The price of prejudice

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jun 14, 2012 Wahroonga, New South Wales, Australia

James Standish

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Let us remember that Jesus was a friend of sinners. If we truly practice this as He did, we won't get caught up in any kind of mob mentality. Regardless of the kind of perceived sin that the mob condemns a person for, Jesus always gave each person an opportunity to repent, come to Him and be forgiven--even for Hitlers. We should do the same, regardless of what the media says or portrays. We are not preaching the true gospel strong enough. The media and entertainment industries are preaching their gospel louder than the Bible is being proclaimed, and so that is what the world is hearing.

Posted by NeedHimEveryHour on 2013-02-02 19:01:48

James, as always, an excellent piece. The struggle of mankind to deal with the "other" has been a plague of our existence. Ignorance and fear of the unknown will sweep away all rational thought. We are to be ever vigilant in our quest to live in a world where an individual can be free to live his/her life in accordance with their conscience. We can only hope and pray that should we find ourselves in the midst of a crowd that has lost its mind we have the fortitude and integrity to resist.

Posted by Barry W. Bussey on 2012-10-15 15:57:36

Thank you, James.

I think mob mentality is just under the surface of even the most educated and civilized societies. What is so striking about post-event analysis is that the same people who condemn it in others seem unable to see it in themselves as they are being swept into hysteria by some agent or event. Accepting that it could happen to us personally is only the first step in seeking to prevent ourselves from being caught up into such behavior. I would like to hear from others what subsequent steps could be taken in order to prevent ourselves from reacting to situations in this way. What inspired principles can we set forth in training church members and children in remaining rational when surrounded by the fear and fanaticism of "mob" behavior.

Posted by bmayer57 on 2012-10-14 19:14:31

I can assure "Guest" that from here in Britain, at least some were prepared to sign a petition in the Chamberlains' favour. What seemed more mystifying was this: it has always been a practice in English law(of which Australia is a heritor) that for a charge of murder to be brought there has to be a body—the only exceptions being where the murder took place at sea or in any other circumstances where it could be reasonbly assumed that the body could be disposed of!
The modern version of that kind of bogey is now child abuse. It is the kind of crime that instantly arouses our own protective instincts, and yet it is the very sort of instance where the temptation to throw our more rational instincts to the wind can be just as great. A few years ago it was the misfortune of a crippled man to be set on by a baying mob(most likely under the influence of drink) in his own flat and beaten to death because the mob confused him with a relative who, as it happened, was already serving a prison sentence for such a crime!
Here in Britain the main fear on that score is from parents, who never know if, quite out of the blue, they may find themselves had up on suspicion of abusing their own children. This is not helped by the secrecy of the family courts—though these have recently been forced to make their proceedings a bit more open. Add to that the fact that here a "child" is anyone under 18 and you have the father and mother of a host of problems—especially if the allegedly abused child is very young, and some of the older children are more than able to voice their position that they themselves, at least, were certainly NOT abused, only for some procedure-ridden establishment to insist that they must be taken "into care", even put up for adoption, despite all resistance from them. There is loads that can be written on this!

Posted by barry_gowland on 2012-09-16 13:03:20

I look at the video story (admittedly somewhat fictionalized) story of the Chamberlains. I read the news reports, then and now, and read your statements. I see that the Chamberlains have divorced, gone separate ways, and that Mr. Chamberlain is no longer a pastor and I wonder, how supportive were the Adventists in Australia, around the world to the Chamberlains then and now?

Did we turn our backs on them and consider them 'not truly one of us'? Or were they embraced, loved and supported?

I truly do not know. I was going through my own 'hell' with an abusive husband at the time and these folk were a world away from me and what I was going through. But from the 'help' of my own pastor, asking me why I was divorcing my husband (I was the defendant in the action) and his subsequent statement he 'had nothing to offer me' when he found out I had not brought the action, the local church not caring that I didn't attend anymore (I had no driver's license and no financial means to go anywhere including services at church and had to rely on friends or neighbors to get around), I just wonder how well we let these folk know they were loved? I wonder if things might have been different if Adventists themselves had come to their aid and defense, because I truly did not hear of that happening, though I admittedly do not hear everything anyway.

Perhaps we shouldn't worry about the person who is promoting hatred so much as we should worry about whether or not we are promoting God's love, individually in our own lives.

A forest is after all, merely made up of trees. If one tree drops, who hears it fall? Who truly cares? Or do we?

Thanks....

Posted by Guest on 2012-07-14 05:07:13

Good food for thought. I couldn't help think of the mobs yelling out, "Crucify Him. Crucify Him," when Jesus was being unfairly tried. How easy it is for mob mentality to take over.

Posted by Chris Buttery on 2012-07-01 10:22:35

well said! your father, as well as your uncle who I've had the privilege of speakig personally during his visits to our church group in southern california, would be proud. keep up the good work!

Posted by Salim Serrano on 2012-06-25 19:24:15

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