Riverwood Presbyterian Church

Politics

Maybe Worth More Than 1,000 Words

by Clay Staggs

I’m hardly the first person online to make this observation, but I think that the photo below may just turn out to be one of those that achieves true icon status. It was taken by a guy named Michael Yon. His blog is here. He’s an independent blogger-journalist. He’s supported entirely by donations, and has been in Iraq a LOT during the course of the war. His views are purely his own.

I’m going to copy and paste Yon’s description of the circumstances surrounding the photo:

I photographed men and women, both Christians and Muslims, placing a cross atop the St. John’s Church in Baghdad. They had taken the cross from storage and a man washed it before carrying it up to the dome.

A Muslim man had invited the American soldiers from “Chosen” Company 2-12 Infantry to the church, where I videotaped as Muslims and Christians worked and rejoiced at the reopening of St John’s, an occasion all viewed as a sign of hope.

The Iraqis asked me to convey a message of thanks to the American people. ” Thank you, thank you,” the people were saying. One man said, “Thank you for peace.” Another man, a Muslim, said “All the people, all the people in Iraq, Muslim and Christian, is brother.” The men and women were holding bells, and for the first time in memory freedom rang over the ravaged land between two rivers.

It’s really encouraging to see something like this. I really believe that Iraq is turning around.

One final note: As you’re watching CNN or reading mainstream press, see if you come across this picture or this story. Yon’s making it available for free. I suspect that you won’t, and I suspect I know why.