September 22, 1999
EDITORIAL:
Why? We cannot bear the answer
___Long after the echoes of gunfire quit ringing through the sanctuary of Wedgwood Baptist Church, a solitary question continued to form on the lips of people everywhere: Why?
___Why did Larry Gene Ashbrook march into that Fort Worth church building and kill seven sweet people? What kind of forces compel a man to curse God, kill others and die?
___Was this action the result of religious hatred, Satanic forces or mental illness? An article on page 6 of this week's paper explores these questions. Wise observers only hint at answers. Yet even if we could figure out what sparked Ashbrook's killing spree, we would be no closer to the truth than before we started. By the time we could unlock the mystery behind Ashbrook, we already would be grieving the merciless handiwork of yet another killer, someone whose own reasons for delivering destruction are as detailed and complex as his own DNA.
___Only two answers seem to help.
___First is the painfully honest and simply finite answer: We don't know why, or what or how. Just like so much of life, evil and murder and death are mysteries. All-knowing God Almighty knows why, but we can't. Our minds are too limited. And maybe such knowledge is too heavy to bear. Only God's shoulders are broad enough to lift it.
___Second is the more approachable but equally difficult answer: All of the above. Random violence occurs for a ghoulish host of reasons, including but not limited to hate, evil and insanity. These are mini-answers, which we can touch and to which we can try to respond:
___This is hateful. Witnesses said Ashbrook spoke profanely about Christianity as he shot Christians. He expressed hatred for our Savior and for the church. He apparently was fueled by hatred that transformed a junior high member of the Preacher Boys' Class at a Church of Christ congregation to a killer of Baptist young people.
___The Bible teaches us that love casts out or overcomes hate. People such as Ashbrook and the killers in Littleton, Colo., are exceedingly complex, and we cannot ascribe quick-fixes for their aberrant behavior. But we can wonder what would have happened if, somehow, Christian people had been able to befriend them before they descended to the depths of hatred. Of course, many people such as this repel others. They convince themselves they hate us before we even get the chance to love them. But what if?
___
___We cannot fight Satan alone, of course. When we think we have secured victory, our pride makes us vulnerable to his wily ways. When we think we are invincible, our arrogance blinds us to his deceit. We must battle Satan in the power of the Holy Spirit. We must fight him in community, standing together in worship and praise, in service, on mission. We must fight humbly yet confidently, realizing we are weak, but our Savior already has won the ultimate battle.
___Many Christians believe Satan works hardest when our victory is in sight. They are correct. So, we never coast; we never relax; we never give up.
___Of course, "fight" is a military word. In actuality, love is our greatest weapon. We win the battle by loving Satan's footsoldiers into God's kingdom. Our bullets are kindness, compassion and grace.
___
___We can't reach every potential murderer, but with our resources, Baptists ought to do everything in our power to help hurting people overcome mental illness. Perhaps a person like Ashbrook would refuse help. But others might be healed. And lives saved.
___ --Marv Knox
Email the editor at marvknox@baptiststandard.com
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