This week . . . A reflection on the drug violence in Mexico, and a proposed Solution arising from Brooklyn to Bangkok, to ancient Jerusalem to modern Jaurez…
_______________

Cartel violence

We begin with an absolutely tragic statistic coming out of Mexico. In the first five months of 2017, 11,155 people have been murdered throughout the country, most of which has been related to drug violence. This is an astounding and sobering statistic. The number is a 31% increase from last year where it had appeared as though the violence had been steadily decreasing.

One of the main reasons for this increase, surprisingly, is that corrupt power-holders are beginning to be exposed and major leaders of the cartels have been arrested. That probably sounds confusing, so let me explain…

Unfortunately, the lack of centralized power has actually increased the violence amongst warring gangs. It is similar to the situation in Iraq with ISIS and the growing divide between Sunni and Shiite Muslims. Once Saddam Hussein was removed from power, the decentralization led to more chaos amongst different factions of people with longstanding rivalries and differences.

Of course, the reasons behind such statistics expand well beyond this factor. From economic distress, to continued political corruption, to the growing opiate crisis in America putting more demand on Mexican poppy, there are many things watering the seeds of division and hate. Nevertheless, we want to discuss how this seed of “division” (especially as it manifests in warring gangs, families, mafias, and terror cells) is truly one of the deepest causes for the pain in Mexico and even the violence throughout the entire world. This week, we feel the cry of the Spirit, who is hovering over the chaos and speaking a fresh word of Light:

A word declaring that Satan’s head will soon be crushed by the Gospel of peace…

4:44

The drug crisis in America, which is a bloody dance partner to the cartel violence in Mexico, is also a complicated and multi-faceted issue. Unfortunately, the music industry has often played into its hand, glorifying drugs and violence and sowing destructive seeds into our own country. Thankfully, this is beginning to be challenged more and more.

Rapper Jay Z, who has certainly glorified drugs over the years and even had early associations with gangs connected to Mexican cartels, is one stark of example of this. Sean Carter (Jay Z) has just released his 13th studio album, 4:44, which has taken audiences everywhere by surprise, showing a new side of him that not even longtime fans expected.

Weaving storytelling and poetry together in a way that only the Brooklyn rapper could, the album takes us through his life: from shooting his brother as a child, to selling drugs, to learning that bettering our community and family are more valuable than hundreds of millions of dollars in liquid assets.

The rapper walks us through some of his most intimate discourse as he apologizes to his wife for his unfaithfulness and shortcomings, opens up about the birth of the power couple’s twins, shows a new love and embrace of his mother, and urges the hip-hop community to take a more honest stance on life, where image and bravado begin to find humility, and vulnerability. He urges his fellow rappers to put down their facades, and focus on giving back to the community, building each other up, instead of tearing one another down. After all…  “nobody wins when the family feuds.”

For those with ears to hear, this album is like an interruption from the Spirit, calling out to its listeners.

Officer’s response to attacker

We’re going to take a quick detour to Thailand, where last week an even clearer picture of the Spirit’s call emerged.

A viral video showing a confrontation between a knife-wielding attacker and a policer officer in Bangkok has given the world a wonderful picture of the Gospel. Through security camera footage, a distressed 45-year old man is seen holding up a knife and threatening an officer. The officer decides to go into a relaxed posture and begins gently talking to the man instead of pulling out a gun or fighting back. He then convinces the man to give him the knife, which he does, and then follows up by embracing him with a huge hug! The man is immediately overcome by emotion and begins to show remorse for what’s he done. Later on, the officer learns more about the stresses in his life and sends him for a mental health evaluation.

The reason these videos go viral with millions upon millions of people sharing it on the internet, is that the heart of mankind resonates with the truth of the Gospel hidden inside of it. Videos like this put the Gospel on display through the living epistles of human lives. In the midst of our violence and hate, God came to the earth as Jesus and embraced us, just like this police officer. He sat in a relaxed position, reclining at the table, and He drank the wine of our own sins. He then allowed us to pierce him while He opened his arms wide in forgiveness, embracing all of fallen humanity. This video footage is simply a modern parable of what happened at the cross.

Stabbing at Mass

To return to Mexico, there have been several stabbings of priests this past year; violence that again is often sparked by the drug war. Recently, a priest from Mexico City was finishing up Mass when an assailant came and attacked him with a knife right at the altar. The priest survived the attack, but is now in critical condition with a long road to recovery. Let’s keep Father Machorro in prayer.

The tragedy of this event is ironically wrapped up in its timing and setting. The priest was performing a Mass and finishing with the Eucharist, all of which points to Jesus’s body and blood. The Mass is a remembrance and a re-encounter with Christ, who was literally attacked and pierced on our behalf.

This is the moment that Jesus’s body was broken so that the broken body of humanity could be made whole. This is the moment when Jesus embraced us, even in our hate and distress, with open arms of love.

The people of this world, especially those caught up in drug violence, are in complete “distress,” just like the man in Bangkok. This certainly includes those who are recruited into “families” like ISIS or Los Zetas. This isn’t meant to justify murder because of “distress,” but rather to shine a light on a deeper issue. The fact is, the worst crime of a cartel member doesn’t hold a candle to Rome and Israel conspiring to torture and kill the innocent Son of God. But in that moment, Jesus still chose to embrace us, discerning our deception and fear as he cried out, “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do!”

Sicario

A few years ago, a powerful movie about drug cartels was released in American theaters, which amazingly ties all of the pieces of this discussion together. This film is what sparked this article.

The movie, Sicario, derives its title from the name of a historical group of Jews in ancient Jerusalem during the time of Christ. The group was known as the “Sicarii.” They were religious zealots who were in a violent fight against the Romans and their military occupation of Israel. Interestingly, the name itself is literally translated as “knife-wielder,” since this group would walk around with daggers that they used “in the name of God.”

Now it’s first important to note that the movie shows our government trying to “control” the cartels by establishing a central power structure, which is totally corrupt, but helps stem some of the violence and chaos throughout Mexico. In the recovery community, such methods are known as “harm reduction.” You limit the damage by introducing a potentially dangerous element. This may work to a certain extent, but it is not the true solution.

As tragic as the outcome sometimes is, we cannot rely upon corrupt power systems (such as dictators like Saddam or corrupt politicians in Juarez) to hold the peace. While terrible evil has been unleashed through the dismantling of these strongholds, all of it is making way for a deeper solution to emerge; one that binds people together not through fear or organized governmental control, but through the heart . . . through the call of the Spirit.

Sicario ends with a dark scene where one of the main characters kills the leader of a major cartel as well as his entire family. The beginning of the scene shows this character wielding a knife as a testament to the Jewish zealots fighting the evils of Rome. After this, there’s one more scene where the heroine of the story has a chance to shoot and kill this particular man, who has committed horrible crimes in the name of a “righteous” cause. However, she decides to put down her gun, which is the final image and statement of the movie.

The film appears to end in darkness, but not unlike the darkness of Good Friday when God put down the weapons of retaliation and released life and forgiveness instead.

Wade Bearden of the magazine Christ and Pop Culture did a wonderful article about this entire film and its implications. The article ends with a question: In a land full of wolves and Zealots, might there be a lamb who can make a difference? 

The Lamb of Heaven

The true solution to drug violence, as well as any other form of violence throughout the world, is found in the One who challenged the religious zealots of his day to embrace peace and forgiveness. The One who hugged His enemies and engaged with them like that officer from Bangkok. The One who died for both the religious people of Israel and the violent soldiers of Rome’s empire.

To this day, the call of Christ remains a stumbling block. It is an offense to those of us who want to propogate the demonic illusion of “us vs them.” Again, this is at the heart of the drug war. This is the seed that goes beyond addiction, corruption, and economics.

The solution is actually family, which is the theme of Jay-Z’s new album and the core of the Gospel. And when I say “family,” I mean it in the original Gospel sense. It is truth of our universal identity as the children of God. It is the truth that the blood in our veins (whether Mexican, Arab, or Caucasian) is worth the redemption price of the precious blood of God’s Son — for we come from the same Father as He.

Imagine seeing the blood in the veins of your neighbor (or perhaps even your enemy) being as precious as the blood of Jesus. Such a revelation might change the world. Perhaps it already is…

The solution is wrapped up in this declaration: that in Christ there is no longer Jew nor Roman, Los Zeta or Sinaloa, barbarian or Sythian, slave or free. This is the beautiful Gospel that needs to go forth to break down the walls between law enforcement and impoverished communities, between gangs and mafias, between Sunni and Shiite, between Republican and Democrat. It is the revelation of our true sonship, redeemed at the cross.

And with that is the Way of the Lamb. The Way of radical forgiveness and peace; the Way of warm hugs (see below) to the deranged and broken. This is still the only solution, even as we endure the darkness of Good Friday.

We want to declare that this Way is being awakened in the nations by the Spirit of grace . . . and a resurrection of life and peace is manifesting.

Special thanks to John Lee for his contributions in “4:44”

_________________

Subscribe here to receive the New Bus directly to your inbox