the Violence problem?

The recent events in Toronto brought forward an amazing response from our liberal socialist academia and politicians. They were confused and confounded as to what answers there are to solve our problems.

Eventually even the socialist party leader, Jack Layton, had to jump on the "if you do the crime you do the time" bandwagon. Other academia types still wanted to point out that jailing people longer will not stop the next group of criminals from taking their place.

People in favour of victim justice as opposed to our liberalized criminal justice system expect that jailing criminals longer will be a deterrent. One way this will deter future crime is that the man accused of pedophilia with 20 children and then currently gets sentenced to less then 2 years in jail will have less free time outside with a minimum sentence requirement. Less time in the community for pedophiles often means fewer children harmed. A second way it will improve or deter crime is in stopping our country for being known as the best place to live if you are a criminal or pedophile -- thus slowing the flow of corrupt individuals to our country. Some will hear of the punishment and think twice about putting themselves in that position. This last item is what you find in Deuteronomy 19:11-13

"But if a man hates his neighbor and lies in wait for him, assaults and kills him, and then flees to one of these cities, the elders of his town shall send for him, bring him back from the city, and hand him over to the avenger of blood to die. Show him no pity. You must purge from Israel the guilt of shedding innocent blood, so that it may go well with you."

Realistically though the academia are right that this approach, while being an improvement, will not alone solve the problem. We must get to the root cause of the problem. Getting to the root cause of the problem, often listed as poverty and drugs, has been a real problem for the liberal intelligentsia though. It is well documented that increased social spending has had no positive effect in dealing with this problem. Therefore the politicians know that if they say in response to murder that we will build more community centres to occupy kids time, that the populace will see the shallowness of the response. This is why so many politicians and academia socialist types looked so confused and perplexed during the violence in Toronto on boxing day.

If we step aside for a moment we come to understand as millions in our country have done, that Canada has some fundamental problems.

A realistic look at society reveals one such problem is - the loss of respect for human life and dignity. This is evident in so many ways: the legal void that permits abortion right up to birth; a mentality that increasingly favours euthanasia for children with disease or assisted suicide for the elderly.  Violence in general, abuse of women and children, prostitution, pornography and drugs, contribute to the loss of respect for human life and dignity.

Why do we have a society with less respect for human life if we consistently parade Canada as a tolerant, loving society?

Unfortunately what we parade as tolerant and loving is helping to destroy the true value system of our society – the family and our faith in God. We kill innocent children under the guise of women’s rights. We not only tolerate but rather promote, especially to our children, the right to "safe" sex and to experiment with all forms of sex. This immorality devalues God’s standards, life in general and certainly basic responsible character.

Pushing the elimination of sexual inhibitions leads generally away from strong families, faithfulness, loyalty, and responsibility and towards selfishness, lust, homosexuality and ultimately violence. This has always been the case in history.

How can I demonstrate this effect in our western (used to be called Christian) culture in general. It is evident in increased poverty because of one parent families. It is evident in less respect for authority because of the loss of a proper father figure. It is represented in increased divorce and cohabitating couples. It is represented in increased numbers of people choosing to be homosexuals. It is evident in the selfishness shown in abortion rates (I’m not going to let a child ruin my life – I’ll ruin the child’s life instead mentality). It is evident in our lack of care and love for the elderly. It is evident in our desire that the government take care of my burdens – my children and my elderly parents.

The answer to the problem is found in promoting Christian family values. This is done through justice for victims in the public square and by our public institutions holding up the ideal for the population to strive toward. The promotion of family has to be fundamental in our society, in our constitution and in every government institution. The state must realize that parents raise children and support them in this instead of the state raising up children and dumbing down their value system to the lowest common denominator.

Promoting victim justice will help but the problem will not be solved, despite all the predictions for the greatness of Canada over the next 30 years, unless Christian voices ring out from the public square again.

Currently our liberal governments have done all they could to stop Christians from speaking out in the public square. They criminalized sexual morality that would dare not support homosexuality as acceptable behaviour and instead describe Christian morals as hate literature. They banned churches from the public square discussions in a political campaign. They appointed activist judges that invented homosexual rights, normalized sex clubs and who seek to determine if the offender has reformed instead of punishing based on the offence. They create and preserve laws that reduce parental authority. This is just some of the liberal (small L because it is representative of a thought process not just a political party) legacy.

It will take a huge change for this to be overcome.

Having been an avid reader of the history of Israel I don’t hold a lot of hope that in a democratic environment that we will even have the same revivals that Israel had. However, in good times and in bad times the prophets always held up the ideal that God set for us and told the people that God expected them to do it – from the least of them to the greatest of them.

If we do the same, we may have a period were further erosion and harm to our youth is stopped and more people have the opportunity to hear the Word of God in the public square. If we cease to speak and act, as we are able and have opportunity, then not only will others not hear but there sins may be laid at our feet.

Jesus said, "Whoever acknowledges me before men, I will also acknowledge him before my Father in heaven. But whoever disowns me before men, I will disown him before my Father in heaven. "Do not suppose that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I did not come to bring peace, but a sword. For I have come to turn "'a man against his father, a daughter against her mother, a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law-- a man's enemies will be the members of his own household.' "Anyone who loves his father or mother more than me is not worthy of me; anyone who loves his son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me; and anyone who does not take his cross and follow me is not worthy of me." Matthew 10:32-38

One day the Testimony of Jesus and the Commandments of God will become the voice of the Public Square and all others will be eliminated. That day will bring peace, happiness, love and joy.

Thank God that will one day happen – He guarantees it! That thought is able to provide us great comfort today. Yet it is with sadness, a sense of urgency and with compassion as we watch and hear of the ongoing carnage around us until then.

As far as it depends on you, as you are able and have opportunity, be a light to the world!