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It is tempting during times of atrocity and shocking violence to submit to the most basic human desire to blame someone and to want some kind of vengeance. Before Rep. Giffords’ would-be-assassin’s gun barrel had even cooled yesterday, the political pundits were already trying to spin this tragedy to the benefit of one political party and to the detriment of the other. Blame is being thrown around like rice at a wedding.
But special attention is being paid to Sarah Palin’s “It’s Time to Take a Stand: 20 Targeted Disctricts” hit-list. As even Rep. Giffords cautioned last March (in the MSNBC video below), the violent nuances of this kind of rhetoric are irresponsible. For already vulnerable and unstable people like Jared Loughner, Giffords’ alleged would-be-assassin, nuanced rhetoric can be all it takes to promote lethal action. Shouldn’t we hold someone accountable???
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The hard truth for America is: no one is safe from guilt. All of us are to blame. We allowed this rhetoric to continue. We vigorously shared the viral links and quotes of both sides (whether Palin’s “Hit-List” or claims of Obama’s “Secret Muslim Faith” or “secret socialist plots”) with righteous outrage. We all participated in the “dehumanizing” of the “other side”. Whether it was from the Right or Left in this country, we all played our part to exacerbate the level of rhetoric and to caricature the concerns and public figures of the opposition. And when we rob the opposition of their humanity, then we become capable of inhuman-acts against them. Violence being but a symptom of this “dehumanizing” campaign.
Jared Loughner (Mamta Propat, Arizona Daily Star/AP)
I, therefore, call upon all American Christians (whether Democrat or Republican, Moveon.org member or Tea Partier) to begin the process of “re-humanizing” by forgiving. By forgiving Jared Loughner (the alleged assassin whose disjointed and paranoid ramblings at least show a very lonely and angry young man), by forgiving our political leaders on both sides (who are culpable for promoting this violent and fear-based rhetoric), and by forgiving ourselves (who have blamelessly participated in this divisive chaos until now).
Perhaps “re-humanizing” is lacking? Bearing in mind Alexander Pope, “To err is human, to forgive divine”, perhaps it would be more appropriate to utilize a sense of “re-divining” each other instead of “re-Humanizing”. By forgiving each other, especially those who we so desperately want to blame for such tragedies, we are side-stepping our human instinct for base vengeance and more hate and substituting the most glorious divine instinct, forgiveness.
We can put a stop to all of this madness right now, if we as American Christians take responsibility for our actions or inaction, and we start to act again by the same measure we would like from others, especially from God. We are all together in this, and we are one in God’s love.
Luke 6
35. But love your enemies, do good, and lend, expecting nothing in return. Your reward will be great, and you will be children of the Most High; for he is kind to the ungrateful and the wicked.
36. Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful.
37. ”Do not judge, and you will not be judged; do not condemn, and you will not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven;
About Trig Bundgaard
Trig–
I just wanted to say that I am impressed with your overall message following the tragic shootings in Arizona. You’ve hit on not only the essential issue of violent and/or suggestive rhetoric but also on the responsibility of those of us who repudiate said rhetoric and our nonaction. After all, no action is only a passive form of action. Although I am an atheist and do not approach your path of forgiveness from a religious foundation, I respect your message and can certainly agree that forgiveness is absolutely NECESSARY for moving forward from tragedies of this type. Vitriolic grandstanding and blame-gaming will only begat more hatred.
I disagree that our “most glorius divine instinct [is] forgiveness;” however, I believe that it could be, and that people of all backgrounds and faiths (or lack thereof) are capable of that goal.
Thanks for your message–I think it is a small demonstration of the potential of us all to rise above our natures, especially in the wake of an event that challenges following the high road.
Emily
Thanks, Emily. Your reply gives me hope that there is a solution to all of this divisive vitriol.
For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven:
a time to be born, and a time to die;
a time to break down, and a time to build up;
a time to weep, and a time to laugh;
a time to mourn, and a time to dance;
a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing;
a time to seek, and a time to lose;
a time to reap, and a time to sew;
a time to keep silence, and a time to speak;
a time to love, and a time to be angry;
Yes, the dehumanizing rhetoric is on both sides (liberals and conservatives), but it is very clear that the violent rhetoric comes mostly from the conservative Tea Party side of things. If we pretend this is not so, then we are putting our heads in the sand.
Yes, Jared Loughner is a tragic person. He is mentally ill and in need of compassion too; and I’m sure there is a prison ministry (possibly a Lutheran prison ministry), psychological counselors, friends and family tending to him.
However, there is a time for every purpose under heaven as it says in Ecclesiastes, and today was the time to be angry at the violent rhetoric that incited this unstable person to do this terrible act. Notice I did not condemn Jared Loughner himself in my sermon today. Rather I focused on the power of violent words, especially upon the unstable ones out there.
(And as I said before, forgiveness is always explicitly present in the liturgy — as it was today. This is one of the beautiful things about liturgical worship.)
Today was a time for anger at the violent words that incited him and a time for solidarity with the victims. Next week, we will add Jared to our congregational prayers (as has been my practice in previous times of national mourning), but today was not the right time.
As a pastor (and I know you are not one yet), a big part of being pastoral is knowing what time it is!!!
I believe in forgiveness and reconciliation, but as the Truth & Reconciliation movement in Africa has proven, there needs to be a time of appropriate anger and mourning and truth-telling before a society can move to forgiveness.
God’s grace is not just in forgiveness, God’s grace is in the whole process from anger and truth-telling to forgiveness and reconciliation. It is not good or healthy to skip expressing anger at the violent rhetoric (predominantly on the Right-wing) that incited Jared and to skip expressing unambiguous solidarity with the victims today.
In Love, Pastor Tim
Can you post a link to your sermon?
Carla says she will have it to me later this week, then I will post it…
You wrote, “It is not good or healthy to skip expressing anger at the violent rhetoric (predominantly on the Right-wing) that incited Jared and to skip expressing unambiguous solidarity with the victims today.”
Why must we express anger to show solidarity with the victims? Why can’t love and forgiveness suffice without an “anger stage”?
Mt 5:22.
“But I say to you that if you are angry with a brother or sister, you will be liable to judgment;”
Rom. 12
14. Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse them.
15. Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep.
16. Live in harmony with one another; do not be haughty, but associate with the lowly; do not claim to be wiser than you are.
17. Do not repay anyone evil for evil, but take thought for what is noble in the sight of all.
18. If it is possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all.
19. Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave room for the wrath of God; for it is written, “Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord.”
20. No, “if your enemies are hungry, feed them; if they are thirsty, give them something to drink; for by doing this you will heap burning coals on their heads.”
21. Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.
Anger is an emotion that keeps us from being jelly. Jesus got angry. Jesus expressed tough love on occasion. Hatred, on the other hand, is always bad and unhealthy… We can bless people by loving them, while condemning their hurtful actions…
Not to step on toes, but anger is not okay for the average person in this instance. The average person is neither related to Rep. Giffords nor anyone else who was shot. To paraphrase Yoda, anger leads to hate, hate leads to suffering. A big part of de-humanize someone is finding reasons that they are different and then inciting anger or hatred at those differences. Further, regardless of the rhetoric of either the right-wing or the left-wing, it’s the fault of the American people for allowing politicians to split us down party lines.
In this instance, it is people who have the power. The power to change. The power to forego anger and choose to contemplate how our actions have changed the face of America. To choose to forgive and learn. I, for one, am not angry that the Tea Party have used inflammatory tactics, but that people give those tactics credence. I am not angry about divisive political tactics, but that people support those tactics by buying into them. The politicians aren’t to blame here, we, the people are. I am reminded of story of the frog who gave the scorpion a ride across the river.
Justice will be served when the courts pronounce judgement. Our anger is neither justified nor called for nor needed. Our job is to see where our decisions have led us and try to change our path. This starts with forgiveness of those who have led us here. By forgiving them, we remove their power to control us through our anger. We choose to decide our own belief.
Far be it from me to disagree with Yoda, but anger does not have to lead to hate. In fact anger can be a useful emotion to move us to action for the greater good.
Even Jesus got angry. He got angry and turned over the tables of the money changers in the Jerusalem Temple: “Making a whip of cords, he drove all of them out of the temple, both the sheep and the cattle. He also poured out the coins of the money changers and overturned their tables.” He did not hate or hurt anyone, but he did get angry and he expressed his anger in acts of tough love. And he declared that God’s house should be a house of prayer for ALL people, not just for those who have enough money or just for those who are a part of the in-group.
Anger is a perfectly natural, healthy, God-given emotion that can be beneficial. However, forgiveness must always come. I say anger without self-reflection and forgiveness does lead to hate. But righteous anger along with self-reflection and forgiveness leads to social transformation for the glory of God and the benefit of all.
I disagree with you that I am not “related” to Rep. Giffords. To me, she is a fellow American and a fellow Democrat. And both Giffords and Loughner are my fellow human beings and children of God.
I choose to forgive and learn too, but I also do not deny my anger. And, apparently, you are are angry too. As you stated, you are angry “that people give those [Tea Party] tactics credence… by buying into them” and that “we, the people are [to blame].” I am also angry at these things, and I seek to learn and forgive even as I am angry.