Thursday, July 19, 2007

Teenagers Set Kittens On Fire - How We Treat The Helpless

What is it with some people nowadays? Two teenagers allegedly set a kitten on fire last month.

All I can think is... how horribly disgusting and depraved. How sad. What would drive someone to do this?

Just because you can do something and probably get away with it (so you think) doesn't mean that you should. It's likely that there are many more people that treat animals horribly and never get caught.

Perhaps these teenagers feel that hurting something gives them a sense of power. The kitten, however, is utterly helpless and can not do anything in its defense. What is the power in that? Perhaps they are just cruel, nasty people. I don't know. Wicked is a good word for them.

How a society (or individual members in the society) treats its most helpless reflects either poorly or well on a society (we seem to be doing fairly poorly). Everybody is shocked when someone lights a kitten on fire, but what about other helpless members of our society?

What about the popularity of Bumfights? Homeless people tend to be among our more vulnerable people in society. Why would anybody want to watch this trash? Is it funny that there are people so desperate for a drink (or a hamburger, or $50, or whatever) that they are willing to harm themselves? I find it sad. Not to mention people that think it's funny to beat up random homeless people, just because they can. Would you think that it was funny if it was your son or daughter, mother or father, sister or brother in one of these shows? What about the people that think they can get away with murdering the homeless?

How do we treat our elderly? How many people put their parents into nursing homes and never visit them? It's always a joke on The Simpsons that Homer's dad is old and nobody seems to ever care about him. Aren't we supposed to honor our mother and father? Although we may not have to obey them any more as adults, I think that we have a responsibility to care for our parents as they get older. While they may need nursing care that we can not provide, that doesn't absolve us of our responsibility to visit or at least call, if they are long distance.

And what about the most helpless people of all? The unborn? Sadly, that is the most dangerous time for a baby, when it should be the safest.

Then He also shall say to those on the left hand, Depart from Me, you cursed, into everlasting fire prepared for the Devil and his angels. For I was hungry, and you gave Me no food; I was thirsty, and you gave Me no drink; I was a stranger and you did not take Me in; I was naked, and you did not clothe Me; I was sick, and in prison, and you did not visit me. Then they will also answer Him, saying, Lord, when did we see You hungry, or thirsty, or a stranger, or naked, or sick, or in prison, and did not minister to You? Then He shall answer them, saying, Truly I say to you, Inasmuch as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to Me.


~ Matthew 25:41-45

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