As
I was going to send my column to the office, the news broke about a school
shooting back East. Once again anguished cries of loss break our Advent season.
The birth of Jesus led to the slaughter of the innocents in Matthew. Once
again, their screams resound and drown out the songs of peace, even from the
angels.
Obviously, we love guns in this county more than we love our children. The church, the very emblem of peace in a time of peace, will sit silent as usual. Heaven forfend that the NRA becomes offended. We may offer needful words of grief, even solace and comfort. I don’t feel that at the moment. I feel cold rage at the spasm of murders that we permit to continue year after year. No country approaches ours in this type of bloodletting that seems to becoming routine.
Personally, I am convinced that the dissent had it right in its opposition to the Supreme ‘court discovering a person's right to bear arms under the Second amendment. Yet, it is now the law of the land. Still, we may not be able then to ban certain classes of weapons, surely we can regulate them more effectively than we currently do. I realize that the political radical right has edged toward the mainstream. I realize that the fantasy many carry about a militia would be turned against our own democratically elected government. Gun culture undercuts our common security, our general welfare, our domestic tranquility of the constitution's preamble.
My prayer life moves toward cursing psalms and psalms of lament, of pain, such as the basic Ps. 13. I need to be reminded that God can hear every part of my life, including negative, fierce emotions and thoughts. Even the worst of our personal feelings can be wrapped in an envelope of prayer. Otherwise, I fear for my very soul.
I am guessing that the assailant was mentally ill. For me, then, forgiveness isn’t as much of an issue as he did not make rational choices. So the moral calculus of fault and personal responsibility is not likely at play. When are we going to come to the conclusion to keep guns out of the hands of the mentally unstable? I do not want us to return to the days of warehousing the mentally ill. Yet, we have neglected our duty to replace the old large scale facilities with smaller, more humane facilities. A good fraction of our homeless population is mentally ill. We have gotten to the point where our basic line of mental health delivery is the jail.It is virtually impossible for family members or friends to commit someone to a facility. States such asVirginia
Once again political leaders will rally and act as pastors to a broken hearted people; memorials will be created. We will see the pictures of the young lives snuffed out on our screens for a while. That storm will pass. We know full well that another one will come, sooner rather than later.I doubt that this latest massacre will lead to revulsion where we finally say that enough is enough. We will continue to bury children as sacrifices before the idol worship of guns. We will all require a forgiving God of the social sin of gun violence that mars our homes, streets, and schools every day. For the rest of the season, may the guns go silent. May people be able to sleep in safety and security to honor the Prince of Peace.
Obviously, we love guns in this county more than we love our children. The church, the very emblem of peace in a time of peace, will sit silent as usual. Heaven forfend that the NRA becomes offended. We may offer needful words of grief, even solace and comfort. I don’t feel that at the moment. I feel cold rage at the spasm of murders that we permit to continue year after year. No country approaches ours in this type of bloodletting that seems to becoming routine.
Personally, I am convinced that the dissent had it right in its opposition to the Supreme ‘court discovering a person's right to bear arms under the Second amendment. Yet, it is now the law of the land. Still, we may not be able then to ban certain classes of weapons, surely we can regulate them more effectively than we currently do. I realize that the political radical right has edged toward the mainstream. I realize that the fantasy many carry about a militia would be turned against our own democratically elected government. Gun culture undercuts our common security, our general welfare, our domestic tranquility of the constitution's preamble.
My prayer life moves toward cursing psalms and psalms of lament, of pain, such as the basic Ps. 13. I need to be reminded that God can hear every part of my life, including negative, fierce emotions and thoughts. Even the worst of our personal feelings can be wrapped in an envelope of prayer. Otherwise, I fear for my very soul.
I am guessing that the assailant was mentally ill. For me, then, forgiveness isn’t as much of an issue as he did not make rational choices. So the moral calculus of fault and personal responsibility is not likely at play. When are we going to come to the conclusion to keep guns out of the hands of the mentally unstable? I do not want us to return to the days of warehousing the mentally ill. Yet, we have neglected our duty to replace the old large scale facilities with smaller, more humane facilities. A good fraction of our homeless population is mentally ill. We have gotten to the point where our basic line of mental health delivery is the jail.It is virtually impossible for family members or friends to commit someone to a facility. States such as
Once again political leaders will rally and act as pastors to a broken hearted people; memorials will be created. We will see the pictures of the young lives snuffed out on our screens for a while. That storm will pass. We know full well that another one will come, sooner rather than later.I doubt that this latest massacre will lead to revulsion where we finally say that enough is enough. We will continue to bury children as sacrifices before the idol worship of guns. We will all require a forgiving God of the social sin of gun violence that mars our homes, streets, and schools every day. For the rest of the season, may the guns go silent. May people be able to sleep in safety and security to honor the Prince of Peace.
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