The beat goes on…another suicide bombing, this one at an Ariana Grande concert in Manchester, UK. We will eventually learn the identity of the person overcome by hatred and evil, the perverse sickness that led him to target a venue that he knew would have children. We are again numbed by the recurrence of man’s inhumanity to man. As God’s beloved children, we keep waiting and hoping that His love will resolve conflict. We wait and hope for the day all will know and believe on the name of the Son of God, whose sacrifice once and for all assures that the kingdom of God is already; and still not yet.

Jesus died and was resurrected. This means that God says no to religious wars. Jesus calls for a different way of confronting evil. We still can not, no matter how much we want to, resort to revenge, repaying evil with evil. For this reason, my faith says: Capital punishment is wrong. There. Said it. Confront, resist, and fight evil? Absolutely. St. Paul says, in 2 Corinthians, “the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but are good for the pulling down of strongholds” (10:4-5). Recall how our hearts are warmed when we hear of families of victims not seeking vengeance. Reaching out to the “perp’s” family with love and forgiveness. Evil may have a lead in this game. Forgive, please, the baseball metaphor, but Jesus is “the closer” who will ensure that victory is ours. His love can eliminate fear. His love can wipe away tears. His love can comfort sorrows. His love can, and will, overcome evil. His love: UNCONDITIONAL.

Pastor Art