by Karen Van Fossan, PCAND Communications Director (and Seminarian)
“My dad is so stupid.” As I prepared my first big
sermon, my dad joked that I would give it such a title: “My Dad is So Stupid.” A
retired minister himself, he’s about as proud of my calling as my mom is, which
means he’s awfully proud.
Today, I
don’t recall where the joke came from. It’s on my mind, though, because he made
it again last weekend, when family came to visit. Throughout the weekend, we
touched on plenty of tough topics – having a family-size argument about how to
interpret the parable of the generous land-owner, for one.
We also quibbled
about the Adrian Peterson story. My step-mom spoke about children, how they
look up to NFL players as role models and heroes. For the sake of these
children, she said, the NFL is correct to suspend players for suspected family
violence.
My brother may
have allowed the point in relation to Ray Rice, who was memorialized on video
punching his future wife. But, characteristically fair-minded, my brother insisted
on Adrian Peterson’s right to due process – “in the court of law and the court
of public opinion” were his words.
Dad, a
former football jock, pointed a finger at football culture itself. “The culture
is so violent,” he told us, “I don’t know why you’d expect anything else.”
I confess to
know little about the world of football, but I do believe in the influence of culture.
This influence is just what primary prevention – and Prevent Child Abuse North
Dakota – is all about: creating the systems and mores that ultimately make
family violence obsolete.
Still
mulling my family’s ideas, this week I read that Mark Fuller, U.S. District
Court Judge in Alabama, has been accused of beating his wife; thus, a number of
state lawmakers are calling for his dismissal from the bench. My step-mother’s
point and my brother’s point still hold. But what about my dad’s point? What
about the culture of the criminal justice system?
Is there any
culture within the broader culture of the U.S. that is free from family
violence?
I say, yes.
But not enough.
To create such
positive cultures, we need to talk, quibble amongst ourselves, bring the secret
of family violence to the family table, cafeteria table, board table, state
capitol, and bench. As a society, that’s what we’re doing. In the face of these
tragedies, where healing has yet to come, that’s what gives me hope.
In this
parable we’re yet writing, that’s what feeds my faith.
