I am
writing about some of the recent events that have happened in the last week. To
say our nation is in turmoil is an understatement. It is not just the natural
disasters, but also the propensity of our nation to violence which in my
estimation can be evil. To top that off, those who could speak up about the
violence focus on the wrong things. I want to clarify that I am not just referring
to the police or military, but to all people. We glorify violence as a means to
resolve differences. We have political campaign that do not seek to understand
the injustices that many of our citizens face each day but focus on continuing
to promote more violence and more restrictions of those who are marginalized in
our society.
Edmund
Burke stated, “The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men
[sic} to do nothing.” I am concerned about how our nation is addressing the
treatment of those who have little to no voice. This is not just an issue of
right vs. left, republican vs. democrat, conservative vs. progressive, this is
an issue of us, you and me. We can deplore violence and yet support BLM. We can
support police officers and deplore that actions of a few. We can protest and
deplore the wanton destruction of property (though I can certainly emphasize in
the anger). This is not an issue of 2nd
amendment right, as misunderstood as they are, and registration of guns. This is
an issue of the future of our nation and of our children’s children.
I continue
to read some of the texts from seminary. One of my favorite theologians was
Jurgen Moltmann. I am reading his book “In the End—The Beginning: the life of
hope.” In the chapter title, Does the future belong to the Young?, he talks about his youth. He grew up in
Germany during the reign of Hitler. He described that all children and youth
were forced into such groups as the Hitler Youth. He, too, was forced and indoctrinated
into the Hitler Youth. What he came to understand was, “The nationalization of
young people we experienced in the dictatorships of the twenties century
dispossessed children in their childhood and destroyed their youth. The youth
cult of modern dictators did not open up a future for the young, it destroyed
that future. Because dictators permit no innovative future, they deny the whole
of society its chance for renewal (pg. 25).” I started to think about what that
would look like today and what I saw was the image of a 17-year-old with a
rifle that had murdered two people.
What
made me reflect and saddened me, was that this youth has been so indoctrinated
that he would throw away his future and his life for what? It also saddened me
to see how certain commentators of a particular news agency seemed to condone
his actions. I wonder is this youth at any time realized that what he had done
was wrong. Was he capable of understanding to fight against what he had been
taught? And it is not just youth, though they are more susceptible, but others
who justify their actions based on their misconception of the truth of love. How
does the images and sound bites affect our children? Does fear permeate our
nation? What is the answer to these questions? Where is justice?
I may
not have the answers, but I hope that I am one of the good people who will
stand against injustice and evil. I may not be able to protest injustice, but I
can support. As I take time to reflect, I can be in prayer for those who are
marginalized, for those in power to open their eyes and to seek justice.
I am
going to close with this, “With what shall I come before the Lord, and bow
myself before God on High? Shall I come before him with burnt offerings, with
calves a year old? Will the Lord be pleased with thousand of rams, with ten
thousands rivers of oil? Shall I give my firstborn for my transgression, the
fruit of my body for the sin of my soul? He has told you, O mortal what is good:
and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness,
and to walk humbly with your God (Micah 6:6-8)? My prayer is that I and you do
all we can to seek justice, to show and share kindness, and most of all walk
humbly with God.
Shalom.
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