The Sins of the Fathers

The first day of school should be a day of excitement for small children. It should be a day for parents to worry about their kids finding the way to all the right places at the right times. It is a time of anticipation for teachers who are prepared, but at the same time wondering if there is any way to prepare for a classroom full of young independent minds. The first day of school is a landmark day ... a day that we look back upon and a day that marks a beginning. It should not be the beginning of three days of terror. But that's what it was for the children and families of Beslan, Russia. Instead of teachers taking over the educational reins of their students, terrorists took over classrooms. They were men most often seen in nightmares. They were the kind of men willing use the precious innocent lives of children as bargaining chips to free their comrades from prison. The kind of men who would herd helpless dads, petrified moms, and bewildered sons and daughters into a gymnasium ... a deathtrap of heat, gunfire, and hatred. Hundreds of children are wounded ... many are dead. Philosophers can banter about the politics of the occasion, but these children do not have a voice in the actions of their forebears. "Do not hold against us the sins of the fathers; may your mercy come quickly to meet us, for we are in desperate need. Help us, O God our Savior, for the glory of your name; deliver us and forgive our sins for your name's sake." Psalm 78:8-9 Satan truly has his way with people walking in darkness. Christians, let us shine brighter in this dark world ... if for nothing else but for the sake of the children.