← Autodidact Archive · Original Dissent · Stigmata
Thread ID: 18020 | Posts: 4 | Started: 2005-04-29
2005-04-29 07:20 | User Profile
[center]ââ¬ÅAnd So ââ¬Â¦ Why Are We Surprised?ââ¬Â<?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" />
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[center]Reflection on the Columbine High School Tragedy
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[center]Cardinal Roger Mahony
[center]Archbishop of Los Angeles
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[center]April 25, 1999
As all of us try to grasp the full meaning of last weekââ¬â¢s tragedy at Columbine High School in Littleton, Colorado, our hearts and minds race searching for answers to so many questions. How could such an episode so horrible take place on a seemingly ideal suburban high school campus in such a picturesque city at the foot of the Rocky Mountains?
As we keep adding to the long list of unanswerable questions, experts, professionals, parents, political leaders, and high school students themselves are already beginning to suggest reasons why two male adolescents would or could carry off the worse school massacre in the nationââ¬â¢s history.
We are unable to identify the reasons that truly explain the violent rampage on that high school campus. Neither psychology nor sociology offers the depth of understanding we all crave. If we expect our limited behavioral sciences to answer lifeââ¬â¢s most serious issues and questions, why are we surprised that we donââ¬â¢t have answers that truly make sense to us?
Even though we cannot grasp the reasons for the violence at Columbine, many are offering solutions to make certain that this horror is not repeated on another school campus. The proposed solutions include increased school security, metal detectors at all schools, armed school patrols, greater gun control regulations, and conflict and anger management sessions for youth. As the list lengthens, I have yet to meet anyone who really thinks that these suggestions will create the necessary security for our young people. And why are we surprised at the inadequacy of such solutions?
I am concerned that few national and local commentators are willing to shine the light of truth upon the core problem we are seeing played out in our midst: the low esteem for human life, the serious undermining of the value of human life, especially over the past three decades. It is no coincidence that the rise in the number and severity of assaults upon human life is in direct proportion to the lessening of respect for human life.
With the exaggerated emphasis in our country on the individual and his or her rights, with the over-emphasis upon the freedom of the individual, and with the rhetoric of choice drowning out genuine concern for the community and common good, why are we surprised when people truly believe that they are entitled to use any means, even force, to safeguard their individual rights and liberties?
As our Holy Father, Pope John Paul II, aptly describes it, a culture of death appears to be overwhelming the culture of life. If we as a people continue to denigrate the value of each and every human life, should we be surprised by incidents such as the Columbine tragedy?
A few examples of the low esteem for human life in this country may help us focus on the root of our problem:
[font=Symbol]÷ [/font]As legislatures and courts condone and protect the right to kill the most vulnerable and innocent of human life through abortion, why are we surprised when our young people devalue unborn human life? With adults having abortions for the flimsiest of reasons, why are we surprised when high a school girl gives birth to a baby in a restroom during her prom, quickly kills the baby, and returns to the dance floor as if nothing were wrong?
[font=Symbol]÷ [/font]As prejudice and hatred for people different from ourselves continue to foster insults and attacks upon various minorities, and as groups of people, such as immigrants, are made scapegoats by society, why are we surprised when those whose lives are fueled by hatred for others burn down churches, drag people of different races to their deaths, and adopt nazi-like slogans and activities?
[font=Symbol]÷ [/font]As so much popular music, and so many video games and motion pictures glorify violence through the elimination of real or imaginary enemies, and feature violent solutions to lifeââ¬â¢s many problems and obstacles, why are we surprised when young people resort to violence in order to settle the score when someone seems to infringe upon their rights?
[font=Symbol]÷ [/font]As we continue to romanticize the glory of guns and their false promise to protect us, with the resulting availability of weapons of all sorts and sizes to virtually anyone, why are we surprised when school children and high school students begin to use guns to bolster their self-worth and to right alleged wrongs?
[font=Symbol]÷ [/font]As States continue to employ the death penalty as their preferred solution to crime in our countryââ¬âlending legitimacy to a violent response to societyââ¬â¢s problemsââ¬âwhy are we surprised when our youth see violence as a legitimate way to get back at those whom they dislike or feel slighted by?
[font=Symbol]÷ [/font]As the necessary stress and strains of daily life fray peopleââ¬â¢s nerves and lessen their patience, wearing away our appreciation of the importance of common courtesy, why are we surprised when road rage proliferates and people begin to use their automobiles as the weapon of choice to lash out at others?
As a people where do we begin to change this downward spiral, this devaluation of human life? Several possible courses of action are possible. Each is a step that can be taken right now to get to the root of this problem:
Each of us needs to have a profound change of heart about the intrinsic value of each human person, acknowledging that each human life is a precious gift from God. We need to open our eyes ever wider to recognize the face of God in each other, regardless of external features or appearances.
In our homes and with our family members we need to discuss openly the importance of respect for human life. We must encourage ways to get to know people of different backgrounds, invite others in our neighborhoods to share their cultures, and seek concrete ways to live in unity and harmony. Parents need to talk to their children honestly about the evils and dangers of prejudice and help foster understanding and tolerance.
Parents need to adopt an attitude of vigilance regarding their childrenââ¬â¢s video games, toys, movies, videos, activities, as much as their playmates. Parents need to be ever alert to the interests and activities of their children, and of their friends. They need to discuss openly with their children the dignity of human life, and to foster its respect and protection.
Adults, families, and young people need to adopt outreach projects that place them in service to others in the community, building up once again a renewed sense of the common good in which all contribute to the betterment of the whole community. When we turn away from total self-interest and focus upon the well-being of others, we foster a deep respect for the value of each human person.
Churches, schools, and other community groups need to offer constructive programs and activities for children and young people that emphasize unity, harmony, and the respect for others that is so lacking in our society. Positive, alternative programs for youth are essential if young people are to grow in their appreciation and respect for one another.
Civic leaders and legislators need to sponsor social policy and legislation that will bring an end to the ever-expanding culture of death, especially to abortion and euthanasia, and to the horrendous proliferation of guns across our land. And they need to implement programs for prevention rather than retribution for youthful offenders.
If we fail to heed the warning signs that surround us at every turn, then we should not be surprised to see even more tragedies in our country. Let us choose life fully and vigorously, and let us do all we can to enhance our appreciation, indeed esteem, for each human life, a precious reflection of Godââ¬â¢s face and goodness in our midst!
[url="http://cardinal.la-archdiocese.org/990425.htm"]http://cardinal.la-archdiocese.org/990425.htm[/url]
2005-04-29 11:33 | User Profile
Is the Cardinal a Marrano?
[url]http://www.la-archdiocese.org/english/cardinal/index.html[/url]
Take a look at this photo:
[url]http://www.cardinalrating.com/cardinal_56.htm[/url]
Decide for yourself.
2005-04-29 17:05 | User Profile
Travis, you're right! That second picture is about as Jewish as a person can look.
If you want to have some fun looking for marranos, Travis, check out this site:
[url]http://www.americanjewisharchives.org/aja/FAJF/about.html[/url]
One of Malcolm Stern's books of Jewish genealogies has been put online, and you can search for names included in various family trees here:
[url]http://www.americanjewisharchives.org/aja/FAJF/search.html[/url]
Happy hunting!
2005-04-29 19:58 | User Profile
As we continue to romanticize the glory of guns and their false promise to protect us, with the resulting availability of weapons of all sorts and sizes to virtually anyone, why are we surprised when school children and high school students begin to use guns to bolster their self-worth and to right alleged wrongs? "False promise to protect us"? Yeah, right. I guess we should just rely on our "betters" in the government to do so, huh? Let them have all the firearms. They only have our best interests at heart -- not just their paychecks and their egos. :rolleyes: :angry:
That Cardinal is an arse. And I also agree with Travis. Mahony looks as Jewish as a Rabbi.