Who's to Blame?

The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: 

who can know it?

Jeremiah 17:9

 

Whenever a tragedy or horrendous crime arises in the world, one of the first questions asked is:  Who is to blame?  Assigning blame helps us to cope with calamity.  It gives us something or someone on which to vent our anger, fear and frustration.  It enables us to separate ourselves from the circumstances and be reassured that we had nothing to do with what just happened.

The first 24 hours after the Boston Marathon bombing were consumed with questions:  Who did this?  Which group?  Which individual?  Which philosophy?  Which political entity? And yes, which religion?  Then the photos were released of two men - brothers -  who became immediate suspects, and the questions zeroed in on them:  What ethnic origin?  What political philosophy?  What family ties?  What was their faith?  And which of these things provided their motive?  But a man's country of origin does not make him a killer; his basis of faith does not produce a murderer either.  What does create a cold-blooded killer?  HATRED.

 

Only someone with intense hatred could place bombs in a crowd of innocent men, women and children and walk calmly away - knowing that the bystanders would lose their arms, legs, feet, hands - or their lives.  Only someone with a heart of stone could walk up to a young police officer and slaughter him where he sat.  Over time a more complete picture of who, what, when and why might come forth.  For me, only one thing is sure and certain:  whoever committed this atrocity was steeped in hatred.