By the Rev. Dr. Ed Hird 

My eye surgeon Dr. Kirker had me lie face down for three days.  I had just had laser eye surgery for a microscopic macular hole.  This condition was not noticeable until I was out at UBC reading tiny 19^th century print.

Upon going to an eye specialist, I discovered that I did not have either  lense correction, cataracts, glaucoma, retinal detachment or macular degeneration.  Over time, the gel or vitreous in our eyes shrink and detaches from the retina.  In rare cases, it sticks and causes a microscopic hole.  Before 1970, they could not do anything about this.  After laser surgery, the surgeon filled my right eye with gas which temporarily held everything in place.  In order for the gas to do its job, I had to be horizontal for 90% of the time.  Fortunately I was able to rent a massage desk and full-body massage pillow.  Sleeping facedown for four nights was a brand new experience for me.   My wife Janice said that I didn’t snore at all.  I never hear myself snore.

Lying on my face enabled me to listen to Elie Wiesel’s trilogy: Night, Dawn, and Day. Each of the trilogy was deeply moving and disturbing.  Like my successful laser surgery, Elie’s trilogy gave me eyes to see what I had been previously somewhat blinded to.  As a holocaust survivor, Wiesel has written over 50 books interpreting the meaning of the Holocaust for our modern age.  Wiesel miraculously survived the Concentration camps when so many of his family and friends ended in Hitler’s ovens.  In his receiving the Nobel Peace Prize, they said of Wiesel: “From the abyss of the death camps, he has come as a messenger to humanity – not with a message of hate and revenge but with one of brotherhood and atonement.”

Lying face down prohibited me from watching TV or checking my computer.  Because our North Vancouver Library system has a large assortment of talking books, I was able listen to John Grisham, Louis Lamour, and Elie Wiesel.  All three authors were passionate about justice.  Grisham sought justice in the court room.  Lamour sought justice at the end of a gun.  Elie Wiesel sought justice from God and neighbour.

Chronic and acute anxiety push us in the direction of requiring that everyone act and smell just like us.  Elie Wiesel’s writings encourage us to celebrate differences and uniquenesses of other neighbours.  Jesus quoted Leviticus in commanding us to love our neighbour as ourselves.  Love is always the answer.  Love gives us eyes to see when we are blind.  Love is an expression of amazing grace, where I once was lost, but now am found, was blind but now I see.  My prayer for those reading this article is that God will give us eyes to see that other neighbours are just as human, as valuable and as sacred as we are.

It is too easy to scapegoat other people and blame them for the problems in our lives.  Racism seems to be deep in many of our cultures.  It dies a hard death.  Without regular self-examination and repentance, racism can easily slip back into our hearts.  Anti-Semitism has proven in the past century to be one of the deadliest forms of racism.  Jewish people have suffered deeply again and again through pogroms, inquisitions, and job discrimination.  When conflict arises in the world, anti-Semitism and racism seem to spike.  What would it take for us to truly forgive and love those who offend us, those who are different?

Too many people in our culture have either never heard of or hardened their hearts to the message of the Holocaust.  It seems to some like water under the bridge, as ancient history.  Wiesel’s book help us to enter into the story of the Holocaust as if for the first time.  As a vivid story teller, Wiesel makes you feel that you were right there in the midst of the great tragedy.  Would it be possible for Wiesel’s books to be included in our school systems as a way of reducing hatred and anti-Semitism?  It could give our young people new eyes to see what it is liked to be bullied and rejected.

The Rev. Dr. Ed Hird, BSW, MDiv, DMin

-previously published in the Deep Cove Crier/North Shore News

P. S. Click this Amazon link to view for free the first two chapters of our new novel Blue Sky.

“I’m afraid there’s been an accident…”

Sandy Brown and her family have just moved to Spokane, Washington where her husband, Scott, is pastoring a new church. With a fresh start, Sandy is determined to devote more time to her four children. But, within weeks of settling in their new life, the Brown family is plunged into turmoil.

Sandy receives shocking news that her children aren’t safe, which brings back haunting memories of the trauma she experienced as a girl. Then, the unthinkable happens…

A brutal attack puts Sandy on the brink of losing everything she’s loved. Her faith in God and the family she cherishes are pushed to the ultimate limit.

Is healing possible when so many loved ones are hurt? Are miracles really possible through the power of prayer? Can life return to the way it was before?

Blue Sky reveals how a mother’s most basic instinct isn’t for survival… but for family.

If you’re a fan of Karen Kingsbury, then you’ll love Blue Sky. Get your copy today on paperback or  kindle.

-Click to check out our marriage book For Better For Worse: discovering the keys to a lasting relationship on Amazon. You can even read the first two chapters for free to see if the book speaks to you. 

-The sequel book Restoring Health: body, mind and spirit is available online with Amazon.com in both paperback and ebook form.  Dr. JI Packer wrote the foreword, saying “I heartily commend what he has written.” The book focuses on strengthening a new generation of healthy leaders. Drawing on examples from Titus’ healthy leadership in the pirate island of Crete, it shows how we can embrace a holistically healthy life.

In Canada, Amazon.ca has the book available in paperback and ebook. It is also posted on Amazon UK (paperback and ebook), Amazon France (paperback and ebook), and Amazon Germany (paperback and ebook).

Restoring Health is also available online on Barnes and Noble in both paperback and Nook/ebook form.  Nook gives a sample of the book to read online.

Indigo also offers the paperback and the Kobo ebook version.  You can also obtain it through ITunes as an IBook.

To receive a personally signed copy within North America, just etransfer at ed_hird@telus.net, giving your address. Cheques are also acceptable.

-Click to purchase the Companion Bible Study by Jan Cox (for the Battle of the Soul of Canada) in both paperback and Kindle on Amazon.com and Amazon.ca 

Indigo also offers the paperback and the Kobo ebook version.  You can also obtain it through ITunes as an IBook.

-Click to purchase the Companion Bible Study by Jan Cox (for the Battle of the Soul of Canada) in both paperback and Kindle on Amazon.com and Amazon.ca