I have written precious little about Jerry Sandusky and the
disgusting scandal that has swirled around him.
There are at least two reasons for my lack of comments. First, I deeply respect the American Judicial
system. You know, the part that claims
we are "innocent until proven guilty". Regardless of how emotional I have been over
the then-alleged acts of sexual abuse, I felt it was necessary to allow Mr.
Sandusky to have his day in court.
Honestly, I had no doubt of his guilt.
The evidence appeared to be overwhelming. Nevertheless, what did I know? The sensationally-charged media did
everything it could to convict him without a trial, and I have never held much
respect for that form of journalism. So
I bit my tongue and anxiously waited.
My second reason for not speaking out, to date, has more to
do with my total disdain for pedophiles and the abuse of children. Sexual abuse, in particular, attacks the very
core of human decency and violates every moral and ethical fiber within
me. The whole situation is almost too
intense to deal with.
As the world now knows Mr. Sandusky had his day in
court. The legendary defensive
coordinator of college football fame offered his best defense against the
charges facing him. A jury of twelve
peers heard all the evidence and arguments before rendering their decision:
Guilty on 45 of 48 counts. The Sins of
Sandusky have been revealed.
Sentencing has yet to take place but there is no reason to
believe that Jerry Sandusky will be released from prison any time soon. His crimes carry a maximum of 442 years in
prison. In all likelihood the former
Penn State Assistant Coach will spend the rest of his life in prison.
When I heard the verdict on Friday evening I had mixed
emotions. Primarily I was humbled and
thankful that our judicial system appeared to be working properly. However, I was also shocked and angered at
the response of many.
·
The crowd outside the courtroom burst into a
joyous, celebrative cheer. People hugged
one another and screamed as if they were attending a sporting event.
·
Comments immediately raced across Twitter and
Facebook. Words that I will not repeat
here were used to describe Sandusky along with graphic descriptions of what
they hoped would happen to him at the hands of fellow inmates.
·
Even Joe Amendola, Sandusky's defense attorney,
was smiling; laughing; while his client was escorted in handcuffs to spend the
rest of his life in prison.
Somehow this union of exuberance, vengeful hate, and sadistic eye-for-eye retaliation
was a terrible slap in the face to the victims who suffered at the hands of
this man. These victims, including those
who came forward and testified as well as those who remain too hurt to go
public, continue to deal with their pain and confusion. They will remain victims for the rest of their
lives.
I know a man quite well who was sexually assaulted and abused
over a two year period when he was a teenager.
He was a victim of a man who was some 45 years older than him, a
well-respected leader in his community.
My friend confesses that he still feels shame, guilt, and confusion as a
result of these events that took place about 36 - 38 years ago. He has, in his own words, been
"permanently scarred and marked as a pervert", at least in his own
mind. Today, my friend is a firm
believer in Jesus Christ. He knows he
has received the Grace of God and he bears no guilt before God for the crimes
committed against him. He seeks no
"justice"; desires no revenge.
And yet he lacks a certain peace within himself. As he confided in me, "I just cannot get
the image out of my mind. It doesn't
haunt me day and night. I can go for
extended periods of time without the nightmares and the recurring
thoughts. But they never leave
completely. They have been burned on my
brain like some kind of mental tattoo and every now and then it is
uncovered."
That is the problem with violations of this nature. They never go away. One can faithfully go through all kinds of
therapy and counseling. One can turn to
God and undergo a powerful conversion or spiritual renewal. One can indeed be "born again",
becoming a "new creature in Christ" to the point that "the old
is gone and the new has come." (See
John 3:16; 2 Corinthians 5:17). Still,
my experiences in dealing with individuals tells me that the past can never be
fully erased. At best, one can learn to
manage it with some degree of success.
But some things can never be undone.
This is why calls for celebration as well as curses of
revenge or retaliation are misguided.
The cannot deliver closure for the victims. Even if we, the general public, who endured
the newscasts and reports for the past eight months or so can find some relief
in a guilty verdict, it is not enough.
Out of respect for the victims we would be wise to direct our attention
to more productive ways of responding.
Examples would include advocating better laws and stricter supervision
of young people. Making sure that a child
or youth is never left alone with an adult in a compromising situation. Support programs that offer assistance to
victims of abuse and assault both as preventive measures and in dealing with
the trauma after it occurs. Certainly
organizations like the Second Mile need to be challenged to examine their
policies and procedures with the utmost care that such instances will not
happen again.
And there is another response we can offer: prayer! Indeed, rather than celebrating the verdict
or reveling in anticipated payback, let us pray for the victims that the peace
of Christ may flood their souls.
The Sins of Sandusky were great and sickening. He will now be forced to take responsibility
for his actions. However, lest we find
it satisfying to judge, it behooves all of us to examine our own lives and take
responsibility - as individuals and as a society - for the protection and the
safety of all who are entrusted to us.
Our children and youth, the elderly, the disabled, the poor, the
minorities, the strangers and sojourners among us are all our responsibility to
look after and protect. Until we do, our
work is not done.
The National Sexual Assault Hotline number is 800-656-HOPE.
GDGehr June 29, 2012
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