Continuing from 01/17/13…
Though I didn’t quote this part of my friend’s letter, his thesis was that my position did not acknowledge the biological likelihood of genetically determined mental illness behind Adam Lanza’s actions. Therein, when I attributed his shooting of innocents to a spiritual condition, the rational explanation of why this happened was not addressed. My friend asked me to consider if placing the blame for Newtown on the fallen nature rather than the shooter’s mental condition failed to answer the true needs of this situation.
“…if we ignore the REAL cause of his problems, by claiming that his actions are a logical result of our fallen nature as a species,…”
I guess this is what philosophy is all about.
philosophy = the rational investigation of the truths and principles of being, knowledge, or conduct.[1]
"What is REAL?" is a corollary of the "What is truth?" Someone asked Pilate.
So spiritual versus rational:
From a rational point of view, I completely agree with my friend. The mentally ill are not supported or helped as needed. A practical response to the Newtown massacre is to look carefully at ways to improve how this larger system we call society responds to these individuals. I agree. I rationally get this.
Spiritual point of view: A spiritual failing of the society is to reject God, and thereby miss out on the REAL resource available to humans which is the depth of mercy and justice such an approach calls for. Our society will always divert resources to other causes than the weak among us until some tragedy demands we do otherwise. As a society, we fail miserably in the practical areas because we miss our potential. We miss our potential because we reject God and thereby remove ourselves from the influence of the Holy Spirit.
In his letter, my friend asks if ignoring the mental illness of Lanza and pointing to the fallen nature as a root cause of the event, are we not sinning against Lanza by casting stones at him and by extrapolation, the mentally ill? Three responses come to my mind.
1. I do not blame Lanza for his fallen nature nor did I state I felt the mentally ill generally should be punished for their behaviors which fail societal norms. I brought up the fallen nature in the article as the root of our collective fascination with sex and violence. Individually, I would have to accept that I am like Lanza and all other humans in a place of dealing with the fallen nature. This is something Lanza could not do. Is his fallen nature a causative factor in his actions? Or was a physiological mental illness the complete source of his irrational behavior? God knows for certain; I do not.
2. “Casting stones” in the context in which Jesus used the term is an act of punishment. The adulterous woman was to be stoned which was in line with law by which the Jews lived. One thing which is often mixed up is the difference between a voice which condemns sinful acts calling for punishment and a voice which calls for sin to be addressed. Jesus did turn to the woman--who was guilty--and though He had turned the improper judgment of those who would stone her into the mercy of walking away, did He not identify her sinfulness when He told her to sin no more? It is not casting a stone, that is to say moving to punish or condemn Adam Lanza (or anyone mentally ill) for his actions, to acknowledge that the sinful attitudes of the culture around him provided a context for expressing feelings he had no ability to process either emotionally or intellectually.
3. Accepting the intersection of the spiritual and rational in this case, I see a need to speak out concerning the spiritual dynamics which swirl through this and other stories of mayhem that occur in our society, while I recognize the need for and support rational responses of supporting families and the individuals burdened by mental illness.
My friend’s position is not wrong, and my original premise of cause is not negated. There is a unity in our responses that seeks inspiration in the revelation of Christ and takes action as a result.
The conundrums we face as Christians in addressing morality in an amoral, technologically advanced, and hyped-on-entertainment society is why I named this blog, Spirit in the Wild Wood.
[1] http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/philosophy?