Tag Archives: Murder

Responsible

February 21, 2025 Tom Vander Well Leave a comment

“‘If anyone sins because they do not speak up when they hear a public charge to testify regarding something they have seen or learned about, they will be held responsible.’”
Leviticus 5:1 (NIV)

Sin is a subject that carries a tremendous amount baggage with it. Along my life journey I’ve observed fundamentalist types who use sin as a tool for social control rather than treating it as the universal spiritual condition that it is. Particular sins get called out and heightened to a heightened level of public and social shame so as to ostracize those commit. Just recently I heard of a young couple who had sex and got pregnant before they were married. They were forced to stand in front of the church and publicly confess their sin and shame. Personally, I think every member of that church’s elder board should submit their tax returns for a thorough audit to see if any of them need to stand before the church and confess their greed. Subsequently, they should have a weigh-in at the next church potluck to see if anyone needs to stand before the church and address the sin of their gluttony and the abuse of God’s temple, their bodies.

As Jesus said to the fundamentalist religious types of His day, “he who is without sin can cast the first stone.”

As Shakespeare put it, “there’s the rub.” Religion loves to make a major deal about certain moral behaviors and particularly public sins, but then completely ignore others wholesale. The result is that the world sees the hypocrisy and dismisses the religion.

That still doesn’t address the problem of sin and the guilt of responsibility.

In today’s chapter God introduces the final of the five prescribed offerings for the ancient Hebrews to bring to His altar. It’s a guilt offering, and the chapter begins by calling out the responsibility one bears for speaking up when you have evidence of wrongdoing, and the guilt of remaining silent.

As I’m reading this, I put myself in Moses’ sandals and imagined him receiving this particular specific instruction. Moses was a murderer. During the old days in Egypt, Moses happened upon a slave driver who was beating one of his fellow Hebrews. Moses murdered the man. All of his fellow Hebrews who were there saw it. Moses was responsible for the act, and they were responsible to tell the truth about what they saw. I have a hard time believing that Moses didn’t feel something inside as God gives him these instructions for a “guilt” offering. That’s the key difference between a fundamentalist use of “sin” as a social control tool, and addressing the very real human need to take responsibility for the things we’ve done.

As I meditated on these things in the quiet this morning, I remembered an event that happened in college. I was driving with my sister late on a winter night. We witnessed a hit and run and I sped to try and get the license plate number of the person who “ran.” We hit a patch of ice, spun out of control, and into on-coming traffic. The young woman we struck was pregnant. Thank God, she and the baby were alive despite her injuries landing her in the hospital. A few days later, my sister visited the woman in the hospital to apologize and express her sorrow for what happened. I, however, didn’t go. The guilt and shame I felt was overwhelming. I was afraid to face her. I was afraid to speak up and be responsible. I still feel it as I remember and write these words.

That is the sin problem God came to address. I look back at my life journey and the road is dotted with things for which I know I am responsible. Not only am I responsible for the mistakes I willfully made and the wrongdoing I willfully committed, but I’m also responsible for the things I should have done and failed to do. How amazing that God not only initiated a way to address the problem for Moses and the ancient Hebrews, but that He ultimately chooses to sacrifice Himself in order that I might be graciously and mercifully forgiven.

The words of a Bob Dylan lyric come to mind:

“Don’t have the inclination to look back on any mistake.
Like Cain, I now behold this chain of events that I must break.
In the fury of the moment. I can see the Master’s hand,
In every leaf that trembles, in every grain of sand.”

If you know anyone who might be encouraged by today’s post, please share.

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Chapter-a-Day

Violent Times

June 8, 2022 Tom Vander Well 5 Comments

In those days Israel had no king.
Judges 19:1 (NIV)

I observe of late that I live in violent times. Violent crime is on the rise in cities along with snatch-and-grab gang robberies. Political extremists on both sides call for violence against their enemies on social media, and political protests on both sides have turned violent. We are all aware of the latest in a long string of mass school shootings that occurred just a few weeks ago. A few months ago, in Green Bay Wisconsin of all places, a woman high on meth strangled her lover during sex, then dismembered the man and hid the pieces throughout his mother’s basement, leaving his head in a bucket. The murderer appears to have found pleasure in the act. She asked the police officers who took her into custody if they “knew what it was like to love something so much that you kill it.” The first time I read about it, I found the details so disturbing that it was hard to stomach.

That gruesome event was brought to mind as I read today’s chapter. This chapter is another one of the more difficult ones to stomach in all of the Great Story. An unnamed Levite finds himself and his concubine the guests of a fellow Hebrew in the town of Gibeah. In an act that is a direct parallel to what happened to Lot in the city of Sodom in Genesis 19, a bunch of men of the town beat on the door of the host and demand that the Levite be sent out to take part in their ancient version of a rave. The Levite sends his concubine out to appease them. After being gang-raped through the night, he finds her dead on the threshold of the host’s door the next morning. Appalled by what has happened, he cuts her body into twelve pieces and disperses the parts to the twelve Hebrew tribes to shock the nation and explain what had happened.

So, why is this even in the Great Story, and what am I supposed to glean from this? Meditating on this question, I came to a couple of conclusions in the quiet this morning.

First, the author includes this horrific story for a reason and he gives me the clue in the first line of the story: “In those days Israel had no king.” This is a line the author has repeated in each of the last two chapters. This is the theme of his book’s epilogue. He is sharing with his readers the social breakdown that occurred when there was no strong civic or religious authority.

Second, the entire story is about hospitality in the ancient Near East, which was a social expectation of such magnitude in that culture that we can’t really relate to it today. The Levites’ father-in-law in the first half of the chapter exemplifies “go the extra mile” hospitality to his guest. This stands out in stark contrast to his host in Gibeah in the gruesome second half of the chapter who should have protected his guest and not allowed the concubine’s rape to happen.

Finally, the bloody act of the Levite in dismembering his concubine’s body and sending it to the tribes was a call to action. It was meant to shock the nation into doing something about what was happening in their society.

This brings me back to my own times, in which I don’t have to look very hard to find acts of violence not that much different than the ones in today’s chapter. And, in the Levite’s call to action, I hear echoes of what our society is proclaiming right now: “We have to do something!”

So what do I take away from this?

Personally, I’m reminded of the human need for authority in both my social and spiritual life. Being a follower of Jesus means that Jesus and His teachings are my spiritual compass. As I submit to doing my best to follow His example and His teaching, I find myself with spiritual and moral guardrails on my thoughts, words, relationships, and actions. This even includes honoring, and being subject to, my civic authorities. Without those moral guardrails, I can only imagine how my life might cycle out of control.

But also, as a citizen of this representative republic, I play a part in this society and I need to do my part to participate in the civic and social process by speaking out, letting my voice be heard, and voting for strong leaders who will lead by action and example.

By the way, I voted yesterday.

If you know anyone who might be encouraged by today’s post, please share.

Chapter-a-Day

Justice Then and Now

May 3, 2022 Tom Vander Well Leave a comment

Then the Lord said to Joshua: “Tell the Israelites to designate the cities of refuge, as I instructed you through Moses,so that anyone who kills a person accidentally and unintentionally may flee there and find protection from the avenger of blood.
Joshua 20:1-3 (NIV)

Some of our most epic stories have ridiculously high body counts. I’ve had the joy of seeing many of Shakespeare’s plays produced on stage. His tragedies, in particular (e.g. Hamlet, Macbeth) end with seemingly everyone in the play dead. The same with the feuding Capulets and Montagues in Romeo and Juliet. The same is true in more modern epics like the Godfather trilogy in which warring families endlessly kill one another. Game of Thrones also found creative and nasty ways to rack up the body counts. Even the climactic final chapters of Harry Potter contained the death of some of my most beloved characters.

Throughout history, our epic stories are reflections of our humanity, complete with its deepest flaws and tragic ends. Ever since Abel’s blood cried out, murder, death, and vengeance have been a part of human tragedies.

In today’s chapter, God reminds Joshua of a rudimentary system of justice outlined in the law of Moses. Knowing that tragic deaths could often result in violent, systemic, and generational blood feuds between families, clans, and tribes, Cities of Refuge were designated. If a tragic death occurred unintentionally yet a person was accused of murder, the accused could flee to one of these cities of refuge. The town protected the accused from acts of vengeance until a trial could be held by the tribal assembly and a verdict rendered. It was rudimentary, but it provided a time-out so that hot tempers could cool off and vengeance could be stalled in order for justice to be carried out.

As a student of history, I have often read about the historical implications that the Law of Moses had on humanity. It’s the recognized seminal code of law on which our own system of justice is built. No human system of justice is perfect, just as no human system of government is perfect. But in the story of the Hebrews, I see God prescribing a huge step forward toward a more just society.

So what does this have to do with me here in my 21st-century life journey? First of all, I’m grateful to have very little need for a justice system thus far on my life journey. I am blessed to have lived what amounts to a relatively peaceful life. I take that for granted sometimes, and so I whisper a prayer of gratitude in the quiet this morning.

I also recognize as I meditate on the chapter that justice is more pervasive in the human experience than the weighty matters of manslaughter and capital murder. Justice is a part of every human relationship and interaction. As a follower of Jesus, I can’t ignore that He calls me to be just, generous, loving, and merciful in every relationship. Jesus taught that In God’s kingdom:

Cursing another person is as serious as murder.
Lust is as serious as adultery.
I shouldn’t worship God if I’ve got an interpersonal human conflict that needs to be resolved.
I am to forgive, as I have been forgiven, and then keep forgiving, and forgiving, and forgiving, and forgiving, as and when necessary.
When cursed by others, I am to return blessings.
When asked for a favor, I am to go above and beyond what was asked.
As far as I am able, I am to live at peace with every person in my circles of community and influence.

And this is not an exhaustive list. It’s just a top-of-mind list that came to me in the quiet.

And so I enter another day in the journey, endeavoring to be a person of love, mercy, generosity, and justice in a world that has always desperately needed it at every level.

If you know anyone who might be encouraged by today’s post, please share.

Chapter-a-Day

Love and Life; Hatred and Murder

October 3, 2017 Tom Vander Well 1 Comment

For this is the message you heard from the beginning: We should love one another. Do not be like Cain, who belonged to the evil one and murdered his brother…

Anyone who hates a brother or sister is a murderer, and you know that no murderer has eternal life residing in him.
1 John 3:11-12a, 15 (NIV)

Once again yesterday we citizens of the U.S. were shaking our heads in disbelief at the unfathomable event that took place in Las Vegas late on Sunday evening. While this event was unprecedented in its scope, there is a repetition that I feel when these tragic events unfold.

The endless press coverage. The same video clips played in a ceaseless loop. The scramble to learn everything possible about the perpetrator and the victim. The press conferences with law enforcement. The statements from world leaders. The eyewitness interviews on the street. The outcry from every side of the political spectrum. The talking heads giving psychological profiles and “expert” opinion.

We’ve been down this road before. Here we are again going through the same motions.

This morning’s chapter provided some synchronicity for me. John makes a direct connection between love/hate and life/death. It caught me off guard when John reminds me of Jesus’ command to love others, then immediately switches to the word picture of Cain (If you don’t know the story, see Genesis 4) who murdered his brother.

Whoa. Wait a minute. Hold the phone. How do we get from “love” to “Cain?”

John answers this at the end of the paragraph:

Anyone who hates a brother or sister is a murderer, and you know that no murderer has eternal life residing in him.

So, here’s what I’ve been meditating on in the quiet of my walk around the hotel parking lot this morning:

Jesus said He came to give Life. Life is the goal. Increasing Life, abundant Life, eternal Life, fullness of Life.

The conduit, the flow, to Life is love. Love God. Love others.

When we refuse to love, we shut off the conduit. We shut love down like a valve. The flow stops. Things back up. Stop the flow of water in the eco system and everything dies. Stop the flow of blood and the body dies. Without the flow of love there is a very real spiritual and universal death that naturally occurs.

When we choose into hate, we are consciously, willfully choosing to stop the flow of love that allows for Life.

Hatred is cosmic murder.

One can say that it’s not the same thing as the physical carnage on the Las Vegas strip, but that’s the very point that John was making in his connection between hatred and Cain. In an eternal perspective it is very much the same. There is direct correlation between hatred and murder.

And, that leaves me with some very serious personal questions to mull over today.

Chapter-a-Day

Chapter-a-Day Acts 7

May 3, 2012 Tom Vander Well 3 Comments

Then they put their hands over their ears and began shouting. They rushed at him and dragged him out of the city and began to stone him. His accusers took off their coats and laid them at the feet of a young man named Saul. Acts 7:57-58 (NLT)

My wife is great at guessing the outcome of a whodunnit movie or television show long before the end. She will often catch the little hints and clues that the writers and directors provide. As we sit on the couch watching a murder mystery she will reference a seemingly trivial object or line and muse, “That’s going to be important to the story later on!”

As I read through today’s chapter and got to these verses, I thought of Wendy as I realized that this seemingly trivial side note is going to be very important to a larger story. Weeks and weeks of tension between Jesus’ impassioned, vocal followers and the religious leaders have escalated. The arrests, the floggings, the imprisonment of the twelve and their growing throng of followers finally builds to a tragic climax as Stephen is singled out and stoned to death.

You’d think that this would be the beginning of the end for Jesus’ followers. The powerful religious machine that had put Jesus to death was now going to squash Jesus’ followers. When things look their darkest, however, God’s power is most powerfully revealed. God specializes in eucatastrophe. This tragic moment starts a potent chain of events that are part of a much larger story.

And it begins with the young man checking coats at the stoning of Stephen. As Wendy would say, “Pay attention. That’s going to be important to the story later on!”