When Tamar was abused, it was a horrific crime, one unfortunately that is all too common today. But Absalom killing her attacker was worse not just because it broke the 6th commandment but because it was in retaliation. When revenge is the motive we blind ourselves to the crime. Cries of ‘He got want he deserved’ which echo around this story, make us feel like we are the hero when in reality we have just become the villain.
I am as guilty of this as the next person, I love movies involving revenge, and Hollywood has convinced me that it is imperative to our sense of right and wrong that the bad guy always gets 'it' in the end! Even in our compassionate gospel narrative we long for the justice part for everyone else – while anticipating the mercy part for ourselves.
Being a vigilante is often hard to see because we mask it in so much perceived justification. We retell our story with such self righteousness that we convince ourselves that we are acting with the best intentions. In the process we make vigilantes of those around us, as others take up the cause on our behalf.
The most common form of vigilantism is gossip, - the deliberate telling of an event to highlight wrong, insight distrust or destroy confidence. We may unwittingly cause great harm as other trust our bias take on the situation.
One of the most public vigilante acts of our time is the assassination of Osama Bin Laden. People danced in the streets, hugged loved ones, waved flags and proclaimed ‘He got what he deserved’. Only a small voice said – ‘where is the trial? Where is the jury? – this was public sanctioned murder, we have let our fear take over our reason yet again’.
So how do we stop? First we need to catch ourselves…. If we say or think ‘(s)he’ll get what (s)he deserves’ we are already on the way to being a vigilante. Second ask the question ‘what am I afraid of’, fear that justice will not be met is the basis for revenge. Third pray for better understanding and courage to act with love. Fourth trust the rest to the Lord.
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| Tamar is assalted by her half brother and then thrown out. |
but really? - don't you think Osama had to go the way he did? Is there NEVER justification for a military action against such a despot? He wasn't good enough for a long, drawn-out trial. I know I didn't shed anything but happy tears when it happened. Lynn Bennion
ReplyDeleteWell what if we were wrong in our judgment? Are we justified because everyone was wrong as well?
DeleteThe whole reason we have (rules) law is so we don’t have a lynch mob of emotional irrational people playing judge, jury and executioner. There are always different sides to an argument. War becomes a very convenient way to circumvent our rule of law and we should be especially weary of it (and require strict accountability) when it is used as justification.
This goes back to the whole Hero – Villain issue. War is justified on the basis that we are the hero and they are the villain. Must have been a big shock for Germany to find out they were the villain! How can we be sure that America is the hero, if accountability, transparency, and a process of detention and trial aren’t followed? What do we have to hide?
Well the Lord justifies war when we are forced to protect our lives, homes, liberty and I feel like that's what Osama was trying to take from us. He lost his life in a war situation and I feel like his continued influence of those jihadists made him a justifiable target. I think the Lord put the story of Teancum sneaking into Amalickiah's tent at night and swiftly killing him for a reason. There are times, hopefully only during war, when an enemy needs to be taken out swiftly and decisively. That's what happened to Osama bin Laden. He chose the role of American enemy and he did plenty of damage before he was stopped. Lynn Bennion
DeleteGreat discussion by the way! Love it. :)
DeleteThe problem is still that we can not be sure who is the hero and who is the villain. We are told we are the hero and they are the villain, but if we are smart we must consider that it could be the other way round.
Let me illustrate:
Alma 47 tells the story of how Amalickiah who by treachery takes over the Lamanite government and goes to war against the Nephites on the basis of a national disaster (assassination of the king) and that the Nephites are harboring the killers. He convinces the Lamanite people that they are the heroes defending their lives, homes and liberty, and invades the Nephite lands. The Lamanite people feel completely justified in their state of war and whatever it takes to rid themselves of this Nephite ideology which is so hurtful to their national security.
I am not saying that Osama Bin Laden, Afghanistan or Iraq are the good guys, but they may not be the real bad guys. What if the attacks of 9/11 were allowed, planned or even orchestrated, and blamed on someone else, to incite the country to such emotion that we would send our sons and daughter in droves to a far off land to invade other countries fully justified in doing so? And at the same time justify increased takeover of country resources and individual freedoms at home?
See how murky the picture becomes?
That is why recognizing the vigilante in ourselves is so important, and putting checks and balances in place so we are not deceived. The evidence always looks damming when it is presented only by one side. When we ensure the other side cannot be heard, or vilify others to the point we won’t listen we are sure to get it wrong.
If God tells you to kill a nation of men and rape their wives - that’s fine. God has sanctioned that violence and it is understandable. But don’t get a taste for violence, because when your half-brother rapes your sister, effectively rendering her an outcast, you need to take a step back, sit on your hands and see how things pan out.
ReplyDeleteAnd wasn’t David a vigilante? He started his own group and took on his ex-employers – the Philistine army.
Are you trying to make me a vigilante in your beef with David/God?
ReplyDelete:)
I enjoyed the talk from Steven Pinker http://www.ted.com/talks/steven_pinker_on_the_myth_of_violence.html that you refered to. I thought he had some excellent points, and while he highlighted what seems like Israels bloodthirst and brutality, he missed their compassion and humanity.
David was often a vigilante, and in the same vain suffered from others vigilante acts. For instance later Absalom takes the Kingdom from David and Joab his captain takes an opportune moment to assasinate Absalom. David is distraught at the loss of his son, and Joab is frustrated with the king that he loves his enemies more than his friends.
Its messy but life is messy. David was hero and a villain. I think we all are, but hopefully by studying and understanding their lives we will be more likely to fall on the hero side.
Maybe I am naive, but while I dont understand everything, and certainly dont agree with everything I read, I am hopeing to get some enlightenment from it.
:)
I don’t think I have a beef with God. I do think David is overrated. He was just Mel Gibson of his time: popular, charismatic, a bit of a brute, a poor father and husband, a strong believer in God, often full of remorse.
ReplyDeleteIf you want to study a flawed human, why look further than Mel? Having said that, I haven’t seen any of David’s movies; they could be excellent.
But we choose to study David because he is so long dead and because there is so little evidence of his legacy. We can mould him in our own image - create a story for him that somehow feeds into our own.
Life is messy, sure. But your flaws and my flaws are not David’s. He is a stranger to me. A man who knows that his son has raped his daughter, that his daughter is desolate, a man who knows this but does nothing, this man is a coward. This is a man, who, for all his brave deeds, has no honour. We have more dignity than David. We do what is hard. We embrace what is messy. David could learn from us.
So could Mel Gibson.
Well said.
DeleteI think your observations are excellent. I will not look at Mel and David the same again.