This is incredibly powerful work. The way you frame the paradox of faith is spot on - both yoru father and the regime cite religious authority, but one runs toward suffering to stop it while the other manufactures it. I've seen similar patterns in my work with activist groups, where the ethics of witness becomes its own form of resistence even when metrics suggest futility. That muddiest heart imagery really captures it.
This is incredibly powerful work. The way you frame the paradox of faith is spot on - both yoru father and the regime cite religious authority, but one runs toward suffering to stop it while the other manufactures it. I've seen similar patterns in my work with activist groups, where the ethics of witness becomes its own form of resistence even when metrics suggest futility. That muddiest heart imagery really captures it.