Throw Open the Jail Doors

Newsletter article for April 1998

© 1998 by Rev. Paul A. Wolff

Well, not quite yet. If nothing changes in our society, then it would be tragic to throw open the jail doors and free the prisoners. Our country has the largest population of imprisoned convicts in the developed world, and I have no doubt that virtually all of them deserve to be where they are, and many more besides. However, this is a tremendous waste and cannot continue. Something must change. I read an article in the paper about a study which projected that if current trends continue by ’10 over 50% of black men ages 18 to 39 will live in jail.

Although the article was a little vague on the exact details of what this means (you can thank either the newspaper joint operating agreement for shoddy journalism, or the subject of this article—perhaps someone currently living in jail would have made a better journalist), this is an astonishing claim, which, even if it means that 50% of young black men will be imprisoned at some point in their lives (and not all at once), and even if it never comes true, the fact that this is the direction in which we may be headed is already a tragedy.

Why is there so much crime in the United States? There are probably many reasons, but the main reason is that we allow it. This may sound simplistic, and although it is simple, that doesn’t mean it cannot fully explain the current situation. We (as a society, not necessarily individually) allow a large amount of crime in this country, otherwise it wouldn’t occur. This much is simple. The complexity comes in determining why we allow so much crime and violence.

The “Village”

There is an African proverb which says that it takes a village to raise a child. This is roughly the secular equivalent to John 13:34 where Jesus says, “As I have loved you, so must you love one another.” Parents are primarily responsible for the discipline and education of their children, however, parents cannot look after their children 24 hours a day. This does not mean that the child is unaccountable to anyone during time spent away from parents. Due to our sinful nature a child left to himself or herself will fall into temptation and sin. Jesus tells us in Matthew 15:19, “Out of the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false testimony, (and) slander.” The enforcement of the law is used to curb these sins when they come out of the heart and into the open. The prevalence of these sins and the breakdown of the family are all signs that the “village” is not doing its job.

You don’t have to be old to remember a time when society was like a “village”. Although there were huge divisions in society because of racism fifty years ago, within those divisions people looked out for one another. It was safe to walk down your street day or night, and you could leave your doors unlocked without reasonable fear that some godless person would come to swipe your belongings or take your life. People looked out for one another. They felt safe, and for the most part they were safe (though there always was and there always will be crime).

Some might accuse me of wanting to return to the past, but that is not the case. You can never return to the past, besides there is much about the past that we don’t want to repeat. I am talking about the future. Just because we can learn from the past doesn’t mean we have to repeat the mistakes of the past. God gave His people the Law so that they would know how to treat one another properly. But so many people in our society have forgotten about God, or have turned away from Him that much the same thing can be said about America that God told Jonah about Nineveh, “Nineveh has more than a hundred and twenty thousand people who cannot tell their right hand from their left.”

America’s Split Personality

America has something of a split personality. It is at the same time the most Christian nation on earth, and also one of the most pagan . Because of all the Christians praying for God’s blessings on our nation, God has made us the most prosperous nation on earth. But because of all the non-Christians who despise God and His laws we suffer from violence, crime, and a multitude of “natural” disasters.

For a long time I was puzzled as to why we won such an overwhelming victory in the Gulf War when our society has so much injustice. Yes, the victory was incomplete, but it was overwhelming. But I believe that the answer can be found in the parable of the Wheat and the Weeds (Tares) in Matthew 13. The farmer tells his workers not to pull up the weeds because they might destroy the wheat in the process. This shows that God has mercy on all people for the sake of the faithful. I see the war as a fight between good and evil. Not that we are always good and Iraq is evil, but we were right in fighting to stop an aggressive lawbreaker. The victory in the war might tell us that God will help us win victory over evil in our society, even though we cannot eliminate evil. If we stand up for what is right here at home then we can live at peace in our homes. Only then can we empty many of our prisons and put the people to constructive work, knowing that we will not tolerate godless behavior.

Jesus has Opened the Jail

Isaiah gave this prophesy about Jesus, “The Lord has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the prisoners.” Now, we know that the prison that it refers to is the prison of hell, and that we are the captives who have been freed from prison. Since we are enjoying the earthly benefits of obedience to God we should not keep it to ourselves, but we should share the blessings with other people.

Jesus said, “You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden.” Since we have been rescued and redeemed by Christ, we are no longer like the folks in Nineveh who don’t know their right hand from their left. Instead we are “the light of the world.” The light leads people out of darkness. In our actions and in our words we should live as witnesses to the truth of God’s word.

In practice this means not letting the lawbreakers rule by fear and intimidation. We should stand up for what is right. St. Paul said, “I am not ashamed of the Gospel, for it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes.” May God’s people always look to Him for strength and protection in everything.