Occasionally I visit the city of Leipzig, the cradle of the peaceful revolution of November 1989 in what was then called the GDR (German Democratic Republic). There are still reminders of how the open political resistance against the East German regime began and how the demonstrators refused to be deterred, even when armed units of the police and military were summoned.
I also remember gathering up all my courage to join the protests in the city where I lived, and the fear about how the political regime would react to these forbidden gatherings. As more and more people supported the protests, the determination not to retreat grew. Soon this nonviolent revolution led to the collapse of the East German regime and, shortly thereafter, of the political system in the entire Eastern bloc of Europe.
One thing I learned from this experience is that we can’t sit passively by when faced with evil. Even if we can’t protest publicly, we can take a mental stand and be part of a silent—but hoping—majority. Each one within that majority, who is protesting against injustice, corruption, or some other evil, can insist on the power of higher ideas coming from their spiritual source, God Himself. This conviction, cherished in thought, will spread, and it will empower individuals to act on behalf of justice.
