It doesn’t matter whether this young deranged man killed because he hated a race, or because he hated a religion.
The point is that — he hated!
I have spent days trying to get my emotions under control. I’m still not sure that I have mastered my emotions. But here goes none-the-less!
I am angry.
Those people you now feel such sorrow for were Christians! They were my brothers and sisters in Christ! They were a member of my family — my spiritual family!
I am a Christian, Black (authentically born), a woman (authentically born), disabled, poor, quite a few years over age 40, and a Conservative.
All of these things have and will be used against me at some point in my life.
You want to put on airs at what this racist, lost, white youth did against these church-going Blacks, but although you didn’t plot and plan or enter in and pull the trigger, you are guilty too!
You’re guilty of putting down people because of their religion, their age, their economic class, their abilities, their political affiliations, and their gender. How are you any different than the one who murders because of race? Or because of faith? You are saved only because you didn’t pull the trigger!
Jesus said in Mathew 5:22 “But I say unto you, That whosoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment: and whosoever shall say to his brother, Raca, shall be in danger of the council: but whosoever shall say, Thou fool, shall be in danger of hell fire.”
What Jesus is saying is that you’re guilty just by your words. Whether you actually did the deed is immaterial.
Yes, you know who you are. You’re the one’s who have said anyone who believes in God is somehow a fool and less intelligent than those who believe in science. The one’s who have become angry at those who allow their religion to enter into their politics. The one’s who have said all white men are the scourge of the Earth. The one’s who insist that all those who live in the ‘Projects’ are lazy. The one’s who put up cartoons that make a mockery of liberals or ‘right-wing dingbats’.
It is all those who condemn with words.
Seeds start small, but they often produce big things. Bad seed produces bad fruit.
Who is reading what you write? Who is hearing what you say? Who already has a dark heart and weak mind and is ready to believe you?
This young racist was not born that way. He was taught. He heard certain voices. He believed those voices.
These were my brothers and sisters in Christ. I weep for the loss of my family members. I weep because there was hatred for their race. I weep more because some of you condemned them even before they were killed. You condemned their faith and love for Christ.
What are you personally espousing against race, political affiliation, sexuality, religious beliefs, economic status, and on-and-on? What kind of seeds are you sowing? Are they seeds of love, tolerance, and acceptance? Really?
I’ll pray that all of us can learn to practice true tolerance and love for each other and watch our words. We don’t know who is listening.
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