12 Blessed is the man who endures temptation; for when he has been approved, he will receive the crown of life which the Lord has promised to those who love Him.
13 Let no one say when he is tempted, "I am tempted by God"; for God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does He Himself tempt anyone.
14 But each one is tempted when he is drawn away by his own desires and enticed.
15 Then, when desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, brings forth death.
If our hearts are not right before God, what's on the inside will spill out and result in doing harm to others. Our attempts to treat cultural symptoms are much less effective if we do not look inside - to the heart - our hearts, which Jesus died to redeem. Jeremiah 17 says:
9 "The heart is deceitful above all things, And desperately wicked; Who can know it?
10 I, the Lord, search the heart, I test the mind, Even to give every man according to his ways, According to the fruit of his doings.
There is something strange afoot in the aftermath of the tragic shootings at Nashville's Covenant School a few months ago. What we do know is that seven people are dead: three students, three members of the staff, including the headmaster, and the shooter herself.
What we don't know with absolute certainty is why she did it - there is evidence that the shooter was a young woman who had previously attended the school, and that she was someone who apparently identified as transgender. As I pointed out following the shooting, her violent attack occurred as it was becoming more apparent of a propensity for violence among transgender individuals. Understanding of her motivation would be helpful. There is someone who can give us a clearer picture - the shooter herself. And, she has reportedly written a manifesto.
But, authorities won't release it to the public. And, there is a group of parents who doesn't want them to.
Deborah Fisher of the Tennessee Coalition for Open Government writes:
The mass shooting at the Covenant School in Nashville has led to an extraordinary legal battle over the public records law and transparency of our criminal justice system.
The school, the church that owns the school and the parents of the schoolchildren are seeking to stop the public from seeing evidence collected by police in one of the most horrific crimes in Nashville in recent memory, saying that it would be too painful and inspire more school shootings.
The parents, school and church aren’t considering that the information might lead to policies that could save other children’s lives. The information also could help inform the public about what to look for to avert future tragedies.
A new group that is helmed by parents of students at the school seems to be entangled with a legislative initiative that has been soundly criticized; the Sentinel reports:
Covenant Families for Brighter Tomorrows is a 501(c)(3) entity which will “provide education around the impact and prevention of school shootings and improve mental health support,” according to the release, while Covenant Families Action Fund is a 501(c)(4) entity which will “drive meaningful legislative change to ensure the safety of our children and staff in schools.”
The article relates that three parents had posted on social media support for a "red flag" law being pushed by Governor Bill Lee, described by the article as "a policy which would permit the state to confiscate firearms for those deemed a risk to themselves or others. Critics of red flag laws note that the statutes deprive citizens of gun rights without due process and without the ability to defend themselves in court."
The article says that one of those parents retweeted a letter written in support of this so-called "red flag" law by the head of a Southern Baptist entity that is charged to represent the denomination's views on policy issues. He is also a Covenant parent. The article says that he...
...has been criticized for employing Southern Baptist institutions to advance interests contrary to the denomination’s conservative churches. One source familiar with the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission speculated to The Sentinel that Leatherwood was one of the unnamed Covenant School parents reported to be heavily involved in delaying the public release of the transgender-identified shooter’s manifesto. The Sentinel previously contacted the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission to ask about the claim but has not received a response.
A report from Nashville's WZTV published on the WHAM Television website, in fact, does name this entity head, who "said the parents and families are asking their attorneys to leave no stone unturned as they pursue their goal of keeping these writings out of the public domain." It also says that the ownership of the transcripts will be transferred from the shooter's parents to the Covenant parents.
William Wolfe, who writes for Liberty University's Standing for Freedom Center cites reports that Tennessee governor Bill Lee doesn't want the manifesto released because it would negatively affect the proposed bill in the special session of the Legislature that begins in two weeks.
So, what's really going on here? Well, people are looking for answers, that's for sure. But, to me, it seems the answers are contained within the pages of Audrey Hale's manifesto. And, if it is true that the suppression of this information is directly related to passing legislation that is characterized as subverting a person's constitutional rights, that is an irresponsible course of action.
Baptist Press reported on a letter in support of this legislation that...
...The letter cites two Southern Baptist resolutions, including the resolution “On the Imago Dei” that messengers approved at the 2022 SBC Annual Meeting affirming that humanity is made in God’s image; as well as the 2018 resolution “On Gun Violence and Mass Shootings” that calls on “federal, state, and local authorities to implement preventative measures that would reduce gun violence and mass shootings while operating in accordance with the Second Amendment of the United States Constitution.”
I certainly think that those who are certifiably mentally challenged should not have access to weapons. But is attempting to prevent crime by projecting whether or not a person is a candidate for participating in criminal behavior the right way to go? I think that could be a slippery slope to labeling and stereotyping people. Could we see a collision course with the Second Amendment when "certain people" who are subjectively labeled in a negative way are denied their constitutional rights. Southern Baptists, it's true, passed a resolution calling for steps to end gun violence. Since the first murder in human history - committed by Cain - sinful people have committed violent acts. And, a helpful step to meaningful reduction in violent crime is the condition of the heart. But, so often, we attempt to address the symptoms of problems in society rather than the root causes.
I believe the release of Audrey Hale's transcript can help reveal the condition of her heart - the "why?" behind this horrific crime. And, I am sure the parents of Covenant School are well-meaning and certainly grief-stricken. But, if you connect the dots between suppression of important information and promotion of chosen legislation, that is a cause for caution. The issue of gun violence - and other forms, as well - should never by politicized.
What does a reduction in violence look like? While it is committed using weaponry of various types, the real concern is the weaponization of the human heart. The enemy will weaponize us in many ways - exploiting our vulnerabilities to accomplish his destructive aims. Anger, bitterness, unforgiveness, revenge, disregard for human life - these are all emotional trigger points through which violence can operate. Christians should be engaged in debating issues relative to crime in society, and bring Biblically-based solutions to the table - and those solutions should include mental health awareness and scriptural application.
No comments:
Post a Comment