Thursday, July 26, 2007
WHAT IF...
I suppose some would say playing the "what if" game is foolish, useless and superficial. Ok, but I still have to play it sometimes. Historians argue over whether "great people" or "great forces" are the most important factors in events. Some say that the forces at work give rise to people who act in a certain way and that if person A had not been around, a person B would have filled the role. I tend to think great people make the difference. Thus, "what if..."
Abe Lincoln’s grandfather, named Abraham, was killed in an Indian attack on his farm near present day
On July 9, 1755 George Washington was serving as aide-de-camp to British general Edward Braddock in the French and Indian war. A battle ensued near present day
In 1931 Winston Churchill was in NYC on a speaking engagement tour where he was hit by a car while crossing
In WWI Adolph Hitler served in the German ground forces. He was wounded by a shell on October 7 1916. In October of 1918 he was temporarily blinded by a chlorine gas attack near
In March of 1864 Ulysses S. Grant traveled to
Grant remained stoic and was not injured. Brady later reflected, “It was a miracle that some of the pieces didn’t strike him. And if one had, it would have been the end of Grant for the glass was two inches thick!”
Grant, of course, was finally the General Lincoln had needed for over 3 years and would pursue Lee to the end. What if...
And what difference has your life made? What if...
Wednesday, July 18, 2007
CHARACTER WILL ALWAYS COUNT
In the ramp-up to the primaries and presidential election the issue of character will once again be debated. Some hold that what a person does "on his own time" is of little or no relevance. All that matters is policy and the ability to get policies enacted. But character will always matter to people. That is why I sat in Robert E. Lee's pew and not Jefferson Davis' pew.
Both Lee and Davis attended St. Paul's Episcopal church in Richmond. Like most good church people they sat in the same pew every week. Both pews are marked by plaques. It is a good memory of the trip that I sat in Robert E. Lee's pew. But I had no interest in sitting in the Davis pew - even though our family history says he is some kind of distant relative.
Later on I reflected on why I cared about one and not the other and the answer has something to do with character. When you stop to think about it, it is absolutely amazing that Robert E. Lee is held in such high esteem by Americans - and not just southerners - in light of the fact that he is directly responsible for more American deaths than any other person in history. With devastating effectiveness he led the army that tried to destroy the Union. Yet we all respect him as a man of principle, of character.
After the war he was in St. Paul's on Sunday when it came time for communion. The first person to rise from the pews to go to the rail for communion was a black man. Everyone, including the priest, froze. No one knew what to do - until Robert E. Lee rose and went to the rail kneeling beside the black man and the two of them were served communion.
Jefferson Davis does not command the respect accorded Lee. When Richmond was on the verge of falling after a long, costly, valiant defense, Lee sent word to Davis that Richmond must be abandoned within 24 hours. The note reached Davis in his pew at church on a Sunday morning. It is said his face turned ashen as he rose and left the church. He sent a reply to Lee asking if Lee could hang on a little longer. Lee crumpled up the note and tossed it aside without replying.
The main contrast between the two men was in their conduct at the end of the war. Lee surrendered with dignity and only cared about how his men would be treated. He was pleased at Grant's leniency. He told his men they had made their best effort, but the war was over. They should go home to their families and rebuild their lives.
Davis, on the other hand, fled - and kept fleeing. He urged guerrilla warfare that would likely continue for years and continue to destroy both nations. Only the refusal by his generals thwarted the plan. He was arrested and imprisoned at Fort Monroe. Lee was never imprisoned although he had expected to be.
A popular tale that circulated in cartoons was that Davis had been arrested disguised in women's clothing. This is refuted by a union soldier who was present at the time. The point, however, is that Davis' conduct and character invited such ridicule. Such a rumor would never have attached to Lee.
In the end, character counts.
Tuesday, July 03, 2007
A COURT DATE IN VIRGINIA
While traveling in
Because my speed was a certain amount over the limit, under
In light of a “spotless” DMV record, as I told the officer when he asked, the likelihood of receiving the maximum penalty was extremely slim. But one never knows. It is a strange feeling to know you are guilty of something that can carry jail time.
Since I was not only from out of state, but from across the country, the officer said he knew I would not appear at the court session and since I said I had a spotless DMV record, he would present that to the judge if I mailed him a copy.
I did. And sent a copy and letter to the court. The judge and officer both agreed to probation. But I had to pay court costs. And I have to keep a clean record for one year or the charge will be reinstated.
The whole experience set me thinking about “judgment” – The Judgment Day.
We are all accountable. Jesus said we would give account on the day of judgment (Matthew 12:36). The writer of Hebrews says man is destined to die and after that to face judgment (9:27). The Revelation pictures a great white throne before which the dead are judged according to what they have done (20:11-12).
It is a human trait to think we are the exception. Other people get caught, get tickets, but not me. Actually, we are accustomed to traffic tickets, but it is in the other matters of life that we think we won’t be held accountable. But we are and will be.
And we will have to show up. I “failed to appear” in
But that’s not the whole story. I was guilty but I got probation! There is such a thing as mercy and grace. The Good News of Jesus Christ is that acquittal is possible. Not just probation – acquittal! On all charges.
I had a decent public servant who both arrested me and offered to help me in court. In the final judgment my “defender” will be Christ, the Son of God himself - Son of the judge.
This won’t be a case of hoping God is in a good mood. (The officer wrote me that there was a good mood in court that day. That was nice, but one hates to think that an outcome might depend on a good or bad mood.)
It won’t be a case of nepotism - the Son pulling strings so justice is averted.
No, my defender will base his plea on the fact that all costs have already been paid. In
The Good News, the genuine biblical hope, is that not only won’t I be found guilty. I won’t even get probation. I will get acquittal. And the charges won’t be reinstated! God will judge me innocent even though that is not the case. Again, as Hebrews says, “Their sins and lawless acts I will remember no more.” (10:17)
There is nothing like a taste of grace in this world to make one appreciate and anticipate the “grace that is greater than all our sin.”
