I heard of the passing of Ruth Bader Ginsburg through Facebook. Doing a typical scroll through my thread, the first posts began to appear, noting the death of the Supreme Court Justice. Inwardly: I groaned.
I groaned because there would be a large number of people that would celebrate her passing as a political victory or who would equate her passing to divine judgment. Then, there would be a number of people, friends, as they go, on Facebook and Twitter threads, who would view this as a good day, a “banner” day. Ruth Bader Ginsburg would not be given the general, universal courtesy of being “paid respect.” Her humanity, as someone made in the imago dei, would be “overlooked.”.
Later that day:
I read it in silence. I groaned again. As one goes for memes, I might be a connoisseur, if one can be that in the realm of memes. This one, though, I’d rather not taste. Tacit in the meme is a hint of Pharisaism: “We, the righteous, stand back now and watch as you get your ‘just desserts,’ the judgment you deserve that you did not give to others.” I understand the “thinking” behind a meme such as this one, and I even understand the uproar that has been generated because of RBG’s passing. I know of the importance, the significance, and the expediency in which such things hit our culture. But what I tire of is the vilification, the dehumanization. I think Tim Keller puts it best:
“I’ve been asked why it is especially wrong for Christians to speak of their opponents in a demonizing and dehumanizing way. Historic Christians believe that our sin has made us worthy of condemnation and hell. From those living respectable lives to those leading criminal lives, all of us fall infinitely (and therefore equally) short of loving and serving God in the way that is due him. Therefore, we can only be saved through Christ by sheer grace. The Westminster Confession of Faith 15:4 say “As there is no sin so small, but it deserves damnation; so there is no sin so great, that it can bring damnation upon those who truly repent.” (Rom 6:23; Gal 3:10; Is 55:7; Rom 8:1) So Christians can never feel morally superior to any one else at all. That means (MAIN POINT) when we call out evildoing in others, as vital as that is, we can never imply by our attitude or language that they deserve God’s condemnation, but we do not. Therefore: “the Lord’s servant must not be quarrelsome but must be kind to everyone, able to teach, not resentful. Opponents must be gently instructed, in the hope that God will grant them repentance leading them to a knowledge of the truth…” (2 Timothy 2:24-26) Right now our very social fabric is tearing apart because of, among other things, increasing, mutual demonizations ON BOTH SIDES. Christians must not contribute to this in any way.”
Within hours, the “spirit” behind the meme was manifested into arguments for political positioning, and supreme court speculation. There was so much preoccupation about conceptualizations of power, and “fill-the-seat” debates that there was little consideration to pause about silence, grief, or respect in the face of national loss. As Al Mohler said, ” From the onset, we must recognize that a human being has died—a human being who lived her life before the American people for the better part of five decades.” Seemingly, what we got was equal parts judgment, equal parts grief, and loss for a real moment to express honor and respect, in its many needed forms.
In fairness, there were a number of thoughtful posts. One I commend to you, and from which I quoted above, is by Al Mohler, which you can find here. Another one, from Mere Orthodoxy, I commend to you here. A third, from the Washington Post: here.
Much has been said about the passing of Ruth Bader Ginsburg. Indeed much more will be said in the coming days. In many and varied ways, I do not align with RBG’s political or philosophical views. But, putting that aside, I do express and pay my respects to her. As Mohler says, “Christians looking at the life of Ruth Bader Ginsburg ought to recognize and respect her courage—a courage that kept her in her role far longer than many could have sustained. Furthermore, Christians ought to grieve with those who lost a loved one.” If anything, we should express love fully, and not make the mistake of thinking that love and forgiveness is a renouncement of conviction. We can pay our respects, and show others a better way.
Evangelosophy 