Scripture: Acts 3:26
After God raised his servant, he sent him to you first—to bless you by enabling each of you to turn from your evil ways.
Thought for the Day: There has been a lot of talk around the idea of evil lately, and I figured I’d wade into the muck at least to my knees. In the last week, the shooter in Las Vegas has been called an evil man or pure evil. I understand the desire to use that language, but I’d like to suggest that such labeling is very unproductive, and even incorrect from a theological standpoint. There are a few times in scripture where it appears an individual is deemed evil, but more often, scripture speaks of a person or people participating in evil ways. When we unequivocally declare someone to be evil, it is easy to dismiss this person to some outer darkness where answers to difficult questions are simply unavailable. The label attempts to be the answer, yet evil in scripture is more often a corporate or institutionalized power that has taken on a life of its own. People can be caught in this power or lead away by its authority, and their actions constitute participation in evil ways. Yet I believe an important distinction must be made. The person’s sinfulness or mental illness or ________ allowed him/herself to become a participant in the ways of evil, but simply declaring the person evil keeps us from asking the difficult and necessary questions that should be asked. In my opinion, the shooter in Las Vegas was not evil. We do not know (and may never know) why he did it, but clearly the evils of violence and hatred systemic within our culture enticed him. By declaring him to be evil, we imply that evil died with him. There is nothing further from the truth. The evil is still very present in our world, and it is our task as followers of Jesus to confront evil in all its many manifestations. By naming it and exposing it, we enable people to turn away from it. With all this said, I am not suggesting that individual responsibility for such actions should be ignored. Absolutely not! But we also need to recognize where evil prey’s upon people’s insecurities and fears, and then invites them to act in a sinful way that only emboldens evil itself. By claiming the shooter was the evil one, we are ignoring how evil, unbeknownst to most people, is doing a victory dance today. Let’s make that dance short lived! Just my thoughts…
Prayer: Let me never underestimate the powers and principalities of evil that seek to thwart your ways, O God of Love. At the same time, let me never underestimate the power of sacrificial love to ultimately defeat or transform evil itself. Amen.
Let’s Get Together
Wednesday Evening at 6:30pm
Continuing our conversation about how to help ourselves
and our neighbors in our post-Havery World.
This week, looking at the unique difficulties
that come with the holidays.
Everyone is encouraged to attend.
