Death, be not proud, though some have called thee/ Mighty and dreadful, for thou art not so ;/ For those, whom thou think'st thou dost overthrow,/ Die not, poor Death, nor yet canst thou kill me./ From rest and sleep, which but thy picture[s] be,/ Much pleasure, then from thee much more must flow,/ And soonest our best men with thee do go,/ Rest of their bones, and soul's delivery./ Thou'rt slave to Fate, chance, kings, and desperate men,/ And dost with poison, war, and sickness dwell,/ And poppy, or charms can make us sleep as well,/ And better than thy stroke ; why swell'st thou then ?/ One short sleep past, we wake eternally,/ And Death shall be no more ; Death, thou shalt die.
~Holy Sonnet X, John Donne

Sunday, May 1, 2011

Osama Bin Laden is dead.

Just a short thought:

As I was reading over various people's Facebook statuses tonight, and news of Osama Bin Laden's death was spreading. All of the posts were ecstatic...

For example:

"thank goodness Osama is DEAD!! he has done enough damage to our nation!! Praise the Lord!! :D"

&

"Does anyone else feel like singing the national anthem & flying their flag while shooting off fireworks?!"

Is this how we react to this? Really?

A friend of mine put it well: "While we may all be relieved that Osama Bin Laden is dead, God takes no pleasure in the death of the wicked, and neither should we."

It should sadden us.

God does promise vengeance for His people, and even says we will wash our feet in the blood of the wicked (Psalm 58:10). But there should always be sorrow for the death of another human being. There is joy that comes with justice served, but there must be mercy tied to this. To not feel a pang of sorrow at the loss of another human life is inhuman itself.

Christ has died for *everyone*.

Everyone.

That itself should make us pause.
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