Reflections on the riots

I have been deeply saddened by the events of the past few days. TV pictures of gangs of roaming the streets of London and other cities, ransacking properties, causing mindless damage, and setting properties on fire, have been very disturbing. Apart from the physical damage to properties, there has been deep psychological damage caused, not least to those who were innocently caught up in the violence. Many have lost jobs and homes. The consequences will be enormous.

Of course the media have been full of the story, and people have not been slow in coming forward with their solutions (often conflicting!); there has been no shortage of people willing to lay the blame. Those with wisdom, and any real understanding of the situation, however, realise that the issues are far from simple. It's easy to point fingers, but far less easy to come up with meaningful and lasting solutions.

It would appear from reports that many of those who have caused such problems in the past few days have been young people. What has happened in the lives of these young people which has led them to the point where they are willing to be part of such unprecedented violence and destruction? One very interesting and insightful question which was asked in a discussion in which I was involved was, "Where are the role models for young people in our society today?" Parents? I would imagine that the parents of many of those young people have been far from ideal role models. Football stars? Think about recent revelations concerning Giggs, Terry, Rooney etc. Royal Family? Consider the goings on over recent years, and one might consider that the Royal Family are not altogether the best role models. Politicians? Mmmm.. expenses scandals etc. might suggest otherwise. Media? News of the World revelations of recent times point in another direction. The Church? Sadly, even the church has so often failed to provide the kind of role model so desperately needed. Is there any wonder that young people are tempted to go astray when they see so very few examples of how to really live?

Someone said that "the heart of the human problem is the problem of the human heart". When a society dismissed God from its thinking the consequences become evident very soon. If only our nation would turn back to God and live in his way! I have been reading recently about the Welsh Revival of 1904/5 and how that nation was transformed in such a positive way. In God there is always hope for a better future in him. We as a Church must repent of the mistakes of the past and our bad example, and cry out to God to forgive us, restore us, and heal our land.

The Bible entreats us to "pray for the peace of Jerusalem" Let us also work and pray for God's peace in our nation and local communities.