There I go again – a misleading title.
Actually, there are very few points that one can draw from the terrible events in Orlando last night. When we drove away from Columbus last year we were shocked at the news coming out of Charleston, SC – a white supremacist loner had killed 9 people at a Bible study at a black church on Wednesday night. Now, as we are headed to St. Louis, we hear about the Islamic terrorist who killed at least 50 people in a gay bar in Orlando.
Our immediate tendency is to start trying to make generalities and to draw conclusion – to do what my title did in jest, to buttress our political or theological viewpoints based on the tragedy.
- We are always so quick to opine and generalize about the situation. Assign blame. Pin the tail on the politicians.
- We’ve become adept at pre-judging, a Nancy Grace nation that finds a Richard Jewell and convicts him whether the evidence exists or not.
- And while we disdain spin doctors, we’ve mastered the art. I’m sure there’s already articles on some of the click bait conservative sites pinning this shooting on Obama and Hillary and an equal number of lefty sites fixing blame on Trump or Bush or Reagan.
But, when tragedy hits, we can be better than that. I’d offer some suggestions.
1. Don’t jump to conclusions.
Yes, the murderer here was Islamic, but we don’t know yet whether this was organized jihad or a nutcase. Before we opine, why not wait a day or two and let the facts surface?
Of course, radical Islam is a real issue, but can’t we wait to make sure this was that before we pass sentence?
2. This is not the time.
A while back, ISIS militants marched some Coptic Christians out and beheaded them. While their blood was still damp, certain bloggers were explaining that these were not “real Christians” because of their heterodox beliefs.
There’s a time and a place for a discussion of Coptic doctrine. That wasn’t it. This isn’t a time to discuss our feelings about homosexuality or any of the other issues. Let the crisis pass, then we can talk about the big issues.
3. Be careful of smug truth.
Even truth, declared publicly on socia media, can come across smug and insensitive. If your audience is all Christian, it’s one thing, but lost people may not understand our declarations of truth and our dogmatic proclamations.
It is not that we should be ashamed of truth, but there is a time for tact. When I preach the funeral of one I believe to be lost, I don’t stand and consign him to the flames. I proclaim Christ’s saving grace but I use a little tact.
Simply put, we must consider how our actions and our words will be perceived by those who do not share our faith. A little tact is not inimical to clear gospel proclamation.
4. It is acceptable not to speak.
One of the unique realities of our modern day is that we tend to believe we have to say something about everything. We don’t. You don’t have to make a statement about anything, ever. Making a statement is often our modern substitute for taking real and significant action. If I put a French flag on my Facebook, or a Christan symbol, or make a grand statement of some kind, I give myself the impression I’ve done something.
One Trump voter has chastised us several times for not condemning the violence against Trump supporters. Is there a rule that if I don’t make a statement against something, I am for it? Must I make a post listing everything in the world I am against so that no one mistakes my intentions? Of course not.
It is perfectly acceptable, as a Christian, for me to feel bad about what happened in Orlando but not make a public statement about it. I need not say anything profound, unless I have something profound to say. Sometimes we fall into the error of Job’s friends, feeling we have to solve everything with our 140 character tweets or our Facebook memes.
And, finally….
5. Brutal tragedy almost never deserves a meme!
I like a good meme as much as the next guy, but by their nature they tend to trivialize and reduce big issues to the absurd. When something big is happening and you see a meme coming around, it’s likely that your best choice is to think twice, thrice, and then again before you hit the share button. When 50 people lie dead on a dance floor in Orlando, it’s time to grieve, to pray, and to seek God, but it is probably not the time to share memes.
Now, it’s my turn to drive, so I’m gonna hit the publish button.
Our world seems to be getting more violent and crazy. A man shoots a young, Christian singer in Orlando. An Islamic terrorists shoots up a gay bar. Anti Trump people assaulting Trump supporters and vandalizing their cars, and doing other acts of mayhem and thuggery against people, who are just simply attending a political rally. It’s terrible. it’s sad.
Our nation needs an awakening. Our churches need revival. Jesus is the answer.
David
Point 4 is important. Thank you.
Each point is important. To suggest otherwise is to trivialize human lives. Jesus loved each and every one of those people. He created each in His own image. He gave His life that they might be saved. People are important. Their lives mean something to God. Their birth had purpose.
Vol is right. “It’s terrible. It’s sad.”
You are right cb,…. God commands, “But I say to you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven; for He causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have? Do not even the tax collectors do the same?” We, as friends of God, should never trivialize the work of the Son.
Unless CB shows up in St. Louis, I’m not speaking to him.
I would leave the word “probably” out of the next to last sentence.
“It is acceptable not to speak.” And yet…..
Read Franklin Graham’s comment on the situation. His words did not surprise me but totally missed the victims in this shooting. Politics and grandstanding seem to be what is coming out of every tragedy. Some have totally missed the humanity factor in this and other tragedies. That worries me just as much as the violence. No empathy to the victims and the families just another way to use for whatever agenda one has. To put all Muslims in this tragedy is the height of hypocrisy. To say I love Christ and to utter many of the hateful words I have read is more the tragedy.
This is not acceptable to me. No emotion, emotionless Christians. That is the tragedy.
Agreed on all points! And now – irony alert! – may I add a few more? These are things I’ve thought for almost 10 years. 1) Make sure it’s true. Refuse to promote lies, errors, untruths & division, even unintentionally. It’s shocking what untruths pastors & professors have published online due to insufficient….2) Fact-check & sourcing. I now believe it is sin to opine online without fact-and-source checking information & assumptions. Use original and/or trusted sources, not other blogs & aggregates. Is it a Bible verse? Check the Bible. A law, ordinance or resolution? Read it; quote it correctly. An accessible person? Ask them. A public incident? Read the police report if available, or a local, reliable source. And cite the source; link it if possible, to inform readers. Make it edifying. If all that sounds too difficult, don’t write on it. 3) Correct errors with updates, revisions & if needed, retractions & apology. Sadly, most people just won’t and don’t. 4) Write if called. I have so many thoughts I’d love to write! But I don’t think God has called me to it. The “national conversation” doesn’t drive our speaking; God does. Let’s not call for everyone to speak out on each & every thing.
Again, I note the irony of speaking out on not speaking out!
I noted that irony as I wrote.