Restorative Justice (RJ) is not a program, but a way of looking at crime. It can be defined as a response to crime that focuses on restoring the losses suffered by victims, holding offenders accountable for the harm they have caused, and building peace within communities.[i]
Karen was sexually abused as a child. Now in her fifties, she sat in the chair across from me and told her story. Decades had passed without resolving the tension adequately with her father. As a grown woman, she was able to instantly lock into her feelings of betrayal from a daddy forever stuck in the past.
Her new friend Wayne sat on the couch to the left listening attentively with somber reflection. He had served time in prison for abusing his own children. He had not seen his own wife or children for a few years. Here was a troubled man wanting to examine his heart to understand why he had failed so horribly.
As they recounted their experiences and asked each other the tough questions, I saw understanding grow as both discovered a landscape not marked by history and fear. Karen was able to see a picture of remorse in Wayne. He was able to see the horrible impact that another had made on Karen. Both caught sight of what their lives could become beyond the offenses.
I was transfixed as I saw two people communicate fearlessly. They were both able to sit and listen without becoming defensive. A holiness settled into the living room. For a few moments, we experienced the lion and the lamb at peace together. What if Karen had this opportunity with her own father? What if Wayne were able to be make peace with his family?
Imagine a new reality where a toddler can play with a cobra and not be bitten. Picture a wolf falling asleep next to a lamb or a lion resting by a calf. Isaiah saw a vision of a time when there would be peace between perpetrators and victims.[ii]
The trigger for changed nature is found in the arrival of the Messiah.
‘They will neither harm nor destroy on all my holy mountain, for the earth will be full of the knowledge of the LORD as the waters cover the sea.’[iii]
Jesus’ mission includes restoring safety to relationships. The violent will experience a peace that removes their need to devour and destroy. The timid and defenseless will live fearlessly alongside the powerful. The presence of Jesus is transformative.
In our lives, the knowledge of the Lord does not fill the earth. But occasional glimpses and moments of knowing break through like sunlight in a wintry, overcast sky. Karen and Wayne caught a glimpse and felt the warmth of what Jesus wants to do in their lives.
There is a great place of restorative justice to be established in the community of faith. We can find that place and we can invite others to live there.
[i] Restorative Justice In Canada, p.1, http://www.crcvc.ca/docs/restjust.pdf
[ii] Isaiah 11:6-8
[iii] Isaiah 11:9
No comments:
Post a Comment