30 Jan 2020
The death of Kobe Bryant was tragic as all deaths are; and as one who has laid to rest, over the past 40 years, some 3000 I take no death over the other. From the lowliest of life their end deserved its time to say good bye. In the mystery of death the necessary end will come when it comes but we must not cast others aside as if they do not matter.
Fighting the bush fires in Australia 3 American firefighters were killed; their bodies now on their way home. But you will not hear of them. They are not celebrities, indeed they are heroes. In Afghanistan and Iraq plane and helicopter crashes take lives weekly and their flag, draped coffins, are sent home. These heroes are mourned primarily by their families.
As the news and social media plunged into Kobe's death I too was sadden, but I also grieve for the 3 firefighters (9 in total) who died in Australia, who was lending their service; we also grieve for the estimated 118 lives lost on the highway each day and the 40-50 who are murdered by guns daily. Let us not forget our neighbors or his brother or sister whose life was ended in tragic circumstances.
Life is precious in all its means, let us not forget that.
Hartley,
Office of the Presiding Archbishop
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