The reaction all around the World to the news on January 7th last week of the terrible terrorist shootings in Paris has been seismic. Because of the media, we are probably the most traumatised generation ever. In the social media the hashtag #JeSuisCharlie has captured the feelings of the vast majority of us who feel deeply shocked and sad. And yet that is not what everyone feels, there has been the counter #JeSuisKouachi in support of the cause of the terrorists. This can leave us in a confused state, not knowing what the right reaction is. It is common for the victim of a crime to be made to feel that they are the one at fault and this has a profound effect on them especially in the most traumatic cases like this one.
These kind of terrible atrocities are part of the history of mankind since the beginning which we hear about every day in great detail in our modern world. Like with other terrible events both on a grand scale or on a personal level, there are many emotions felt and they vary from day to day making it very hard to deal with. Some people will not be able to, it is too much for them, they need a lot of support. How can a Christian respond in a way that is helpful and shares the genuine hope that we have? There are no easy answers when people are suffering, you should read and understand the book of Job before you will be qualified to offer any kind of spiritual support. That is not to say that you should not give every other kind of support possible. Men are particularly bad in these situations but thank God for Google I say!
I do believe that most of all, we need to listen to the voice of the victim and only then respond. In any situation of grief, there is something deeply spiritual happening. God is very active and people are often very open to Him at this point. The light is most noticed in the darkest room. We need to be gentle and at the same time point them to Jesus who is the only one who can offer lasting hope. A Charlie Hebdo journalist said “I think that [our friends] who have been killed, if they were here, they would have been able to have a coffee today with the terrorists and just talk to them, ask them why they have done this,” he said. “We feel, as Charlie Hebdo’s team, that we need to forgive the two terrorists who have killed our colleagues.”
To me that is God at work because his comments echo the words of Christ about forgiveness and you can start from there. If you can express support, provide hope and even share the good news of the Gospel at someone's worst possible moment, you are supporting the work of God but if not, learn from the mistakes Job's friends made and just keep quiet.
Now for the hard part. What about the offence deliberately caused by the Charlie Hebdo magazine?
The magazine wants a reaction because controversy sells, so every week its pages include cartoons that are offensive to a minority and funny to the majority.
Brushing over the offence caused, the cartoonist said “That Mohamed is just my cartoon character. He exists only when I draw him…” Luz said. The problem with terrorists, he said, is “that they have no sense of humour, no sense of irony”.
The problem with freedom of speech is when people take advantage of their liberty to make money with no consideration for others. It is not just the terrorists who are offended.
If the cartoonists humour mainly depends on offence being taken, and instead every time forgiveness is offered, the cartoonists will lose interest after a while because they are not getting the reaction they need to sell their magazines. It's a business decision for them.
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