to Bishop Tutu, a person with ubuntu is open and available to others, affirming of others, does not feel threatened that others are able and good, for he or she has a proper self-assurance that comes from knowing that he or she belongs in a greater whole and is diminished when others are humiliated or diminished, or when others are tortured or oppressed..In closing, I asked him why so many powerful men turn to evil? Throughout history, there have been figures of evil — ruthless dictators, such as Joseph Stalin and Adolf Hitler..And now, in the year 2022, we must endure a man like Putin who is seemingly a throwback to less civilized times.."Many leaders like Putin, Stalin, and Hitler were all influenced by narratives of dominating power — youths filled with experiences of Empire and communist control," Freiburger said.."That, or they often are raised in a cultural narrative of racial hatred and prejudice. They certainly are not 'self-made men,' as they profess to be!".These ideologies and narratives are driven by fear and keeping enforced power over those who run counter to their ideological expectations, he explained.."Remember, evil is defined by the act of deception. It would be far too easy to say these men alone are the sole conduits for some kind of anti-Christ to act within this world," he said.."They were shaped by other people and could not accomplish the evils that were done by them without the willingness of others to participate — be that oligarchies, military generals/armies, or political parties."."As Edmund Burke reminds us with his words, 'All evil needs to succeed is for good men to do nothing.'".Yes, even pacifism can be participation towards evil's success, he said.."Likewise, in the metaphorical sense, the evil that is present in our world today and wreaking horrific havoc — the war in Ukraine, pandemic infections and social unrest, economic loss, and unending poverty, domineering and irresponsible leadership — can never overcome the love, hope, and faith we have in humanity and God.".Reassuring words, in a time of great troubles.
