It may be my imagination, but it seems like we get a news report about a shooting and/or stabbing almost every night, or at least quite frequently, from the streets of the city of Rochester, NY. And quite often it involves young people, sometimes teenagers, on either or both sides of the weapon. Violence sees to surface from the youngest human hearts.
Beyond Rochester, in many places around the country, we hear or read about similar reports in our public schools. I could be mistaken, but I don’t recollect any have been reported in Catholic schools. Sometimes one teenager shoots one student. Or, one teenager shoots many students and one or more faculty members. Violence seems to rise from the youngest human hearts.
I don’t recall any of these reports when I was growing up. Or, when my parents went to school. My parents never talked about anything like this. Seems like, besides the times, something else has changed. Some people say it has to do with guns, but guns have been around through the last three generations. And no school shootings. No, now, its our children’s and grandchildren’s generation something else has changed.
Mass readings emphasize the incredible value of human life to God. God wants life, not death. Death is not normal. According to Genesis I, men and women were created immortal – they were not supposed to know death. If human beings are created in God’s image, it follows that they are immortal. “For God formed man to be imperishable”, the book of Wisdom tells us, “the image of His own nature he made him”. God’s will is for life, eternal life, not death.
So, in our teen’s generation what could be missing? Some of them, not all, seem to think differently about the value of life than previous generations. If so, why is that? Don’t they know that God values life? What are they thinking? Maybe we shouldn’t have taken God out of public places. Maybe we shouldn’t have taken God out of public schools. Maybe we grown-ups haven’t taught them that God values their lives and all lives. Independent of whether or not there are guns anywhere. Maybe the guns aren’t the problem. Maybe the human heart and conscious are.
Maybe its the hearts and minds and consciences of some of our teens that have changed. That allow violence to rise to the surface. Maybe violence and anger and dissatisfaction are ideas that are promoted by Hollywood, and accessible to our teens in the media and on the internet. Maybe these are the things that are different that our teenagers are trying to process, and all without God, and God’s emphasis on the value of life. If only we could get them to push themselves toward Jesus for life, not death. To touch His robe and have a hurting heart and mind healed. To reach for life, rather than death.
What do you think about taking God out of the classroom? Do you agree? If you would like to comment on this article or anything else you have seen on my feed, share your thoughts in the comment area below.
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