Sunday, November 8, 2020

Are my hands covered in blood? Yes, yes they are!

 


I went to church reflective and sad this morning. I had been reading different friends postings on Facebook and someone had written that those who did not vote for Trump in this election had blood on their hands because of abortion. This friend knows I did not vote for Trump, although I did vote for a pro-life candidate and not Biden; some in the Evangelical movement believe that doesn’t matter; accordingly all Christians should have voted for Trump. The idea is that more babies will be aborted under a Democrat but not under Trump who is supposedly pro-life.

But as I settled into church this morning and we started singing songs about the cross it dawned on me that yes, my hands are covered in blood. Covered because I am a sinner and Jesus died for me, covered for the sake of righteousness, the righteousness of Christ. And that is extremely humbling that the King of Glory, Jesus the unique Son of the Father, took on flesh and bled for my salvation.

Still, I’ve been reading, rereading, some of a book about one of the martyrs of the Nazi years. No not Bonhoeffer, but pastor Paul Schneider. He was actually the first Confessing Church Martyr, constantly beaten and eventually poisoned. His testimony reveals something about the Nazis that many do not know. They encouraged fornication in order to produce many more Aryan babies. Not Jewish babies, not Roma babies or black babies but Aryan babies. So while they encouraged sin in order to produce more Aryans they also persecuted and harmed both born and unborn children of other races and ethnic groups. They tore them away from their parents and placed them in separate institutions.  

Schneider complained about the national leaders who encouraged the young people to sin. He had many complaints but one was about the immorality of leaders. It is important.

In a blog posting written in 2013 about Schneider and a book written about him, Paul Schneider Witness of Buchenwald, I wrote,

Schneider attacked an essay written by Nazi Propagandist Goebbels, “More Morality, but less Moral Hypocrisy.” As author Wentorf points out the essay came as Nazi leadership not only pushed young Jewish and Polish women into brothels, killed those people who they considered unworthy to live because of disabilities and “so-called hereditary diseases,” and also encouraged sex outside of marriage in order to produce more, supposedly, Aryan children. That was a campaign called, “Give the Führer a Child!” (128).”

 My point here is that there are many evils that leaders can be guilty of, abortion is one of them, a horrible, horrible evil, but there are others which also diminish life and destroy goodness inside of and outside of the Church. A ruler’s character, guidance and example can destroy even the good she does. But we are all sinners and all one way or another have blood on our hands.

As Christians we undoubtedly should not rejoice over Trump or Biden but pray for them, care about them and live under the shadow of the cross because that is the only safe place to be.

For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is His lovingkindness toward those who fear Him. As far as the east is from the west, so far has He removed our transgressions from us. Just as a father has compassion on his children, so the Lord has compassion on those who fear Him. For He Himself knows our frame; He is mindful we are but dust. … (Psalm 103: 11-14)


1 comment:

Jodie said...

Hello Viola,

Thank you for this thoughtful piece.

Because we are a Democracy, we always have blood on our hands when our government has blood on its hands. It’s a given. Fortunately, as you often remind us, we rely on Grace, not cheap grace, but Grace.

That being said, the President has no say in the matter of abortion. It’s a decision by the Supreme Court (a different branch of government that is not democratically elected). The Court is ratified by the Senate (yet again another different branch of government). The candidates they ratify are nominated by the President, but the President nominates someone vetted by a team. The Roman Catholic organization Opus Dei had a very strong hand in those nominations and now the Supreme Court is heavily seeded with conservative Roman Catholics endorsed by Opus Dei. It is not believed there will be any more changes to the Supreme Court in the next four years. Even if there is, it won’t change the balance.

So, rest assured Biden will have no influence whatsoever on the question of abortion. It remains to be seen if the current Supreme Court will reverse Roe vs Wade. They may, but whether they do or do not will have nothing to do with Biden, and truth be told, very little to do with Trump either. Once installed, Supreme Court Justices are not beholden to any President or Party or even We the People.

On the other hand, Trump had a direct hand in separating alien children from their parents and placing them in cages resembling zoos and concentration camps. Some of them died. Hundreds of them are still separated from their parents with no progress being made to reunite them, making caged orphans out of children who have living parents. That is an unspeakable crime he committed with his own hands. And because we are a Democracy, his hands are extensions of our own. The Scriptures are very clear about how we should treat Widows, Orphans and Aliens. If by our silence we consent, then yes, we have something for which, in every sense of the word, we need to repent.

Jodie Gallo
Los Angeles, CA