Who Should We Blame?
Republicans and Democrats are going nuts attacking each other over who is to blame for 9/11. Of course, it should be self-evident that bin Laden and Islamofascists are to blame, but they don't bring that up very often. They wonder who failed to see it coming. When ABC made a movie about it for TV, the sides were quickly formed again with one side wanting the movie to be stronger and the other wanting it canceled completely.
Sigh....
Re: that ABC movie about 9/11, to hear Bill Clinton lecturing a reporter that we need to make sure we are always telling the truth about historical matters... is truly stunning. What does he see when he looks in the mirror?
I believe that understanding your past and your nation's past is a very valuable thing... but blame isn't. Blame allows us to channel our anger -- our energy for change -- into useless cubby-holes. People love to throw blame at parents, life, government, God.... anyone but themselves. That absolves them of the need to change present behavior or attone for past behavior.
There is only a certain amount of energy available to any of us. Why spend any of it blaming? Having a lousy childhood is no excuse for being a lousy adult. We have choices. We can choose something different.
Some churches blame "our fallen world" for the prevalence of sin... but Jesus proved you could live here without sin so where is the point of blaming some pre-existing loaded dice for the play you're making today?
Don't get angry at the traffic if you're driving in it. You're part of it -- so any blame tossed out the window will blow back on you. Don't get angry at sex and cursing on TV if you're watching it. Again -- if you didn't watch, they wouldn't keep putting it on.
Live your life without the need to affix blame for whatever went wrong. Practice saying it after me: it is what it is, but God is still God, and God is still good.
Ahhhh..... that feels better.
posted by PatrickMead @ 9/10/2006 03:30:00 PM
11 Comments
11 Comments:
Well put.
Having a lousy childhood is no excuse for being a lousy adult. We have choices. We can choose something different.
And it shouldn't take one 50 years to decide (learn) to choose something different! Oh the time I "lost" and the people I hurt taking that long to forget about blame and move on..........
AMEN!
It was my sins that put the Savior on the cross. I am the sin problem.
Trying my best to be a humble, ever-changing servant,
Gallagher
Yes, Patrick! Thanks for this excellent post!!
God bless,
-bill
Well said. It seems to me that blame is nothing more than an excuse to not take responsibility for practical solutions while attempting to feel morally superior. It is just another form of self-centeredness. I am glad that we Christians don't play the blame game..... ouch!
Let me first say that I agree with you regarding blame. We need to accept what has happened to us and use it to help other people.
I’m not sure what your paragraph regarding Clinton has to do with blame. I understand the irony, but I don’t see the blame connection.
The only connection I see is that Clinton is blaming ABC for presenting fiction as truth. How many of us are guilty of the same thing Clinton is doing? I’ve committed wrongs against people yet I stand up and protect myself when people attack me.
I do have to wonder, though, about your comment related to "living without sin." I'm not really sure how I feel about that; I had a friend once who said that, at her church, some of her pastors were able to live without sin, and when I expressed my sincere doubt, she said "oh, well you should come and see them do it," at which point the warning bells went off (as if it's an attraction to be viewed, a show).
The overriding assumption of the NT seems (to me) to be that everybody IS sinning, and that's why Jesus came. I mean, yeah, Jesus was 100% human, but he was also 100% God, and I'm thinking that, though he was tempted (and technically able to fall), the God part sort of makes whatever he does ... right, wouldn't it? I mean, he followed the character of the God of the old testemant, and so that's how we know he's God, and so maybe it wasn't really possible for him to sin because it's against his very nature? Whereas for us ...
You'll have to forgive me as it's an issue I don't think about much (mostly because I find it impossible to go a day without screwing up somehow), but you'll also have to pardon my skepticism at that particular comment. Perhaps you could back it up scripturally. I did a "Biblegateway" search for "sin" and discovered many passages that talk about "when you sin" or "when your brother sins against you", like it was a given ...
Great post-great blog.
come back home from Texas! this girl misses her daddy!
Do people only see one side to every situation? Why not look at other possibilities besides pointing fingers?
Wow!!! God amazes me more and more. I have spent the last two weeks dealing with the "Blaming game" or "pointing fingers game" with my niece and nephew, my students, and myself. My nephew was busy telling me that the reason he didn't do his chores was becasue his sister didn't do hers and I hadn't gotten to mine. A 3rd grade young lady was questioned about being in a place where she wasn't suppose to be. I had already talked to her pal, so she told me he told her to follow him. Then I have begun to see that much of my frustration recently has been a result of my trying to avoid taking responsiblity for my own attitude and sins. I have just prayed asking for God's guidance and then checked the Blog, God has reminded me of where to start!!!! God is GOOD! All The Time. All the Time. God is GOOD!
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