At the Bus Stop, part deux

So on Friday I was all nostalgic about the lovely interactions we have with our neighbors here in the big city. Well, I have to revise that sentiment. I still love those bus stop, corner store, and all the other beautiful everyday interactions. But that's just one part of the story.

On Friday, one of our roommates was robbed at gunpoint in the alley by our house. I have no deep reflections or spiritual insights about this. Yes, we should pray for our enemies, so that could be one great spiritual truth that applies here. But the reality is that I was just disappointed.

I love so many things here and yet I hate a million others. I hate this kind of random, stupid violence. I hate the things in the robbers life that led him to this point. I hate the way that kids are treated by friends and relatives. I hate the trash. I hate the drug and alcohol abuse. I hate the prostitution and the people who keep it in business. These are daily interactions too, and they are not as pleasant.

I don't like to write about these things. It goes against my marketing philosophy. Why should I tell people these bad things when the TV news does a fine job already? I try to talk about good things. I want people to live here, invest here, and come here for a day in the park. I want this place to be whole and somehow I believe that if we talk like it is then maybe someday it will be.

I struggle a lot with kingdom of god theology. We live in the "now, but not yet." Sometimes it seems like the now, but not even close. So where is Jesus in this violence? This is a burning question that I don't really have an answer to. There is a book called "The Creative Suffering of God" that I read a long time ago. I can't remember much of what it said, but that title has stuck with me. What I do know is that Jesus came here to suffer with us. He suffered in his own time and he suffers with us now.

I don't know why these things happen or what good can or will come of it. I don't know why God refuses to end it all instantly even though he could. I know many people have drawn close to God through suffering. There is a philosophical notion of horrendous evil that some say does not exist simply because no evil can be horrendous if it provides an encounter with a loving God. One could say that this is the lesson of Job.

I believe that Jesus is with us when we suffer. These interactions, while painful, must somehow be beautiful too.