On Thursday December 1st a young man was shot in New Orleans. Normally I would only take brief note of such a news story - but this time it was different. I knew this man, not personally, but I was sitting in the stands at Mosaic Stadium when Joe McKnight's play for the Saskatchewan Roughriders made me notice this mid-season addition to the team. I remember thinking that there was some hope for the future at the running back spot because of Joe's ability to hit the holes in the line and with a burst of speed gain a first down or more.
Now a burst of gunfire has ended his life, at only 28 years of age - the same age as my eldest son. All because of a road rage incident if the news reports are accurate. Rage and violence, too often the solution used to right a supposed wrong. What kind of traffic offense was so terrible that it warranted such a response? My head can't even begin to make sense of this. I find myself shaken deeply - the same age as my son, violently torn from his family and friends. It's a nightmare.
I am saddened, not only because Joe McKnight's death has hurt a team, has left a hole in a family, has brought unexpected grief into the lives of many - I am saddened that we are living in a world in which such a tragic event can even take place. The tension in the United States has only gotten worse in recent months, and when something is wound up so tight, when it lets go damage is inevitable. I have no idea if this specific event is related to the increasing fear and polarization happening in the United States, but I'm not sure how else to make any sense of this, how such a thing could happen.
Violence as a solution is all around us - in television, movies and books; in the encouragement of competition rather than cooperation; in playground intimidation and courtroom litigation (not all violence is of the physical sort). Violence as a solution is also inside us - in the primal response to hurt as we've been hurt; in the quest to dominate and get our own way; in what I would simply call our 'sinful nature'. At its least destructive feelings are hurt, at its worst someone lays bleeding to death on a city street.
There is another way to live, a path set forth 2000 years ago, when another innocent young man was subjected to undeserved violence and death. In the face of aggression and anger he refused to use force and violence in return - instead forgiveness and mercy were offered. The only power Jesus used on others was the power of love. May the tragedy of Joe McKnight's shooting compel us to seek the path of peace and justice with greater energy and intention. May we seek to love our neighbours, all our neighbours, with the same love that Christ showed us. It is not enough to feel sad about such an unnecessary death - it is time to repent, to change the way we think and act, and to walk in the light of the Prince of Peace.
