For weeks now we have been listening to the almost vicious rhetoric of Washington politicos as well as their radio and TV surrogates, attacking the other party, predicting catastrophe, twisting truth to their own advantage, and leveraging the economic welfare of the entire country for the sake of their political ideology.
Even after the last-minute aversion of going over the brink, the pundits were talking about the visceral “hate” directed toward the President and/or toward the Tea Party. No pejorative, no twisted truth, no ad hominem seemed to be off-limits.
Today all of the morning shows are highlighting the very sad case of Rebecca Sedwick, a twelve-year-old girl who jumped to her death from a tower as the result of being bullied by girls at school. The bullying took the form not only of verbal insults across a variety of social media, but also words like “You should kill yourself,” and “You should die.”
The conclusion on the morning shows is that mean girls are getting meaner.
Does anyone else see a correlation between this adult hate-mongering and our children doing the same thing with their peers?
When I was in high school at a private Christian school, we started a music club for the high achievers in the school’s music program. Certain standards were set for membership: a high grade average, a certain number of performances, etc. But we also included a “blackball” rule. It only took one member’s “No” vote to keep someone out of this school-sponsored club.
In today’s world, this sounds pretty bad, but I’m just remembering all the country clubs, sororities and fraternities, and other social groups which had similar rules at that time. We kids were mirroring in our immaturity the behavior we knew to be common in the “best” circles.
Is it possible that our children are simply mirroring the aggression that they hear at the dinner table or on the ball field or on the car radio as we drive to church?
Try these questions and see if they make a difference:
- Would you use the same descriptive words about your spouse or best friend with whom you disagree as you use on those who offend you politically?
- Do you really want to expose yourself AND your children to the ratings-oriented rantings of radio talk shows?
- Do you want your children talking to teachers and school authorities like you talk to referees, umpires, and opposing coaches?
- Do you really want to teach your children that a person’s relationship to God hinges on whether they approve of universal healthcare or not?
Are these verses still in our New Testaments?
All of you must yield to the government rulers. No one rules unless God has given him the power to rule, and no one rules now without that power from God. 2 So those who are against the government are really against what God has commanded. And they will bring punishment on themselves. . . . 6 This is also why you pay taxes. Rulers are working for God and give their time to their work. 7 Pay everyone, then, what you owe. If you owe any kind of tax, pay it. Show respect and honor to them all. Romans 13
Yes, I know that in a democracy we participate in government and, in fact, ARE the government, if you buy into “of the people, for the people, by the people,” but I don’t think that fact gives permission and certainly doesn’t require citizens to be mean-spirited or aggressively disparaging towards those with whom they disagree.
If anything, I think it suggests that we Christians have a greater obligation to be “peacemakers,” to “honor the king,” and to “do good to all men.”
And if not for our ourselves and our country, surely we agree that we should not teach our children to be mean!
Mark's Blog 