WARNING…heavy topic ahead!!!
Like many of you, my heart has been heavy these past few days.
A weapon is defined as “any instrument or device for use in attack or defense.” To weaponize something means “to adapt for use as a weapon.” Another, more specific definition is “to exploit for the purpose of attacking a person or group, or for the spreading of discord.” (All of these definitions were found at the online Dictionary.com site.)
“Weaponize” is a word that has been hanging heavy in my heart for the past couple of days because it has surfaced in the midst of recent events. Over the past decade or two, we’ve been hearing this word used more and more. We’ve heard of chemicals being weaponized. We’ve even heard of fertilizer being weaponized. On September 11, 2001, jet airliners were weaponized. I suppose there are many things that could be used—not for their intended purpose—that could be weaponized…in other words, used “to exploit for the purpose of attacking a person or group, or for the spreading of discord.” (See definition above.)
Most recently, I heard the word “weaponize” used in news coverage of what happened in Minneapolis just a couple of days ago during a federal immigration enforcement action. The news reported that an official with the Department of Homeland Security said the woman “weaponized” her vehicle, and that this justified the agents firing their weapons. As a result, the woman who was driving the vehicle was shot and killed.
I’m not here to debate who is right or wrong, or who is to blame. I am here to say that this was a terrible tragedy that should never have happened…but it did. And two lives have been forever changed. Two families have been impacted forever. A woman has died, and a law enforcement agent has taken—or ended—a life. He will have to live with that for the rest of his life.
What makes my heart especially heavy is the way the two polar extremes on social media—and some news channels claiming to have “the facts”—are essentially weaponizing this situation. You could even say they are weaponizing this woman’s death. It is being used to exploit a tragic moment for the purpose of attacking a person or group…and for spreading discord. And indeed, discord is spreading. There is finger-pointing, accusations, and blame. And through all of this noise and chaos, what seems to be lost is the fact that a human being has been tragically killed.
As Bishop Lanette stated in her pastoral letter to the Conference regarding this situation, “the work of the church begins here.” In the pain. In the grief. As followers of Jesus, we step into this tragic moment to grieve and lament together. Pastor Amber and I say together, “How long, O Lord…how long?”
A person’s life and tragic death are not something to be weaponized or used to make political points. This is a moment for us to grieve as a nation—to sit in proverbial sackcloth and ashes—and to reflect on where and how we have gotten so far off track as a people and as a nation.
And yes, it is likely we will see or hear people quoting Scripture or using “faith sound bites” to support their political positions. That makes me hang my head, because I see this as the weaponizing of faith—and sometimes of God’s Word. For me, the weaponizing of faith is the greatest misuse of faith possible, and it becomes yet another reason for lament. I can only imagine how it breaks God’s heart to see faith and God’s Word misrepresented and misused.
In Bishop Lanette’s pastoral letter—which I’ll post on the bulletin board at church and share on our Facebook page—she quotes Micah 6:8:
“He has told you, O mortal, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?”
So, what do we do? How do we respond to this moment in time? Spending time lamenting and sitting in sackcloth and ashes is not a bad place to start. Join us for worship this coming Sunday, as I conclude the “Do Not Be Afraid” sermon series. The message will touch on these kinds of unexpected and disruptive moments in life.
But how do we respond today, and tomorrow, and the next day in how we live? I’ll simply say this: don’t weaponize tragic moments or your faith. Instead, lean into the message from Bishop Lanette—and really, the message from Micah—to do justice, love kindness, and walk humbly with our God.
May God’s peace, presence, truth, and justice be at work in our midst.
Pastor Keith