In Kind

You would think an eye for an eye is a fair means of justice.

“You have heard that it was said, 'An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.' But I say to you, Do not resist an evildoer. But if anyone strikes you on the right cheek, turn the other also; and if anyone wants to sue you and take your coat, give your cloak as well; and if anyone forces you to go one mile, go also the second mile. Give to everyone who begs from you, and do not refuse anyone who wants to borrow from you. "You have heard that it was said, 'You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.' But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be children of your Father in heaven; for he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the righteous and on the unrighteous. For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have? Do not even the tax collectors do the same? And if you greet only your brothers and sisters, what more are you doing than others? Do not even the Gentiles do the same? Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect. - Matt. 5:38-48

A quote attributed to Mahatma Gandhi, and I am paraphrasing, "An eye for an eye makes the whole world blind" sums up the concern over retaliation.

If I do to you what you do to me, though, should end it there.  In other words, Gandhi may have been wrong.

Still, the sentiment is valid.

We are seeing what happens if we do nothing.  Evidence is all around us these days, with people committing crimes and not being held or punished.  So, something needs to happen, right?

It is as if we are running an experiment of what Jesus proposed, love your neighbor and your enemy.  That should send a message of love and the enemy should react in kind.

But what if your enemy doesn't get the message?

Gandhi preached love, and so does the head of our Episcopal Church, Bishop Curry, but some people are not hearing them.

I am all for praying for our enemies and for all who are tormented by evil, thinking it is ok to harm others in order to get what you want or need.

But we are seeing proof that deterrence reduces overall crime.

Not everyone will agree with that.  If you only count the times when you arrest people as crimes and you stop arresting people, that doesn't mean crime has dropped, right?

I don't think what is going on now is the result of Jesus' teachings.  There is a misplaced sense of justice right now.  Many people feel the evil being committed is justified because of actions in the past that were harmful to the group committing the crimes.

But isn't that logic a form of prejudice or racism, or something?  Aren't we saying "these people", whoever they are, have no other means of being heard or seen or getting what they need in life?

The question I have is this.  If we don't punish those who commit crimes, where is the justice?

Do we just shut down our judicial system and let God handle the mess?

I don't think that is what Jesus was proposing.  Remember, he was talking to people who were being oppressed by Roman rule.

Maybe that's it.  Maybe people feel our government is just like Rome, and they are justified to rise up against it.

Then, maybe they should listen to Jesus.

More to come...