The death of Iryna Zarutzka has spurred a lot of thought for me and many other people. It was just so disgusting, brutal, and avoidable that it is difficult for it not to do so. I use this blog as a way to think through different things that are going on. There is a real sense in which I can write the thoughts and work them out in my mind, click publish, and move on with my day. But this news story was so brutal that I’ve had a hard time just not thinking about it. It’s truly awful. And the guilt of our judicial system is placed front and center for us to see and consider.
We will miss the point if we don’t think locally about this news story. In other words, consider whether or not you want this sort of thing to happen in your own town. Consider whether or not a 14 time offender, much of which was violent, would be allowed to roam free in your town and kill an innocent victim.
I generally think of myself as being safe here in Conway, Arkansas. But this news story has really made me think. And here is where my head has landed.
Are there places in your town that people don’t go to because it’s unsafe? If there are, then your town has problems that need to be addressed. And if leadership is unwilling to address them then that leadership needs to be removed. As a good citizen, you need to work for better in your town.
The Role of Government
What is the government supposed to do? Sometimes to answer questions you must get to the root of an issue.
I have explained this elsewhere, but the thing that governments must do is reward good behavior and punish evil behavior.
“Let every person be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and those that exist have been instituted by God. Therefore whoever resists the authorities resists what God has appointed, and those who resist will incur judgment. For rulers are not a terror to good conduct, but to bad. Would you have no fear of the one who is in authority? Then do what is good, and you will receive his approval, for he is God’s servant for your good. But if you do wrong, be afraid, for he does not bear the sword in vain. For he is the servant of God, an avenger who carries out God’s wrath on the wrongdoer.”
Romans 13:1-4 ESV
Governing authorities are to punish the evildoers. They are to be a terror to bad conduct. They are to strike fear in the population so as to tamp down bad behavior. They can do other things. But those other things are not part of necessary tasks.
Another way of saying this is that my town doesn’t need 5 more roundabouts. We need the parts of the city that everyone knows are unsafe to be made safe. There was a shooting at 5th Avenue Park that recently made the news not long ago. A few locals that have lived here a long time said, “that sort of thing happens at that park.”
When we first moved to Conway, church members gave us the run down of what parts of town to avoid. There were some places on the list that my wife was told not to go without me. Think about what they were saying for a moment. They were telling us where innocent people get hurt in town. They were telling us the places where lawless behavior is much more likely.
Local authorities have a primary job and that is to curb wickedness under their jurisdiction. If they don’t do that, then we should not care about anything else that they do. Everything else is secondary. The problem is that politicians think that their job is to make people happy. That’s how they get reelected. They don’t view this as being job number one.
In the case of Iryna Zarutzka, judges gave a violent man light sentences and let him walk the street. But it didn’t end there. Reports are that the light rail was way understaffed, which is a situation that a lot of police forces and groups like this feel every day. The money was probably spent on some city beautification project and not to protect the people. That’s just a guess. But it’s one I’ve seen happen a few different times.
And because the authorities that were supposed to deal with these things did not, an innocent woman died at the hands of an evil man. And a family is mourning the loss of a daughter that they loved. Read their words here,
“We are heartbroken beyond words. Iryna came here to find peace and safety, and instead her life was stolen from her in the most horrific way,” said a family spokesperson in an official release on Wednesday, Sept. 10. “No family should have to go through this.”
No government is perfect. But a good government over your city will lead to less statements like this from family members. It will lead to the safety of the people within that place.
What This Means For You
I want to now look at how this moves us as individuals. What should this cause us to do?
It should cause us to think locally. It should cause us to vote locally.
The problem for most of us today is that we think nationally. We don’t seem to understand that the place we can make the most difference is in the places we touch, drive, and walk. We somehow think that what matters is out there.
I was encouraged a few years back when there was threat of gun rights being taken away at a national level and our county sheriff made a statement that basically said, “Not in Faulkner County”. Kudos to him. And us for voting him in to office. Your local sheriff has more authority in your county than the President of the United States has in your county. And that election will affect you far more than the presidential election.
In Conway, the Mayor chooses the Chief of Police. So, when you choose him, you choose the person that will appoint the head of the Police Department. Don’t you think that matters more than who your president is to you and your children? This is the set up for a lot of places around the country. Don’t you think that this is of massive importance?
But the problem is that we don’t think about it. We don’t think about who our local leaders are. We don’t give two thoughts about who we elect in the county. We will spend a multitude of hours watching presidential debates and news coverage at the national level and not think a bit about who will be choosing our police chief or judging our cases. A school board election here in Conway will only get a few hundred people to show up and vote because the people don’t seem to care about what goes on in their neighborhood.
Your Christianity does touch the ground that you walk on. It does matter in the place you live. You have the right to vote and that means you have the obligation to vote for people in the city you live in that will uphold righteousness and justice. This must be their priority.
If a Mayor, Judge, or any other elected official believes that fairness and bringing about racial equity is their primary role, then they need to be shown the door. That’s the kind of thing that lets a 14-time, sometimes violent offender out of prison long enough to stab an innocent woman. That is not what our government exists for, and obviously it makes a mess when it tries.
When the righteous increase, the people rejoice, but when the wicked rule, the people groan. (Proverbs 29:2 ESV)
Rulers that seek justice and righteousness are a blessing. Those that disregard it cause hardship for the people. And sometimes that hardship looks like an innocent woman being stabbed to death by a man that should have been behind bars.
As Christians we are obligated to work for the something better. We are obligated to work for the improvement of the places we live. We are obligated to seek the prosperity of our neighborhood, city, and state.
Christian, you are currently in exile and a part of God’s Kingdom. But as such, right now, you must seek the welfare of the place you live.
But seek the welfare of the city where I have sent you into exile, and pray to the LORD on its behalf, for in its welfare you will find your welfare. (Jeremiah 29:7 ESV)
You cannot be uninvolved locally. You can’t let your local schools become havens for propagandists. Elect a school board that won’t let that happen. You can’t let your city be run by people that would rather let criminals run free for the sake of equity and inclusion. Elect mayors and judges that will not let that happen. We have to work and fight for the betterment of the place we live.
We Hope in the Best
Nothing will be perfect right now. It just won’t. It can’t. We are flawed human beings. And so, even the best of outcomes right now pales in comparison to our great hope.
For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation for all people, training us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in the present age, waiting for our blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ, who gave himself for us to redeem us from all lawlessness and to purify for himself a people for his own possession who are zealous for good works. (Titus 2:11-14 ESV)
We can and should work for a better city, county, state, and country. And we do so knowing that the perfect is coming because Jesus Christ gave Himself for us to redeem us.
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