My colleague and friend approached my workbench this afternoon. “Hey, did you hear about the shooting?”
“The one in Connecticut?”
“Yeah, all those kids. What do you do when something like that happens?”
He was wide open. He came to me. He asked the question. This was a rare moment. The word was on my tongue. But my lips did not part for it. I’m still conditioned from watching a co-worker years ago, a Southern Baptist who had no qualms about sharing his faith with atheists and agnostics, and who loved to talk, but did not know where to draw the line and when to stop.
Not one hour before, I had read the Witness, Mercy, Life Together blog at my lunchtime. This was where I found out about the shooting. The post opened with a statement about the shooting, then a prayer. After Psalm 102, there is another prayer. Then more readings from scripture. After two more prayers, there are three hymns, When Aimless Violence Takes Those We Love, In the Very Midst of Life, and Children of the Heavenly Father.
So the answer of what Christians do was right there. In a moment, a gob of thoughts went through my mind. That’s not what he means. He means what do helpless children in the school do. He means what do teachers and staff do in a place where the only weapon is in the hands of the killer. If I say this, it won’t make sense to him. It doesn’t physically stop bullets, not directly. I don’t want to push buttons or force this, or make him uncomfortable. And this opens me up to discussing theodicy. Those are deep waters. I’m not ready to swim there.
The wheels in my mind turn too slowly. I don’t know how to put this. I should have stopped. I should have simply said that word, what we do:
Pray.
Have no fear of them, nor be troubled, 15 but in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect . . . 1 Peter 3:14-15 (ESV)
Fail. Again. I probably said something dumb. I don’t remember. Today this conversation happened millions of times. I’m sure that it was handled well by many Christians.
The hardwired response is fight or flight, but this man was mowing them down with bullets. And where might the children fly to? I don’t know what they thought or felt in the midst of the terror. But if children want something, might they not ask their Heavenly Father for it? Wanting security, isn’t it best to ask? They may be secure in leaving that school building to eventually go home, which everyone understands. Or they may be securely embraced in the very arms of their Savior, Jesus Christ, which most of the world does not understand. Isn’t this why we baptize them, because all are born in tresspass and sin and the penalty for that is death? Isn’t this why we teach them to know whose they are? Isn’t this why we teach them Jesus Loves Me?
And those of us outside, we pray too. We cry out:
Kyrie Eleison!
Lord, have mercy!
I encourage a visit to Witness, Mercy, Life Together. For more on theodicy, the question of how evil happens even though God is good and all-powerful, please listen to the excellent December 14 episode of Fighting for the Faith.