SICK AT HEART - THE RIOTS IN ENGLAND

The riots, violence, looting, and destruction in London and other cities in England, a country that I love, makes me sick at heart, especially since I was there as recently as the end of last month. There is no excuse, repeat, no excuse, for citizens to take the path of violence and destruction to effect change in their societies. But when we ask why such violence and destruction take place, we must note that at least some of the participants are probably those who have little or no hope of ever having a reasonable stake in the societies in which they live. They are less likely to care greatly about the disorder and destruction and more prone to get caught up in the mob and actually become partners in the destruction of the very communities in which they live.

By no means do I rule out the presence of the criminal element, who, no doubt, take every advantage of the chaos to profit from it, but the rioters probably include 'people of no hope', people who see around them the rich prospering in the greed-is-good mentality of untrammeled capitalism, even as they are left behind. Is it really surprising that some of the 'no-hopers' get caught up in the mob mentality of the riots?

My words could apply to other countries in the West, including my own, where the ever-widening gap between rich and poor and the erosion of the middle class continues apace and will lead us nowhere good.

O God, you have bound us together in a common life. Help us, in the midst of our struggles for justice and truth, to confront one another without hatred or bitterness, and to work together with mutual forbearance and respect; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Book of Common Prayer

UPDATE: Bishop Alan Wilson of Buckingham and Counterlight both posted reflections on the rioting in in England which I think are worth a read.