Thankful

We are feeling really thankful recently for God's provision for us. We're also praying fervently for God to provide for the orphanage in Kenya that we're friends with. www.amcckenya.org (AMCC Supporters group on Facebook). And praying for Ruth and Gina in a really difficult, unexpected life change that's come up this week.

Here are a few pictures of the weekend that I stayed with them.

And the other promised picture of Mark with South African Constitutional Court justice.

Also, I made pizza the other night. In half an hour. I had to make some adjustments.

Problem #1: We don’t have an oven. I found a skillet recipe.

2: No yeast. Recipe with Baking Powder

3: No sauce. Tomato paste with water and Italian Herbs.

4: No grater. Cut cheese into smallish pieces.

5: No lid for pan. Foil!

It was yummy! 

Thanks and love to the few of you readers! 

Odds and Ends

A great weekend was had by all!

Mark went to a conference in Brits, near Johannesburg, for Students for Law and Social Justice. The focus was the implementation gap between the constitution and reality. Super interesting and right up his alley. He made new friends from all over southern Africa (and met an New Mexican J). A Justice of the SA Constitutional Court (equivalent to our Supreme Court) was there, and Mark got a picture with him/her. He also slept under the stars and was happy to come home to my cooking.

He has another week of Civil Law every day from 9am-1pm, and is doing a presentation tomorrow on how French Civil Law affects Louisiana state law. Interesting!

Meanwhile, I got to spend time with Zambia friends, Keisha and the lovely, hospitable Tembos. We had a lot of fun together and did a fair bit of reminiscing. I am amazed at the awesome things God has done in each of our lives in the past four years. Gina is a high school rock star! And Ruth is a stud in her church and as a mother. 

Hopefully we'll have pictures soon. We both didn't use the camera much but will bum pictures off of other people. These are a few from Mark's weekend.

And here's what I'm doing today! Hanging with the Peterson's kids. A little consolation since I miss my nieces and nephews so much!

I've really been enjoying Derek Webb's album "Mockingbird" again, and I think it sounds mennonite.

And some other thoughts:

Fear seems to be prevalent in CT. More than Mumbai, more than Kitwe, Zambia, and definitely more than my experiences in the US. People often caution me against going to a specific place, against hiking alone; they tell stories about when something bad happened to someone, generally caution me to be careful…

It’s fairly easy for me to brush off these comments. I follow smart guidelines –don’t walk in remote places or late at night, don’t carry my phone out (even though it’s a pretty ghetto phone anyway), don’t stop to talk to strangers,

Sometimes, like Tuesday, I feel like I’m being rude when I know there’s someone trying to get my attention – in this case a conductor on a minibus who wanted me to go to town on his bus – and I just ignore them and keep moving. But it’s the smart thing and worth risking offending him.

But yesterday I read something and have felt a lot of fear since then. I know that God is in control. And I’ve been mulling over what it means to love people who do really bad things (see last post)…

You can see from all the elipses here that I have come to no conclusions about this but am praying and ask for you to pray for me, that this spirit of fear would leave.

IN other news,

Women here don’t seem to spend a lot of time on their hair, and I’m glad because I fit in a lot better because of that. It’s a bit humid and super windy, so it would be really hard to maintain the look anyway. And I have a brush and blow drier as my styling implements.

There is an untouched market for stylish flannel-lined jeans. I don’t like being cold and am thankful for my warm legs when I wear them, but they are SO “mom jeans”! It’s painful for me to wear them in public, and I don’t wear them if I’m going to see someone I know because they’re so awkward-fitting. But they are nice and warm, and I’m thankful for that.

Something to Consider

A week ago today, I turned in my Integrative paper for Biblical Foundations for Justice and Peacebuilding. In it, I wrote some about how I think Christians should respond to perpetrators of injustice, oppression, and violence.

These thoughts were prompted by 1) recently living near a registered sex offender and feeling God's compassion for that person, 2) IJM's approach that often doesn't deal with the perpetrator other than prosecution, and 3) a good friend who asked me to pray for those who commit violent crimes in a specific context.

This is what I wrote, and I'd be happy to hear your thoughts.

Applications for Addressing Perpetrators of Oppression and Violence

            I have put significant thought into the tension that exists for Christians to be peacemakers and to love enemies, yet to represent God’s justice-judgment in defense of the oppressed. Hay’s article “Violence in Defense of Justice” comes out very strongly on the side of loving enemies. “The Christian response to violence is modeled by the martyr Stephen, who in turn mirrors Jesus in his death by praying for the forgiveness of his enemies.”[1] We can apply this personally by blessing our persecutors in the “context of eschatological hope,” but how can it draw other people to Christ if they are suffering and Christians stand by watching, waiting for final judgment?[2] Conversely, the prophets were remorseless when it came to unveiling injustice and oppression.[3] Isaiah’s justice theme is unavoidable and cannot be easily dismissed. Gary Haugen, president and CEO of International Justice Mission, calls modern-day Christians to be witnesses primarily to the oppressed, sharing the love of Christ in an unjust world.[4] His definition of injustice is “when power is exercised in a way that violates [God’s] standards.”[5] It’s a problem to tell a woman who's being raped to turn the other cheek, whether she is a believer or not. What does the theopolitical nature of the gospel mean for justice work when it entails a violent offender and a defenseless victim?

The principles of Restorative Justice help me to answer many of these questions. “Justice dies when dehumanized, no matter how exactly it may be exercised. Justice dies when deified, for beyond all justice is God’s compassion. The logic of justice may seem impersonal, yet the concern for justice is an act of love.”[6] We must remember the suffering of victims AND “be guided by a vision of the redemption that will one day allow us to…become friends with the perpetrators who committed them.”[7] We represent Christ’s shalom to all people; therefore, we must show love to perpetrators.[8] Confronting the wrongdoer is the loving thing to do because they will be held responsible for their evil deeds. “The righteousness-justice of God in the OT does not distance God from humanity. It brings the Lord closer, a frightening experience for the oppressor or the arrogant.”[9] So we can utilize Restorative Justice philosophy to help victims, perpetrators, and the community.

We cannot minimize the victims and the validity of their traumas, but here I will focus more on how to apply justice-judgment to perpetrators of violence and injustice. The goal is not to punish or make an example of these wrongdoers, and too often the Christian community demonizes these real people. Perpetrator accountability is necessary; they must be confronted because allowing them to continue in their evil ways is condemnation. However, we do not go to war against the brothel-owners but instead use non-violent means of opposition to make clear to them the reality of their Sin. “Loving one’s enemy is the attempt to change the violent person into a child of God through a confrontation with the love of God.”[10] Here, it is crucial to pray for the offenders, that the Holy Spirit would soften their hearts and convict them. If their hearts are changed, we praise God, accept and re-integrate them, walk alongside of them to encourage and, on some level, to assess the authenticity of their transformation.

Those offenders who are not willing to change and would continue to oppress the vulnerable cannot be permitted to do so, like a child who misbehaves must be disciplined so as to avoid potential danger. While all Christians are to hate injustice, some individual believers are called to directly oppose those who perpetrate oppression. In the Body of Christ, some are called to minister to the victims and some to the perpetrators. It is easier to have compassion on those who have suffered violence, but those confronting criminals must also have a right heart attitude toward them. “We are God’s hands of mercy and love” to both victims and offenders.[11] Some force may be necessary to bring an end to corruption. Community pressure, legal proceedings, and even physical force (as in an arrest) may be acceptable, but it is hard to draw a clear line, especially regarding physical opposition. It is my opinion that physical force to prevent immediate harm to a victim is acceptable, so long as it affects minimal harm to the criminal. I acknowledge that to allow for any physical confrontation is a slippery slope, but it is the conclusion I reach when I consider what Jesus would do if he were to witness an attempted rape. He would not sit next to the victim and hold her hand but would stand to protect her and fight on her behalf, confronting the evil, praying “Father, forgive them” (Luke 23:34).

---

[1] Hays, “Violence,” 330.

[2] Hays, “Violence,” 338.

[3] Heschel, “Justice,” 204.

[4] Gary A. Haugen, Good News About Injustice: A Witness of Courage in a Hurting World, 2^nd ed. (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2009), 49.

[5] Haugen, Good News, 85.

[6] Heschel, “Justice,” 201.

[7] Jones and Musekura, Forgiving, 96-97.

[8] Nation, “Repent and Believe in Me,” Lecture, May 29, 2013.

[9] Bruckner, “Justice,” 6.

[10] Swartley, “Relation of Justice,” 35. (quoting Luise Schottroff)

[11] Haugen, Good News, 112.

And to lighten things up, here is a picture of our lovely garden.

A Beautiful, Sunny Week!

 I've been working hard on my assignments for "Biblical Foundations for Justice and Peacemaking" that I took at SPI. Turned in my big paper this morning! But I've made some time to enjoy the sunshine this last week. (Tomorrow the rain is supposed to come again.)

On Sunday, Ruth invited us for church, and it was so fun to go to her part of town with Mark, meet church members (she introduced me with "We were together in Zambia."), hear Gina singing a song she wrote, and eat lunch together. I'm blessed to be close to them both again.

We have had such a lovely time with a visiting professor from UT - running, hiking, eating, sightseeing, and talking have all been very pleasant to share with Karen Engle, of the Rapaport Center for Human Rights. Here we are in from of Desmond Tutu's church in downtown Cape Town. Notice the "Prayers for Madiba" sign in the back. (Madiba is Nelson Mandela's African name.)

This is on one of our hikes with Karen E. Table Mountain is in the background. It was a beautiful, sunny day, and we kept hiking longer than we should have (we all had work to do!) because it was so nice out.

Mark's scooter! He is a great driver, and I'm comfortable on back of the bike. It has been so helpful since all of his classes and frisbee are in the evenings, and it's better not to walk after dark. We're thankful for God's provision.

One of the joys of international travel.