Thursday, November 10, 2011

You have to do more.

The philosopher Edmund Burke wrote, "All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing".  It seems that in all of the explosion of coverage about Penn State this sentiment hits the nail right on the head.  Evil doesn't take vacations, evil doesn't call in sick, evil doesn't turn a blind eye when good is at work.  We live in a world where the lines of obligation have been blurred, where strangers can walk by a child dying in the streets and do nothing (as happened recently in China).  You may think that this is a testament to the downfall of modern man, but remind yourself that Jesus spoke the parable of the Good Samaritan with this same theme in mind.  In the parable (Luke 10:25-37), Jesus warns against those who feel that only a select part of humanity is their neighbor.  He reminds us that we all are created in the image of our Father, and therefore it doesn't matter who is in need or in trouble, our obligation remains the same.  We must act.  We must do whatever we can to safeguard the weak, to protect the innocent, and yes, to save children from those who would prey on them.
It isn't a choice we have, it is a moral obligation.  One of the students protesting the decision to fire Paterno mentioned that she was aware that he had violated "morality or whatever", but she didn't see what the big deal about that was.  Why let something as uminportant as morality get in the way of football.  There is money to be made, fans to satisfy, and entertainment to be produced.  Why would anyone object on moral grounds?  Sad, but true, and very un-Biblical.  The reason we have a faith that can save us from our sins is because Jesus considered us all worth saving.  We hadn't done anything to warrant God's love, in fact we were in rebellion against him, but Jesus came just the same.
In the end, you have to do more.  I don't care about the legal obligations, they always fall short of our duty to others.  I do care very much about our moral obligations.  Everyone is your neighbor.  Any child in danger is your business.  You have to do more.

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