Crime and Punishment
From Wellington Cathedral of St Paul
Crime and Punishment: 13th November 2011: pm: The Very Revd Frank Nelson
- Psalm 89: 19 - 30
- Micah 6: 6 - 8
- Luke 4: 14 - 21
Crime and punishment is one of the most controversial issues in New Zealand today. Not many days pass without our media reporting on a significant crime, or the arrest or trial of a suspected wrongdoer. Issues like how offenders should be treated, whether we do enough to help victims, and whether or not we need to build more prisons, regularly get us talking.
Crime and how it’s treated concerns us all. Even if we have not been a victim of an offence, or had any connection with the police, courts or prison system, we all have a direct interest in the subject. We all want to live in a society where we are protected from those who would harm us or our property. Particularly we want to ensure that our children and other vulnerable people in our community can live in safety and free from fear.
The argument that the best way to protect us from crime is to lock away all those who commit it is compelling. If everyone who does a crime can be put away for as long as possible, then the rest of us can get on with our lives in peace and safety. That is surely common sense. But is the issue as simple as that?
Clearly there are people who are a danger to themselves and to others and from whom society needs to be protected. They need to be locked away and, if released at all, only with the most rigorous safeguards. But is prison the answer in every case? Might imprisoning some people – those convicted of minor offences, for example, or those with mental health or drug or alcohol issues – do more harm than good in the long-term?
And what happens when the people we have locked away for many years eventually come out? Will prison have changed them so that they can become useful members of the community and not re-offend? Will the fear of returning to prison alone stop them committing further crime? Is it possible for people to learn their lesson, to change their way of life? Or is criminal behaviour hardwired into some people?
It’s surprising how much the Bible has to say about crime and punishment. In both testaments we find stories of people doing wrong and offending against the law, and frequent references to punishment, prison and prisoners. Many well-known biblical characters spent time in jail, and although not all were ‘criminals’ in the modern sense – some were victims of persecution, or punished for speaking out against social injustice – it’s salutary to note that the list includes people such as Joseph, Samson, Jeremiah, Daniel, John the Baptist, Peter, James, John, Paul, Silas and even Jesus himself.
We might argue that what the Bible says about a subject like prisons is not very helpful for us today. The Bible invariably depicts prisons as places of great suffering, oppression, disease and even death, and its assessment of them is invariably negative. We tend to think that we live in more enlightened days, treating our prisoners differently and having different expectations regarding the purpose of incarceration. Nevertheless, it is significant that prisons never receive any ‘divine endorsement’ in Scripture, and that God’s particular interest seems to be in setting prisoners free!
The first thing to say is that the Bible suggests that caring for prisoners, as well as their victims, is one of the hallmarks of a Christian. In the parable of the sheep and the goats in Matthew chapter 25, the ‘righteous’ who inherit the kingdom are commended with the words, ‘I was in prison and you visited me’ (verse 36). The original Greek here suggests that these people ‘showed practical care for’ as well as ‘spent time with’ those inside. It is interesting that Jesus identifies himself in this passage as a prisoner.
Proclaiming release to the captives was also said by Jesus to be a feature of his mission (Luke 4:18-21). Jesus here echoes the Old Testament message that prisons are not God’s first choice when it comes to places he wants people to be found in. Elsewhere in the New Testament we hear the challenge to show concern for people who are locked away: ‘Remember those who are in prison, as though you were in prison with them’, exhorts the writer to the Hebrews (31:3). This concern should extend to prisoners when they leave captivity and – in the light of Paul’s attitude to his jailer in Acts 16:25-34), those who work in prisons too.
Somewhat radically, the Bible encourages restitution, redemption, reconciliation and forgiveness as responses to criminal behaviour. In the Old Testament, criminal actions were thought to reflect a deficiency in the whole community, not just the individual concerned, and therefore the community itself was called to repent and return to God. Seeking restitution was thought to be for the good of the victim, the offender and the wider community. There are interesting parallels here with traditional Māori practices which – in contrast to the British system which prevailed here in which a crime was considered to be an offence against the State and therefore punishable by the State – saw crimes as offences against people, with reparation thus owed to the affected whānau and community.
In the New Testament, when Jesus confronts a man who has defrauded others to get rich, the outcome is that the man is allowed to put right the things he has done wrong and be received once more into society as a useful member. He pays for his crimes – in fact, four times over! – but in a way that enables him to find his true humanity and his community to be healed (Luke 19:1-10). On another occasion Jesus tells his followers to avoid going to court, and possibly being sent to prison, by seeking agreement and reconciliation with their accusers beforehand (Matt. 5:25; Luke 12:58). Jesus also encourages some radical rethinking about the purpose of the law and attitudes to punishment in his dealing with the woman taken in adultery (John 8:1-11).
One lesson these Scriptures might have for us today is that real change to people’s behaviour comes less through their being punished in a spirit of ‘retribution’ than by being given the opportunity to reflect upon the consequences of their actions, make restitution, and seek forgiveness from, and reconciliation with, those they have wronged. This reflects the core message of the Christian gospel, that God does not want to punish us for the sins we have committed, but calls us to repentance and offers us forgiveness in Christ. God’s love does not give up on anyone, however ‘bad’ they might seem to be: his grace extends to all. As the prophet Micah (6:8) reminds us, what God requires of us is that we not only ‘do justice’ but ‘love mercy’.
It would not surprise me if, in years to come, the so-called “Three strikes” legislation passed in this last parliamentary term, comes to be seen as one of the low points of New Zealand jurisprudence. It flies in the face of work done by people such as Kim Workman who consistently point out that harsher sentences do not translate into a lower prison population. As is well known, New Zealand already has a disproportionately high number of prisoners, at a time when crime continues its downward trend. Yet legislation such as we saw in May 2010 gets passed because of the way in which one or two loud and persistent voices are able to capture the imagination of the increasingly tabloid media.
What we seldom hear about is the work that goes on quietly behind the scenes as people, Christians among them, get on with being obedient to Christ – to visit those in prison, work alongside their families and communities. This Cathedral supports the work being done by, for example, the Taita Pomare Project. I am aware of members of our congregation deeply involved in working alongside prisoners, both inside and when they come out. It is probably too much to hope for a time when the greater good of society becomes tantamount in the minds of those who stand for political office. Wouldn’t it be great if, instead of slanging off at each other, the best minds in the country could work together to address the issues surrounding crime and justice. One way to start would be to put pressure on those responsible for what is made public – solid investigative journalism instead of the cheap sensationalism with which we are all too often fed. I am no expert in these matters, don’t pretend to be. Read widely, listen to the experts, follow-up on ideas that may have come up tonight. Pray and act.
God of justice, God of mercy, make us merciful and just! Help us see all your creation as from you a saced trust. And when people cry in anguish for their own or others’ pain, Show us ways to make a difference. O dear God, make us humane! Jane Parker Huber (1928 – 2008)
This sermon draws heavily on information accessed below http://www.otago.ac.nz/ctpi/otago024786.pdf http://www.otago.ac.nz/ctpi/otago024793.pdf http://www.rethinking.org.nz/
