Unsung Heroes

I like to watch boxing. It's a real contest of fitness, conditioning and skill. Yet, you never know what is going to happen. I get the biggest kick out of it when the commentators are putting down the condition and skill of the man that appears to be losing the fight, and then he slips in a punch that knocks the apparent winner to the floor, and wins! Watching football is the same. In a split second the losing team can intercept a pass, or recover a fumble and run all the way down the field to make a touch down.

My wife thinks that I am crazy. "What is so great about watching two guys beat each other up or watching a whole team of men line up and smash into each other?" she complains.

She has a point. Both the boxer and the football player are living outside the box. The box of basic moral behavior. We all know that hitting people is both immoral and illegal, except in the case of sports. Even in sports there ar rules about what constitutes illegal contact. They exist to prevent serious injury and loss of life.

By the same token, the active duty soldier on assignment on the field in Iraq, or anywhere else in the world is living outside the box. Under normal conditions it is immoral and illegal to openly carry guns, break down the doors of people's houses or to shoot and kill other human beings. Yet we try to justify what constitutes immoral behavior by proclaiming the sacredness of the military mission and the American Soldier even has rules of engagement which are supposed to protect the innocent. Because soldiers are asked to leave their families behind and put their own life on the line for their country, we call them heroes and pray to God for their safe return home.

Yet, I believe that right here at home in America, the real unsung hero is the person who lives inside the box of Christian morality, and who dedicates his or her life to help others and to improve our quality of life for all. It is most difficult to try to resolve conflicts without resorting to guns and violence. Being an inspired teacher under the pressure cooker of the No Child Left Behind Act is no easy challenge. Serving as a doctor or nurse under the pressure of the present day American medical establishment is no picnic. Serving as an honest political leader has never been so difficult. What about all the volunteers who teach Sunday School, serve on Church and non-profit boards, the volunteers who work with children after school, who deliver meals to the elderly, work at food cupboards and serve at open kitchens? Without these every day saints of God, America and her Democracy would not be worth defending. Those who try to live inside the moral box of sacrificial service to do what is good in God's sight and to uphold justice and mercy in our society are my true unsung heroes.

Dr. Greene is an ordained minister of the United Church of Christ and a resident of Richmond, IN. He is also the author of Benjamin's Dog Joseph, Feeling Better: The Wisdom of the Doc, You Can Feel Better: How to cope with chronic pain and physical disabilities, and co-author of Walking Free: the Nellie Zimmerman Story.

For further information about his books, please visit www.densmorereid.com

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