I will start by saying that I have fond memories of the smell of Hoppe's
oil and melting lead. I loved sending the weight down the long barrel of my
father's or grandfather's or uncle's or brother's rifle when they came back
from hunting-- sending the weight down and tugging the wad of cotton rag
through the barrel to clean it. I have
popped out primers, watched liquid metal be poured into molds to become
bullets, and helped crimp shut the top of shotgun shells. I have, in fact, drawn diagrams of shotgun shells
and explained to others the science behind why they work and watched a deer
head be prepared at the hand of a master taxidermist.
I have also
driven a car that had its back end loaded down with many hundreds of rounds of
live ammunition, multiple firearms, a collection of bows, a quiver of arrows,
Ball canning jars of arrow tips, and a bag of knives. More on this in a bit.
And, I am
sickened, absolutely sickened, when I read about or I see on the news or I hear
about yet another mass shooting.
I am sickened because
there are ways to reduce the likelihood that it will happen again and lawmakers
consistently, obstinately, blindly, refuse to enact the necessary legislation
in the all holy name of the Constitution.
I am sickened
because we are now living in an age when planning and carrying out mass
shootings seems like a right reaction to perceived injustice.
I am sickened
because every time I see police in all of their riot gear, padded out, ready to
"take out" or "shut down" or "neutralize" I hear
the words "No, we can't help you because we are not in the habit of taking
the private property of citizens."
That trunk full
of weaponry and live rounds of ammunition? That was in the possession of a man
who was actually barred by the state from having it. And yet, he did. And I was trying to get rid
of it responsibly. So, I called the police. And they were no help. None. Even
with the paperwork from that same state that said he was not to have it.
These are the
same police who I called to ask about whether they would come to the house if I
found anything else when I was clearing out belongings. And they said no.
Sadly, I can't
even cry out "UNBELIEVABLE." Because it isn't at all unbelievable.
And yet we
wonder. We consistently wonder and act
surprised. Or worse, accept these
shootings as a part of our reality, as part of the price we pay for the right
to own a gun.
What a sick,
convoluted, interpretation of what a bunch of musket-bearers laid down in the
Constitution.
And same time,
people are actually getting upset over the recent Daily News headline that
says "God isn't Fixing This."
I actually
applaud the paper. And I think they are right.
I believe God
cares beyond measure about humanity's well-being. I believe God is indignant and aches terribly
to see what is happening. I KNOW I was
praying mightily while driving that car...praying no one hit me...and I KNOW I
have prayed over and again to do and to say what God would have me do and say
in difficult circumstances...including when finding out that the police had no
interest in helping me do the right, safe, thing. I believe God calls me to Love. Calls me to
be compassionate and just and the fullness of who God created me to be. God
calls me to heal, to bind up, to visit, to care, to do my part. God fascinates and astounds me and fills me
with wonder at the generous experiences I have had with God's tenderness and
fidelity. "Nothing can separate you
from my love" is a foundation stone for me and a call to go forth into the
world and do what I can to make it better for as many people as possible.
And while I have
given my life to this Love as a Roman Catholic woman religious, God will not
stop the wrong guns from being in the hands of the wrong people. God alone will not change our culture, our
indifference, or the fact that some people do terrible deeds for reasons we may
never understand and to which we respond with dropped jaws and open carry laws
and petrified children.
God inspires
people, strengthens people. Us. You, me, the lawmakers, the person in the
checkout line buying another box of hollow points and another gun to add to
their personal arsenal because it's allowed.
Are we called to
something better, something other? We
must make that choice. We must be the
ones to fix this. By the laws we pass,
by the choices we make, by our attitudes, our decisions, by what we say, how we
act, and what we call our neighbor to as well.
So yes,
pray. Pray harder than ever.... I do
believe Love will ultimately triumph over evil.
At the same
time, use the intellect, the reason, the sense, the capacities we have been
given as human beings, to change the laws and systems for good.
Or, don't gape
the next time another mass shooting happens.
It's on us. Not God.
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