Words

Since the tragedy in Tucson, there's a phrase I've heard often, "words do matter." It's true. Well-crafted phrases have changed history. Careless remarks can ruin friendships. Harsh words wound deeply. Forgiveness mends souls. But did words play a part in what happened in Arizona? From a scriptural perspective, (and that is my perspective here) one can surmise that violent language contributes to violent actions.

The significance of words is central in the tenets of Christianity because words have spiritual meaning for believers:

According to scripture, God spoke all of creation into existence. ("By faith we understand that the worlds were prepared by the word of God..." Hebrews 11:3)

Jesus, filled with creative power, is proclaimed to be the Word (see John chapter 1).

Words can create and destroy. ("Death and life are in the power of the tongue..." Proverbs 18:21)

This is why we must pay attention to what we say; if we believe words have sacred significance, then we know we cannot use them carelessly. When politicians claim to be Christians (and it seems to be a current fad to do so), they must choose words which edify, not tear down, words which promote compassion and peace, not hate and conflict.

Because politics has been a rather nasty business at most times in history, my expectations for politicians, in general, are fairly low. But my expectations for Christians, in all professions, are extremely high. If our standards don't inspire us to rise above the fray, to speak against evil, rather than spew it, we are not living up to our calling.

While it is most assuredly within our rights as Americans to use violent imagery, for those claiming to be followers of Christ, it is wrong. Is a particular person or political party to blame for this latest shooting rampage? No, one individual did this horrible thing.

But can't we consider that, perhaps, just maybe, we all bear some responsibility...for creating a society (by either our action or inaction) which often glorifies violence and can't seem to stop trying to overcome evil with more evil...for not having an intelligent, national agenda to deal with mental health issues...for not loving our neighbors as we know we should? Can't this latest tragedy be an opportunity to think about and discuss a better way to go about proclaiming our ideologies?

Conservative Christians, Liberal Christians, every follower of Christ who doesn't identify themselves as either and believers of all faiths must lead the way in promoting peace, harmony and understanding. From a spiritual viewpoint, it is not only possible to disagree in a civil, respectful manner, it is mandatory.