The school shooting in Uvalde which took the lives of 19 children and 2 adults was heart wrenching to all who have hearts able to be stirred.  There have been many speeches in the aftermath of the horrific event, much political grandstanding, numerous thoughts and prayers, litanies, vigils, and, so far, very little action.  

It is absolutely true that God is with us in the midst of all the dark valleys in which we walk this life.  Disease, war, persecution, violence of all sorts, even a school shooting as awful and appalling as we have witnessed in Texas… God remains with us, never abandoning us, always offering us the courage and strength to go on.  The families of all the victims in Uvalde may take refuge in the loving arms and care of our ever loving and caring God.  All of this is true.   

And yet… these words of divine consolation seem just so lacking, insufficient, hollow.  There are no words that may be expressed that convey the depth of grief that the families in Uvalde are experiencing today.  There are no words that speak to the anger and frustration that so many of us are feeling at the inability of our leaders to employ strategies to curb the societal ill of gun violence.  There are no words that can bring back the lives lost.  There are just no words.

On occasions of such confusion and despair, in times when there are just no words, I look to the example of Jesus.  Throughout the mock trial that ultimately led to his crucifixion and, as his body hung upon the cross, Jesus spoke few words. Indeed, what more was there to say.  He had taught, healed, preached, consoled, counseled.  He had spent at least three years doing his best to speak publicly, truthfully and bravely about the peaceable Kingdom of God.  And yet, just as the words of the greatest of the Hebrew prophets and teachers had never been enough, Jesus’ words weren’t enough either. There are no words to truly express the brokenness of the human condition and no words to capture the fullness of God’s gracious response to that same brokenness.

Jesus’ giving of his life upon the cross did what words could not do.  Through his generous act of self-sacrifice, Jesus not only spoke to the state of human sin and God’s love, he did something about both. Through his death and subsequent resurrection, Jesus reconciled the world to God and opened a certain and sure path to abundant life.

Might we dare to follow Jesus’ example?  When there are no words, do we dare to live in self-sacrificial ways that the Kingdom of God may find its way into the brokenness of our world?  Might we be willing to sacrifice some of our well-entrenched ideologies in order to find a way forward?  Might we be willing to give up even a modicum of what we perceive as our rights that violence may be diminished and abundant life may ensue?

In the midst of a world in which gun violence has become a regular and almost accepted manifestation of human brokenness, words are simply not enough. Our thoughts and prayers are just not enough.  In a world in which there are no words to express the depth of pain and sadness and despair, followers of Jesus must live generously and sacrificially.  Words were never enough for Jesus; nor are words enough for us either.

~Father Art