Over the past months, the controversy surrounding the Duke lacrosse team, and particularly three of its players, has dominated the press. How well it would have been for the many vocally outspoken to have reserved judgement until they truly knew both sides of the version of events from that scandalous night. But all too often like the critics of the Duke players, we are quick to jump on the bandwagon of instant judgement without searching out the facts. We let our biases become the foundation for the truth rather than the facts. In an effort to hear our own voices in the fracas, we cast aside biblical admonitions and teachings. In an effort to have others hear our voices, we cast aside that which we would desire for our own selves should such a situation ever arise, the willingness of others to withhold judgement until the facts are known.
Our second struggle is just as difficult to circumvent. We become participants in the "Jerry Springer" type show, as voyeurs in the crowds waiting insatiably to catch the next "juicy" tidbit of information. Our goal becomes not to get the facts and know the truth, but to hear the details at which we may laugh, ahhhh, ewwwwww or act shocked at what is revealed. In other words, we are simply involved for the entertainment value. Entertained by the mistreatment of others and the reactions to such mistreatment, we revel in the mud slinging. Should we find ourselves in the spot light though, we would desire not that people find entertainment from our demise, but that the truth would be known and we would be vindicated.
What saith the Scriptures?
Proverbs 18:17 He that is first in his own cause seemeth just; but his neighbor cometh and searcheth him. Resist the temptation to watch just for the entertainment. Resist the temptation to let biases ignore or skew the facts. Do for others that which you would desire for yourself. Resist the urge to jump to conclusions. Instead, search for the truth. The first voice may be the loudest but it may not necessarily be the truth.
Have a grace filled day...
Luke
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5 comments:
Luke: Timely post. Haven't heard anyone speak on this and its point rings a bell for those of us who--for any reason--jump to conclusions, take sides, or marshall others to do so.
Duke's situation was a result of some young men following the evil desires for licentious behavior. It went beyond a tryst down the dark alley of hormonal gratification to unfounded, unfair and unjustified accusations. Which, in turn, created a doorway for an ego-centric self-exalting prosecutor to use it as a wedge for his own desires.
Indeed, a sad, sad situation. One we might all learn from if we choose to see how one sin leads to another. Great post! selahV
SelahV,
Thanks for stopping by. I believe the MSM rushes to get their story in before the next guy. As a result, errors are made public long before the truth is actually known. Why? The love of money. And now that the "spice" of the story is gone, they have moved on to find other tidbits to exploit. But, it is what I expect from them.
Your point is well taken about their behavior giving this event expression. The activities they were engaged in are wrong and foolish. However, I'd be willing to wager that on other college campuses, there are those who are slow to learn from the Duke melee. May God help us to learn from others actions.
LUKE: absolutely...other campuses won't learn anything from it--as far as the student body because they think as most people do, "it can't happen to me." However, I do hope this makes the administrations of these colleges to take more initiative in monitoring the behavior of their students. The hazing, the exploits, the extra-curricular activities which do nothing to aid them in social interaction, character building or educational excellence. Just my thoughts on it all. selahV
Luke,
Just dropping by via SelahV's link. Great post and a worthy subject.
I do not know your perspective on the recent fuss over Dr. Jerry Falwell but your post, from my view, speaks ably to--on both sides!
Grace. With that, I am...
Peter
Peter,
Thank you for stopping by. I have been following the fuss over what Falwell said. My initial reaction to his statement and the other's response is what thin skin some people shroud themselves in. I do believe that we should speak responsibly, but we should also be responsible listeners and take into account what we know of the speaker when listening. I'm not quite sure why Founders is so "shocked"(my own word) at what Falwell said. Did they really expect something different? On the other hand, Falwell is not new to this fight and I've got a hunch he was trying to stir the pot, which evidently he did.
That being said, I almost wrote my first post about the concept of Limited Atonement. I think I'm going to have to do so and jump into the foray.
Thanks again for stopping by Peter and by the way, your Morris Chapman post was excellent.
Luke
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