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The Interfaith Peace Project
A Legacy of Peace-Making for Twenty-Five Years
September 8, 2001 – September 8, 2026
LET THERE BE LIGHT
by Thomas P. Bonacci, C.P.

The following reflection was delivered by Thomas P. Bonacci on August 6, 2026 to a gathering sponsored by the Tri Valley CAREs Community in observance of the dropping of the atomic bomb on August 6, 1945. The gathering protested the development and production of plutonium pits (triggers to detonate nuclear weapons) at the Lawrence Livermore Laboratory, Livermore, CA.  

LET THERE BE LIGHT

… if we don’t have pits, we don’t have nuclear weapons

So, the question is: Do you believe that the world as it currently exists would be safer and more stable if the United States unilaterally disavowed nuclear weapons? If so, you wouldn’t make pits. But if you think that the deterrent is important for maintaining stability in an environment in which other states are prone to using coercion if they can get away with it, then we’re going to need to manufacture pits.”

—Thom Mason
Los Alamos National Laboratory director

Blessings to you on this day of remembrance. Hopefully a new light of wisdom and insight will dawn upon us as we gather here today to witness to what is right and just.

Forgive me, but I cannot help but think of Psalm 57: 6 and the verse that reads:

They invented a pit, and they themselves fell into it.

We have heard much about plutonium pits this morning. Maybe more information than we wanted. It is upsetting, but being ignorant of what is happening is no virtue and such ignorance compounds the problem. Without accurate knowledge of what is happening in our own backyard, we cannot rise to the occasion and practice that peace which gives birth to justice. Our first response to the development of weapons of mass destruction is to know they exist, how they are developing, and the ramifications of such destructive inventiveness.

The cost of these weapons is more than what can be measured in dollars. The ultimate cost is human survival. By “human survival” I do not mean simply our existence as a species but our well-being as a family.

We cannot long endure the scourge of nationalism which pits one nation against another. There are those who try everything in their power to convince us that it is only through the threat of power and might that we can survive as a nation. Power then becomes the god we worship. Might is the life we live.  And fear of everybody becomes the religion we practice. But survival is more than mere existence.

The ultimate cost we pay for attempting to find security in weapons of mass destruction is the loss of our own sanity. We have slowly been groomed to fear everyone we find different from ourselves. We have convinced ourselves that our ways of living and thinking are normal. We are tempted to think diversity is an evil thing, equality and equity are illusions, and justice for the few is normative.

The worship of power has led to the adoration of money and obscene profits. Instead of let there be light, insight, understanding, and cooperation, the powerful among us would have us live lives of fear based on bias and prejudice. 

Security is one thing, but thinking that developing weapons of mass destruction is moral and ethical is quite another. Let there be light becomes let there be darkness.   

The irony of it all is simply, we fear others might do what we have done. The history of August 6 testifies to this fact. History must not be rewritten. Rather, this is one day we must not repeat.

But what about the core ethical and moral question before us today? Is it realistic to think we should disarm if our perceived enemies do not? Is it morally responsible to deliberately pursue peace when others are developing weapons to dominate and kill?  

I can only stand before you humbly and lovingly suggest that I would rather die in the pursuit of peace and justice than kill and slaughter in the name of fear and self-righteousness. In fact, I do not even want those who dig the pit, or invent the pit, to fall into it.

What would happen if we invested our time, wealth, and expertise in creating and supporting international centers and non-governmental agencies of cooperation and understanding? -Thank you, Ellsberg

What would happen if we invested in building schools and providing clean water throughout the world rather than bombing children? -Thank you, Alma

What would happen if we cured and treated the sick rather than thought of ourselves first? -Thank you, Jesus

What would happen if we became what we want the world to be? -Thank you, Gandhi

What would happen if we saw by the light the beauty of every living person?  -Thank you, Rumi

What would happen if we did the right thing because it was the right thing to do, no matter the cost?    -Thank you, Berrigan Brothers

Indeed, let there be light. As one very wise teacher taught:

Let your light shine!

You will shine brighter than the sun and more radiant than any weapon of mass destruction.

Blessings to you, Beloved Community, for letting your light shine. Now do what is right, not because it is profitable, successful, or acceptable. Do the right thing because it is the right thing to do.

Peace, love you.