For Sunday December 16th, 2012

Hello all, the shooting at Sandy Hill Elementary School in Connecticut has brought to mind Tom Sawyer's reply when asked about the shootings at Columbine and Virginia Tech. Here are some highlights from his answer:

It is a subject that has many aspects and has festered for over three generations. Since the '50's there has been a dissolution of the core family. Child raising moved away from chores and responsibilities toward entertainment. The idea of "a man's word is his bond" began loosing ground. Society became promiscuous, in the true sense of the word, and we knew it. The '60's were worse, easier yes, but worse for the children. Modern conveniences replaced the need to work hard on a daily basis. It became easier to lie and be forgiven rather than take initial responsibility. The family dinner became lost for many households, and weekends were for each individual, separately. There were fewer and fewer people who would take care of themselves and do sports, work, or prioritize 'doing good and interesting things' rather than just 'seeing and being seen'. Entertainment began to push societal limits for a 'shock and awe' effect. Movies, sports, and even religions have tweaked their organizations in order to keep and/or hang onto their numbers. Schools have been the worst where, for fear of hurting the self-esteem of the child, administrations have taken on the role of being heroes rather than teachers, discipline has continually slackened. In movies and from societal attitudes came 'well nobody pays all their taxes anyway' and 'a rip-off is ok, it's not like a real crime'.

He goes on to mention the impersonality and total insensitivity of computers. He wrote this response in 2007, before the spread of social media, and said that he ought to write a treatise on the social climate that developed so children could kill. He died a few weeks later.

May we sit this Sunday for honest, real connections between people, truly from the heart. May we sit for living our own honorable lives, and supporting others in their search and growth. May we sit for increasing spiritual connection in the world at large.

Thank you,

Richard