A Letter from Shalom Ministries concerning the Pittsburgh shooting
Greetings friends,
In light of the horrific events that took place this past weekend at the synagogue in Pittsburgh, I wanted to send along a brief note to our friends and supporters to share some thoughts.
We are all witnessing a tragedy, and there is certainly cause for shock, grief, and alarm. It is, however, just one of the many, many atrocities which one cannot even count that have been perpetuated against the Jewish people since Sinai. That is not to minimize the sadness or outrage about it at all, but only to highlight that this is the plight of my people. The next anti-Semitic act is just around the corner. This particular tragedy is before our eyes, so it is vivid and hits us all in a visceral way, but my people have endured these kinds of acts since the beginning of our existence. Feelings of sadness will grow in the upcoming days as we learn more about the victims and their stories. Already we know of one woman who survived the Holocaust only to meet this gruesome fate at 97 years of age. These reflections pierce deep within the human soul and leave us stunned. Because of technology and media, the world is seeing all of this and reacting. Perhaps some good will come of the world-wide exposure, but if it does, it will, unfortunately, be short lived. After the Holocaust there was far reaching shock and horror throughout the world, and yet in 70 years the level of anti-Semitism in the world has returned to where it was just before World War II. This is the true nature of man.
Therefore, we must accept the sad reality that the events which occurred in Pittsburgh will happen again. In fact, with each bomb or rocket hurled at Israel, it is, in essence, happening already almost every day. Not all the events will make news headlines, so there is not a world-wide condemnation, but they are occurring as various factions contemplate harm and elimination for the Jewish people. Haman, Antiochus, Hitler, and the weekend shooter are among those who have received notable mention, but these wicked men are just a few in a very long line of evildoers who have acted throughout the history of Israel.
Having said all this, I do want to suggest a few things that have come to mind which I believe we would be well served to reflect on at this time.
- Sin is real. There is evil in the world and that evil will not be eradicated by human attempts to create peace on earth. Some of the voices calling for unity may be well intended, but the evil that lurks among men will not be impacted by them. Curbing free speech or “toning down the rhetoric” has really nothing to do with evil acts. Provocative speech is not to blame for violent criminal acts. Sin is to blame. The heart of man is wicked by nature and only Messiah Jesus can change hearts.
- The Devil is active in this age. We must never let our guard down while he is seeking to devour and destroy. We are no match for him but can only withstand him if we rely on Jesus to strengthen and protect us. Further, the Devil hates what God loves, so he hates Israel. He will never cease to try to destroy her until Messiah sends him to his future eternal abode in the Lake of Fire.
- Eternity is a moment away. No one really knows when the end will come. We must be prepared and use the time we have effectively. We must also be vigilant in sharing with the unsaved since their last opportunity to accept the Gospel may be today.
- The holocaust predicted in Matthew 24 is real, and it is surely coming. Events like Pittsburgh can remind us of that sobering reality which can move us to seek the face of God in our lives and to reach out to the lost sheep of the House of Israel. The purging of Israel will be the focus of the 70th week of Daniel, but all the earth will suffer as God’s wrath (which is much worse than the wrath of man that evil reveals) is poured out upon the globe. We must reach Jew and Gentile before it is too late.
- Do we have the spirit of forgiveness? This is a difficult concept to consider in times of horror, and I admit that I struggle with it, but Jesus is willing to forgive the shooter, and we should try to develop a willingness to do so as well. That is not to say that we forget what has happened, but perhaps this event can be used by believers to reflect on our attitude about forgiveness in general and if we have forgiven those in our lives as we should.
I hope these reflections can be a help. They have been to me.
Please pray for my people and all those involved who may be affected by the recent events.
Blessings,
Craig Hartman
Dr. Craig Hartman is the founder and director of Shalom Ministries Inc., based in Brooklyn, New York. A frequent conference speaker and teacher, Dr. Hartman is part of the leadership at Bethel Baptist Fellowship of Sheepshead Bay, Brooklyn, and also serves on the Executive Board of FBFI.