Reactions to Osama Bin Laden's Death

When I first heard the news of Osama Bin Laden's death, I was sad.  Do not get me wrong...I was NOT supportive of him or what he did, and yes...he needed to be stopped and held accountable.  However, I believe we are all connected...all children of God, if you will.  And that included him.

And then I couldn't believe what I was reading...people were celebrating his death.  I do not mean the normal celebration of defeating someone, but extreme jubilation...from individuals who claim to belong to a peace-loving religion.  Excuse me?  You say you're peace-loving then turn around and celebrate a death?  How is celebrating the killing of someone peace-loving?  I do understand the premise behind his death is to reduce terrorism (if it will) and to hold him accountable, but peace-loving people should be sad for him...sad for whatever the circumstances were in his life which led him to become the way he did and that no one was able to help him see killing was evil, no matter what the provocation.

And if people just cannot bring themselves to be sad for him personally, what about the people who loved him?  Just because he did what he did doesn't mean they agreed (anyone out there love someone with any kind of addiction?  Should you be to blame for their behavior? It is no ones fault but the person doing the behavior).  And what about his children that are too young to realize what their dad did?  Shouldn't you be sad for their bewilderment?  How their hearts are breaking?  It doesn't matter if you feel they will be better off in the future, what about their pain right now?

Religious leaders and other religious individuals have been issuing many statements and articles today about the reaction to Bin Laden's death.  It is pretty much a concensus...no matter what the major religion, they do not support the jubilation and celebrating that has been occurring over his death - those behaviors do not reflect and are against their religions. 

Here are a few of the articles, if you'd like to see for yourself what is being said:

• A Buddhist response to the killing of Osama bin Laden and the response to that event
• A Christian response to the killing of Osama bin Laden and the response to that event
• Another Christian perspective on revenge -- from John Dear, who was the priest coordinator of the chaplains who worked at Ground Zero after 9/11. He knows firsthand about grief and also about nonviolence
• A Jewish response to the killing of Osama bin Laden and the reaction to that event
• Another Christian response

I will add to this as I come across them (many of these were posted by the Facebook page Spirituality & Practice).

There is no winning on this one, especially by force from either side (see last post, the quote by Martin Luther King, Jr).  There should be no rejoicing in any living beings death. 

Peace to all...