Schoolyard Violence (Opening the Circle)
Matthew 5: 21-26; 38-48
Sunday Morning, March 11, 2001
Introduction: The Bus Ride Home
The boy was already a little worried when he walked up the stairs to of the school bus. He was running late that afternoon, and the front seats, the ones near the driver had a tendency to fill up early. And sure enough, by the time he got on board, he was forced to sit in the third seat from the back, just two rows in front of the athletes and "cool" guys who always seemed to be hanging out in the last seat. He was definitely outside his comfort zone.
As he sat down, he unconsciously raised the hood of his parka, kind of like a wall between himself and the guys who were already snickering and making rude remarks literally behind his back. Then the bus pulled away from the curb and as the driver suddenly became occupied with watching out for traffic and for the turns along the route, he heard it.
"awwwwwwwwwk. thupt."
He flinched visibly, as if reacting to a blow to the head when the spit thumped against the back of his hood. Then, he closed his eyes for a minute in what might have been a wordless prayer for deliverance. But nothing changed. The ride home only took 10 or 15 minutes, but it seemed like an eternity that day, and all he could hear was the sound of the spitting and the laughter; again, and again, and again, and again.
When the bus finally did pull to a stop at the corner near his house. It was kind of a mixed blessing, because he knew that even though the spitting would come to an end, he still had to walk up that aisle with the evidence of the other boys contempt and callousness literally dripping from the back of his coat. And you know how kind children can be. The laughter seemed to roll toward the front of the bus like a wave as he passed with only a handful of students turning their eyes away knowing that it might be their turn the next day. But he managed to keep his head up and to hang on to what little dignity he felt he had left all the way down that aisle and even up the street to the door of his house.
Of course there was no hiding it from his mom. The jacket needed to be washed, and in those days, teenage boys did not do laundry. But even after he swore that he would never ever return to that school, his mom felt compelled to call the principle and have a good long talk. And of course, he did go to school the very next day, and of course, the well-intentioned principal decided to call all the boys down to the office together so that they could each share their sides of the story.
And of course, the principal explained that they really weren’t bad boys. In fact they all came from pretty good homes and they were all fairly active in one aspect or another of the school’s sports program, and they really didn’t mean to hurt anyone and after all, no one really got hurt, did they?
But I can tell you it hurt, a lot. Because the boy I’m speaking of was me about 25 years ago. I was the one riding that school bus home from Capitol View Junior High in Roseville, Minnesota on a winter day in 1974. And to this day, I can’t really say I know why they did what they did. I’d like to tell you that it was because I was a Christian and because I had taken a really bold stand for the Lord. But that wasn’t it. That much I know. It was more because I wasn’t very coordinated and I really never enjoyed sports and I was always more comfortable with a good book than I was with a basketball and I just happened to be the nerd du jour. The freak. The outsider with the funny name and the out of style clothes.
But I CAN tell you it hurt. A lot. And maybe that’s why as the papers filled up with stories of the school shootings in Santee, California this past week, I read the articles with a little different eye than some might have had, and with more than a little apprehension because in some respects, I see myself reflected more in the perpetrator of that crime than I do in the victim.
This is what some of the papers had to say.
[Quote 3A} Freshman Charles Andrew Williams, who classmates said was the target of bullying, faces murder and other charges stemming from the shooting.
[Quote 1A] “He was picked on because he was one of the scrawniest guys,” said student Jessica Moore. “People called him ‘freak,’ ‘dork,’ ‘nerd,’ stuff like that.”
[Quote 1B] “He always gets picked on. He’s scrawny, he’s little,” O’Grady said. “People think he’s dumb.”
[Quote 4A] Authorities who interviewed the teen-ager after his arrest called the boy “an angry young man” but could not say just what Williams was angry with.
Are you getting a picture of Charles Andrew Williams. Those things could be a description of me when I was in Junior High. They could be descriptions of some of our own children and young people. And if you start to think of it that way, then our thoughts begin to echo the words of San Diego County District Attorney, Paul Pfingst. "I know in your minds is the overriding question: "Why?" Because the truly frightening thing about an incident like this one is that even though it happened almost 3000 miles away in San Diego, it really hits pretty close to home, and that’s why we need to try to understand
1) The Causes for Schoolyard Violence
Now some would blame incidents like this on television and the movies. The idea is that violence in the media desensitizes children to violence in real life and they become likely to act out what they have seen, because they really don’t understand the consequences of their actions. Inevitably, after Santee there will be renewed calls for censorship, in the hopes that if we keep children from seeing such things, then they’ll be less likely to actually do them.
Meanwhile, on the CNN website, adults are treated to not only articles about the shootings and the shooter and the victims, but also images of the aftermath and a diagram of the crime scene. You can even listen to actual recordings of the two 911 calls that were made from the school. But of course that’s just "News." That’s different.
And there are those who would blame super realistic video and computer games, saying that these not only desensitize children to violence, they also teach children that the right way to solve almost any problem is with a sword, or a club, or a gun, or a grenade.
Others will cry out for stricter gun control, claiming that it is far too easy for young people to get their hands on the weapons they need to live out their revenge fantasies.
One article I read even had the imagination to blame school violence on the teaching of evolution in the public schools.
Like the man said, we’ll never really know. And ultimately, whatever part all of these things may play in these incidents, the reality is that we are broken people in a broken world, which, as the Contemporary Testimony says, "some seek to control, but which others view with despair..." and that means that whatever the more immediate causes of schoolyard violence may be,
2)The cure for Schoolyard violence
is probably not going to be found where so many people seem determined to look.
It wont be found in tougher gun laws.
It wont be found in stiffer penalties for the offenders.
It wont be found in seeing to it that children are charged as adults and face the same penalties under the law.
It wont be found in censorship of television shows and movies and video games and music.
The cure will be found today where it has always been found. It will be found when people begin to listen again to the voice of God. As it says in the old Book, "You shall not commit murder."
At this point, we can only wish that Charles Andrew Williams had been more thoroughly schooled in that principle, and then maybe he would not have responded to his own frustration and anger and despair by taking a gun to school last week.
But for us, there’s something else that we need to consider today. Because the commandment not only calls us to avoid physical violence against others, it also calls us to a more positive kind of obedience that is probably far more practical in our own context.
As Jesus said in Matthew chapter 5, 21 & 22,
(Mat 5:21-22 NIV) "You have heard that it was said to the people long ago, ’Do not murder, and anyone who murders will be subject to judgment.’ {22} But I tell you that anyone who is angry with his brother will be subject to judgment. Again, anyone who says to his brother, ’Raca, ’ is answerable to the Sanhedrin. But anyone who says, ’You fool!’ will be in danger of the fire of hell.
And again, later in the chapter,
(Mat 5:43-48 NIV) "You have heard that it was said, ’Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ {44} But I tell you: Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, {45} that you may be sons of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. {46} If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that? {47} And if you greet only your brothers, what are you doing more than others? Do not even pagans do that? {48} Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.
Or as Lord’s Day 40 of the Heidelberg Catechism says it so eloquently,
"I am not to belittle, insult, hate, or kill my neighbor--not by my thoughts, my words, my look or gesture--and I am not to be party to this in others; rather I am to put away all desire for revenge."
Charles Andrew Williams violated the 6th commandment when he took one of his dad’s guns to school and opened fire on his fellow students. But from the evidence that’s been presented in the papers so far, the schoolyard violence began long before that. And his life was taken away too. Not with a bullet, but with hard words and hard attitudes.
[Quote 1A] “He was picked on because he was one of the scrawniest guys,” said student Jessica Moore. “People called him ‘freak,’ ‘dork,’ ‘nerd,’ stuff like that.”
[Quote 1B] “He always gets picked on. He’s scrawny, he’s little,” O’Grady said. “People think he’s dumb.”
It certainly doesn’t excuse what he did--there is no excuse--but maybe it helps us to understand him, just a little.
And maybe it can motivate us to examine ourselves this morning too. Most all of us have known at one time or another what it is to be the outsider, the nerd, the freak. But how often have we made up for that by belittling, insulting, mocking and despising some one else? How often have we killed others with envy, anger, hatred, and hard words? How often have we made ourselves feel big by making someone else feel small? How often have we mad ourselves a part of the group by working as hard as we could to exclude others?
If we’re honest, I think we have to admit it happens all the time, not only in Schoolyards, but in friendships, marriages, families, and even churches. And you know what? For those who find themselves targets, victims; it doesn’t matter at all that the violence is not physical. The pain is just as real.
The day of the bus ride, I kept my head up as I walked down the aisle and off of the bus. I even hung on to my dignity as I walked the block to my house. I was determined not to give anyone the satisfaction of seeing me run away from the scene. But when the door closed behind me and I found myself at home, then the tears came.
Tears of embarrassment and shame for having been the object of ridicule.
Tears of frustration and powerlessness at the thought that the next day it would be someone else’s turn and then someone else and so on until the luck of the seating draw put ME back in the rear of the bus.
Tears of anger and outright rage.
Believe me. The pain was real.
And to tell you the truth, I’ve cried this last week too. I’ve cried for the victims of the Santee shootings. As a parent, I can’t imagine what it would be like to get a phone call and be told that my son had been shot dead for no better reason than being in the wrong place at the wrong time. I grieve for the families of the victims.
But I’ve also shed tears for Charles Andrew Williams this week. You see, when I was in the 7th grade, I had a family and a church and all kinds of people around me to let me know that I was not really alone; that I was not really a loser. And I wonder if Charles Andrew Williams had that same kind of circle. And I wonder sometimes how often the church is really a place where people can find that kind of support.
One of the most powerful images that stayed in my mind after the Columbine shootings last year was the picture of a group of Christian students standing in a circle around the flag pole holding hands and praying. It was a beautiful picture. But I wonder if the boys who did the shooting had been around to see it happen, would they have felt welcome in that circle of fine upstanding Christian young people? Or would their greasy hair and grubby trench coats have kept them out? Would it have been just one more brick in the wall of isolation and despair that drove them to their crimes in the first place?
Conclusion: Opening the Circle
Well people, it’s time to open the circle.
It’s time to open the circle at school. Some of you young people know exactly what I’m talking about. It’s time to break up the cliques and it’s time to stop the mocking and the name calling. "Oh, he’s SO GAY! What a freak. What a loser." It happens all the time, even in the Christian School. But it’s time to open the circle and to let the love of Jesus be the rule for how you relate to one another in the school environment. It’s not just harmless fun at someone else’s expense. It isolates and it hurts.
And it’s time to open the circle in some of our families, too. Now I know, by the grace of God, we have some wonderful, close, loving families in this congregation. But if you mapped out all the complex walls that divide people in some of our homes, they’d look more like mazes. We’ve belittled and insulted our wives, men. That’s abuse. It’s violence and it divides and hurts. And sometimes we’ve provoked our children to anger, too. We’ve punished instead of discipling and we’ve been cold and distant when their hearts cried out for love. We’ve built walls instead of roads and it’s time to open the circle.
And by the grace of God, it’s time to open the circle here in church too. We need to open up to those who are marginally a part of our own community but just don’t fit in because they don’t dress the way we dress, and they don’t behave the way we think they should, and they don’t enjoy the things that we enjoy, and they don’t want to worship the way that we worship It’s time to stop excluding them by attitude and practice and to realize that they’re a part of our family too.
And it’s time to open the circle to those who are outside as well. We live in a culture of alienation and violence. We live in a time when a whole generation of young people are teetering back and forth between an unfounded optimism and abject despair and every single day, some of them fall of the edge. They don’t always take a gun to school. Sometimes they turn the gun on themselves or they run away or they try to numb the pain with sex and drugs.
Far too often, when they look at the church and at Christianity in general, they feel like the guy in the song…
You’re getting closer, to pushing me off of life’s little edge
Cause I’m a loser and sooner or later you know I’ll be dead
You’re getting closer, you’re holding the rope and I’m taking the fall
("Loser" - 3 Doors Down)
Well that may be the case, but we have to let them know that the rope we hold is not a hangman’s rope with a noose at the end. It’s the life-line of God’s grace. And we haven’t been given it so that we can store it away like a treasure to be hoarded. And we haven’t been given it so that we can close ranks around it and praise God that we have been chosen above all others in the world. We have been given God’s grace so that we can be agents of that grace to others. So that we can open the circle and let them in. So that we can love as Jesus loves. So that we can provide a safe place. A place where all are welcome and where all are received in the love and the grace of God.
Shall we Pray.
