As I stood on a wall of the castle overlooking the valley, it felt like I could be watching men on horseback coming towards me, banners waiving in the breeze, and the sounds of justice from their crusade. I could feel the breeze and imagery, with a chill running down my spine in anticipation of what followed in the day.
Having reading enough history, I am under no illusion that the beliefs of yesterday are in harmony with the values of compassion, community, and caring that I hold close to my heart. Yesterday was brutal, often inhuman, and filled with blindly executed actions. Whatever noble intent was there to start with had been lost in the damaged lives left behind as the horses relentlessly carried on.
It was a sad day for anyone that cared about the scales of justice or measures of compassion. Even as I considered the past and how it plays out in the world we know, I was struck by a rekindled awareness of the following.
Many things in life are not fair, deserved, or just. Even if the person carrying them out has a noble intent, what follows is often anything but. The reality of good and bad, joy and pain is the playing field where we live our lives.
One can be a victim as well as a soldier of injustice. Rarely is one only on one side. We give as frequently as as we receive. As hard as it might be to look in the mirror, when I do I realize how much pain and injustice has come from my hands, voice, and feet.
In context, I do not want justice! I long for, need compassion and mercy. The God I know brings this. Others have observed the same; “He doesn’t treat us as our sins deserve, nor pay us back in full for our wrongs.” (Psalm 103.10)
Yesterday’s scales were not always filled with compassion or mercy. Today is an opportunity to do our part to fill the gap. It is core part of our calling and purpose.
