In August, Cheryl and I attended the International Assembly on Managing the Psychology of Fear and Terror, held near Austin, Texas. It was one of those events that one feels contributes more to the problem than the solution. The very best part of the whole gathering was a compassion-filled conversation between a Palestinian psychiatrist and a Jewish psychiatrist, both of whom work with severely traumatized children suffering from the conflict in that region. One could see the body-tension in both presenters, and how they were being held there, speaking with each other, due to a reality that was larger than either of their own positions, the reality of suffering children that crossed all boundaries. Other than that exchange, however, there was not a sense of soul to be found anywhere. And certainly not a sense of spirit. There is now a good deal of money available for prevention and treatment of terror due to trauma, so in the breaks one could hear a lot of politicking and one-upsmanship going on, new centers being funded, government money being sought. And, of course, the forming of a national center for treatment of terror trauma.

In this conference there was a complete absence of considering the soul and spirit dimensions of terror. And, the models of trauma treatment have smoothly moved over to the realm of treatment for those deeply affected by terrorism with no consideration of the particular nature of what is going on. The primary idea is to try and return people to their post-traumatic selves, and the sessions reported the best strategies for doing this. The war on terrorism has spawned a new enterprise, one that is certain to be lucrative. It is an instance, one of many, occurring in innumerable ways, in which we actually become economically dependent on the existence of war and terror. The funding must perpetuate itself. Halliburton has many mirrors. There is no doubt that the detrimental beings know very precisely how to steer things in such a way that certain benefits accrue to those involved, even in helping ways, with the abstract notion of a war on terror. Because of the cleverness of detrimental beings, extra effort has to go into remaining inwardly alert, seeking to be receptive to entirely new ways of working, and being able to notice when one has been captured by old models. For example, because the focus is on trauma treatment, there is no recognition at all that terror is primarily an attack on the individual spirit. It is a spiritual problem first, not a psychological problem, and not even a political nor a diplomatic problem. Extended terror produces the loss of the presence of the individual spirit. That means one who undergoes terror loses a sense of the future, of hope, of possibility, of individuality, and most of all, loses the sense of a free inner life, becoming subject to a kind of mass consciousness bent wholly on following anyone who proposes to have the way to guarantee security, no matter the cost. Not the economic cost, but the cost to soul life.

There was one other quite interesting person at the conference. Patrick Boyer, from Canada. He tried to point out that the ‘war on terrorism’ is a blanket term, language that shapes our responses accordingly. Here is what professor Boyer says:

“For example, when an act of terrorism begins and state leaders must respond, they do have choices. They can define the surprise act causing death and devastation as a crime and move heaven and earth and deploy the police forces and launch covert operations of state and invoke the mechanisms and treaty powers of international law to bring the criminals to justice. Or, they can define the surprise act as an attack on the country and declare, “We are at war!” The first choice criminalizes the act and focuses attention; the second militarizes the issue and sets in chain a series of expanding activities that escalate fear.”

Now here is someone with a correct imagination. Someone who notices that how an event is imagined shapes completely what follows. What we have attempted to do in this issue of Sophia is to provide some new imaginations of war and terror. Imaginations that have to do with truth. Cutting through the lies that abound. It is not easy, and not comfortable. So, I cannot say “read and enjoy.” I can only say read and pray.

-Robert Sardello