A Culture of Violence

From the US Conference of Catholic Bishops, 1994
A few thoughts that I have quoted for consideration...

Beyond the violence in our streets is the violence in our hearts. Hostility, hatred, despair and indifference are at the heart of a growing culture of violence. Verbal violence in our families, communications and talk shows contribute to this culture of violence. Pornography assaults the dignity of women and contributes to violence against them. Our social fabric is being torn apart by a culture of violence that leaves children dead on our streets and families afraid in our homes. Our society seems to be growing numb to human loss and suffering. A nation born in a commitment to "life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness" is haunted by death, imprisoned by fear and caught up in the elusive pursuit of protection rather than happiness. A world moving beyond the Cold War is caught up in bloody ethnic, tribal and political conflict.

Not all violence is deadly. It begins with anger, intolerance, impatience, unfair judgements and aggression. It is often reflected in our language, our entertainment, our driving, our competitive behavior, and the way we treat our environment. These acts and attitudes are not the same as abusive behavior or physical attacks, but they create a climate where violence prospers and peace suffers. We are also experiencing the polarization of public life and militarization of politics with increased reliance on "attack" ads, "war" rooms and intense partisan combat in place of the search for the common good and common ground.

In parishes and schools, human service agencies, and family life and youth programs, our community of faith offers alternatives to violence, a commitment to education, and a source of hope and help in places of fear and failure. Now is the time for all of us to follow their leadership, to build on their example, to place our facilities at the service of the community. Our young people, especially, need support and challenge, discipline and opportunities to use their talents and carry out their responsibilities in a world of conflicting values and often dangerous choices.

We also need to encourage a commitment to civility and respect in public life and communications -- in the news media, politics and even ecclesial dialogue. The search for the common good is not advanced by partisan gamesmanship, challenging other people's motives, or personal attacks. The focus on the sensational, the search for conflict, and the assumption of bad will are not the basis for dialogue, and hurt the search for common ground.

Perhaps the greatest challenge is the call for all of us to examine our own lives, to identify how we can choose generosity over selfishness, and choose a real commitment to family and community over individual acquisition and ambition. In many small ways, each of us can help overcome violence by dealing with it on our block; providing for the emotional, physical and spiritual needs of our children; dealing with our own abusive behavior; or, even treating fellow motorists with courtesy. Violence is overcome day by day, choice by choice, person by person. All of us must make a contribution.

We close these reflections with a word of support and appreciation for those on the front lines -- parents, pastors, parish leaders, youth workers, catechists and teachers, prison chaplains, men and women religious. At a time when heroes seem scarce, these people are real heroes and heroines, committing their lives to the service of others, standing against a tide of violence with values of peace and a commitment to justice. We commend peace officers who daily confront violence with fairness and courage and we support those who minister to them and their families. We also offer a word of encouragement to parents who daily confront the cultural messages that influence their children in a way that is so contradictory to basic values of decency, honesty, respect for life and justice.

This issue is near and dear to my heart. I truly believe that the media (video games, news, violent television shows, violent movies) are one of the strong contributing factors to violence in our culture, but they are only PART of the problem. The answers begin with each of us...stepping in to prevent our children from watching the violent movies and television shows, voting for candidates who support reasonable gun control laws, watching how WE respond to one another, both in real life and in the written word.

WE are the example that we should set. Those who don't 'fit in' look to our culture to find what the 'norm' is, and a strong part of our culture is our media. The media (news, video games, television shows, movies) can teach good or evil. We promote the idea that 'educational' television shows are good for our toddlers minds, how can we possibly think that violent media doesn't educate our impressionable teens that violence is an acceptable answer to difficulties. The gun lobby says that stricter laws won't do anything. I disagree. More people die every day from legally purchased weapons than from illegally purchased weapons. 30,000 people a year die from gunshot wounds in the United States alone.

Article San Diego News

While some focused blame only on the gunman, world opinion over U.S. gun laws was almost unanimous: Access to weapons increases the probability of shootings. There was no sympathy for the view that more guns would have saved lives by enabling students to shoot the assailant.

Article AP Wire Service

"We had a terrible incident at Port Arthur, but it is the case that 11 years ago we took action to limit the availability of guns and we showed a national resolve that the gun culture that is such a negative in the United States would never become a negative in our country," he said.

The new gun laws in Australia, which banned military-style weapons and toughened licensing and storage restrictions, were unpopular among farmers and other gun owners that are key supporters of Howard's conservative coalition. The government paid owners to take more than 600,000 firearms off their hands in a national buyback scheme.

What truly made us a superpower was our morality, not our military. People don't look to military might for leadership, they look to morality. When are we going to stop depending upon violence for our leadership and start depending upon being a moral leader for the world again?

The United States is a leader in the worst way in our world today. We lead the world as having the highest number of violent deaths outside of acts of war. In some cases, we have more violent deaths per year than countries that ARE at war. Our culture of violence consumes even the weakest of our country: The unborn, the elderly, the incapacitated; and we are failing to protect them.

Please, pray for those who are in mourning today for their loss. Pray for those who are healing from their pain. Pray for those whose hearts desire vengence, that they are filled with peace. Pray for those who have gone on, that they are with the Prince of Peace.

God bless you all. Go hug those you love.