My Worst Nightmare...

We are a society bent on justice.  The lack of justice makes us cringe, criticize, and cuss.  I tend to be a chameleon who soaks in the culture around me.  This sense of justice burns within me.  My most horrendous nightmares are about me not being able to defend myself against some minor injustice and no one will believe me.    I often whisper-yell in my sleep when this happens.  Ask Daran!  

     I finished reading a book on October 5th: The Sun does Shine:  How I Found Life and Freedom on Death Row.  This unfortunately true story embittered me toward the justice system and their ability to callously take away a man’s life for something he didn’t do.  Anthony Ray Hinton spent 30 years on death row for a crime he could not have possibly committed.  You agonize through this story as you see injustice after injustice done.  You hate the police officer that says to Ray, “You know, I don’t even care whether you did or didn’t do it … In fact, I believe you didn’t do it. But it doesn’t matter. If you didn’t do it, one of your brothers did. And you’re going to take the rap. You want to know why? Number one, you’re black. Number two, a white man gonna say you shot him. Number three, you’re gonna have a white district attorney. Number four, you’re gonna have a white judge. And number five, you’re gonna have an all-white jury.” WHAT!?? I am severely empathetic toward those that suffer injustice so many of my friends and family heard me rant about this book whilst reading it.  Actually, to be honest, I ranted for quite a while after reading it.  It has been 2 1/2 months since I read it, and here I sit ranting still.

I had this realization.  You know how upsetting it is to read about Jesus dying on the cross.  I actually weep the most when they are slapping him and beating him and he does not speak up.  I weep because this is the greatest injustice of all time.  The physical pain of the moment does not bother me as much as the fact that “He who had no sin became sin for us.”  They spit on him!!!  They mocked him!!! They are beating the Son of God!! I have that feeling that wells up from my chest to my eyes when I think of this every time.  I can’t even type this without blurry vision.  In this moment, I wonder if the cross touches a different part of all of us.  Is it possible that there is something else about the cross that gives you that watery-eyed feeling?  Is it the physical pain, mental anguish, the hopelessness, or something else?  For me it will always be the unparalleled injustice of it all.