Monday, January 11, 2016

Leadership for Our Time
Psalm 72:1-4, 12-13

Prayer for Guidance and Support for the King
Give the king your justice, O God,
and your righteousness to a king's son.
May [he/she] judge your people with righteousness,
and your poor with justice.
May the mountains yield prosperity for the people,
and the hills, in righteousness.
May [he/she] defend the cause of the poor of the people,
give deliverance to the needy,
and crush the oppressor....
For [he/she] delivers the needy when they call,
the poor and those who have no helper.
[He/She] has pity on the needy,
and saves the lives of the needy.
From oppression and violence [he/she] redeems their life,
and precious is their blood in [their] sight.

Who are the RIGHTEOUS leaders for our time? RIGHTEOUSNESS can be defined as right action, fair action, life-giving, benevolence, compassion and justice.

I am committed to addressing gun violence prevention (GVP) in the nonviolent Spirit of Jesus Christ. Righteous leadership is crucial to create safety for all.

In the United States are the Constitution and other Founding Documents which guide us towards RIGHTEOUS actions on behalf of ALL. the Declaration of Independence speaks of ALL citizens having the rigtht to LIFE, LIBERTY AND THE PURSUIT OF HAPPINESS.  The Constitution speaks of ESTABLISHING JUSTICE, INSURING DOMESTIC TRANQUILITY...PROMOTING THE GENERAL WELFARE.... 

I see a correlation between the prayer of the Psalmist and phrases within our Founding Documents when it comes to helpful guidance in addressing GVP. The focus of the Psalmist and the Founding Documents is RIGHTEOUSNESS for the sake of ALL THE PEOPLE. The Psalmist focused on the People of God and the Founding Documents on the citizens of the United States. ALL! Including the most needy, the poor, oppressed, those who have no helper and vulnerable. The Psalmist wanted to ensure these were INCLUDED in the grand design of the Kingdom. Similarly, the Founding Documents sought to include ALL in the national design. 

I heard the uniting of the Psalmist and the Founding Documents expressed by President Obama last week as he spoke of executive actions he would take to address gun violence. He demonstrated RIGHTEOUS LEADERSHIP in this time consistent with the Psalmist and Founding Documents:

1. Hiring 200 new ATF agents to do background checks and inspections.
2. Increase mental health treatment resources by $500 million, as well as reporting to be
              included in background check system.
3. Stir research on smart gun technology.
4. Tighten up background checks of you want to do gun business.
5. FBI is to overhaul background check system to insure 24/7 availability.
6. FBI to hire 230 more examiners.
7. Tighten-up arms shipping to notify ATF if guns are lost or stolen.
8. Require background checks on people trying to acquire the most dangerous guns through
             trusts, corporations and other legal entities.
9. Renew domestic violence outreach to prevent domestic violence perpetrators from
            purchasing weapons.

These actions are positive steps forward.  They will save lives. They are also limited. Stronger actions are possible only with state and national legislative action. But they are RIGHTEOUS because they seek to protect the vulnerable, the poor, the oppressed, the most needy. They also protect the rights of those who should legitimately possess firearms. These actions demonstrate RIGHTEOUS LEADERSHIP for our time.

Peace!

Ron Letnes


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