But I think, I think, that deep down we desperately want people to be good. When we hear of a crime, we are outraged. But when we listen to the other side of the story, when we find out that the perpetrator of the crime was not the embodiment of pure evil that we thought him to be, that he had reasons, that he was justified to some extent, we are relieved. Or maybe that's just me.
I see a video of contracted mercenaries, recklessly speeding through Iraqi roads. They accidentally hit a woman but drive on. I am speechless. But then I realize that the woman contributed in some part to the accident, having spontaneously stepped out into the street without looking both ways. And these Americans, they can hardly be expected to stop, because this might be a setup for an ambush. Ambushes such as these have taken countless American lives. Does this justify their actions? Maybe. Maybe not. But the world is no longer as evil as I thought it to be. The injustice is not so great, and so my indignation subsides.
And yet it lingers. Because the world is much more broken than I know. And I am more blessed than I know. I'm slowly learning to see that. This is a world where one man might stumble upon a government job and enjoy financial stability for the rest of his life, and next to him a single mom of approximately the same age is struggling to get a nursing degree in the hopes of making ends meet. This is a world where the rich are oblivious to the poor. A world where even in America, cops abuse their power to a disgusting degree, where politicians are selfish, where office politics are incredibly insidious, and the list goes on. Every person has their own individual justifications for what they do, but the consequences of what they do are still very real.
I used to want to invest in this world, to change it. But how do you approach a task so daunting? And so I think my greatest sense of relief comes from the fact that this world is not permanent. And my only recourse is the hope of redemption through Christ.
