Freedom of speech?... Freedom to blaspheme?...
We will not join this debate. We take the opportunity of current events to pray for the souls of those who are always forgotten: our dear police forces.
Do the police often exceed their powers?... Are they often violent? Yes: but can most of us really understand the pressures under which they work, every day and night? From the constraints put upon them by politicians to the expectations of all institutional and social actors (from courts to taxpayers), common criminals, organized crime...and now experienced warriors they were never prepared to handle.
In this most recent Paris affair, the terrorists were the seasoned soldiers with battlefield weapons, and the poor police forces are simply not prepared or equipped for such events. And such events will become each time more common in the upcoming decades as frightening wars of religion of unknown violence unfold by installments throughout the cherished cities and fields of that Europe all Christians love so much.
We pray to Almighty God and the Mother of Mercy for the souls of officers Franck Brinsolaro and Ahmed Merabet, killed by the Paris terrorists yesterday; and for the souls of officers Rafael Ramos and Wenjian Liu, of the New York City Police Department, killed on December 20, 2014; and for all those police officers killed today and every single day in the line of duty throughout the world. May their families be consoled, and may we be more tolerant and loving and grateful to them, keeping in mind the unbelievably stressful environment in which they work to protect our lives, our safety, our families, our rights, and our property.
