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A Conversation Between A Lawyer and a Holy Man
By: Robert A. Bianchi, Esq., Morris County Prosecutor (2007-2013)
Written: December 10, 2014
Be on your guard, stand firm in the faith;
Be courageous, be strong;
Do everything in love
– Corinthians 16: 13-14
I recently had a conversation with a very wise and holy man about the Michael Brown and Eric Garner cases. I wanted to learn of his opinion on the matter. Our conversation was uplifting.
He first started by stating that we all could examine these two (2) cases and ask in our hearts: “Are we acting as God would have us?” “Are we discussing the cases from a place of the Spirit and not our egos?” “Are we advancing what we know in our hearts is healthy for the good of us all?”
My friend strongly believes that we should analyze these cases from a spiritual perspective, which is not unusual for a man dedicated to God. Now, it doesn’t matter if you are religious and/or spiritual. Nor does it matter if you are just a good person with no belief, or even a disbelief in God. I am a devout Catholic and will address this from our discussion among two Christians, although I know that all faith traditions, and non-believers, also believe in the principles stated in our discussion. They are universal principles of goodness shared by us all.
This great man discussed how there is a spiritual physics in life where our greatest sorrows produce the greatest and most profound meaning in our lives. Sometimes sorrow is what it takes for us to touch God. He used 9/11 as such an example of all people in this Country coming together as one people. In the midst of that tragedy, the Holy Spirit was at work uniting us in darkness, not because He wasn’t there all along, but because we took the time to look, or at least felt a tug on our hearts from a special place, even if we did not call it anything spiritual. Unfortunately, politics and the race baiting in this country quickly went back to normal. Why? He made an excellent point that as simple mortals we felt that we were back in “control” and most do not see a need for God when we are in control. He followed this up by stating that perhaps as a Nation it would be a good idea this Christmas season to dust God off and put Him back in a more visible place in our “tone-deaf hearts.” I agree.
He suggested that at its core, the issues of the Brown and Garner cases come down to the “evils” of fear, distrust, enmity, hatred and anger. In addition, he suggested that all of these ungodly emotions are right there in the Bible to teach us, as well as the answers.
We agreed that on the “minority” side of this issue, it must be understood that these cases are representative of a long list of lasting social problems suffered and these cases are not viewed by the minority community and others as merely isolated cases. Rather, they are reactions to something larger – a simmering distrust, hatred, anger, and separation that has existed in many forms for many years. It is the reality of discrimination, lack of access to good education, good jobs, and a general feeling that no matter what they do they will never be able to succeed and, accordingly, are denied meaningful opportunities. They are also issues with communities ravaged by crime, drug dealers, and violent gangs in desperate need of help.
So too, we agreed that most police officers want to make a positive difference. They work in dangerous situations each and every day. We agreed that police officers are good people, yet so too, some officers do bad things and we could clearly do better in removing temperamentally unfit officers to be sure. But the police are also many times unfairly scapegoated for what is the reality of long standing social issues that are not of their doing. Police work in hostile and violent situations and are often disrespected, distrusted, and injured. As with all humans like those in the community they serve, police officers may become callous, depressed, and resentful at how they are viewed and treated. They are humans like us all.
It was interesting to us that every side feels disrespected in all of this. We agreed that this is a toxic and dangerous recipe given what police officers are tasked to do. It is the distrust of each other that is the problem that needs and must be addressed. Further, while the police need to be accountable for those in their ranks that are not suitable for the profession, the community also needs to accept responsibility for those in their community that are violent and dangerous criminals that present a danger to the police officers tasked to interject to keep the community safe. We were saddened that the entire police profession is being attacked, and were curious at how those that attack policing as a whole do not see that they are discriminating upon an entire group for what they believe are the wrongs of a few. No matter how you look at that, it is discrimination that they are engaging in.
We agreed that it is only a matter of time until this hate speech will be used by a weak person to justify hurting or perhaps even killing a police officer. If this happens, the attempts by many to work productively toward better relations between the police and community will be forever changed. It is a lose, lose proposition to continue to act in such a hateful way. This speech can only lead to a negative place, and we were both amazed by the lack of responsibility of “leaders” that are tacitly or actively encouraging this kind of unseemly and extremely dangerous conduct. We both felt that there is a need to immediately stop the hatred before an innocent police officer’s life is sacrificed on the alter of the ambitions of those profiting by this discord.
But here is where we agreed that faith comes in.
This intensely spiritual man stated that neither God, Jesus, nor the Holy Spirit in Scripture would advocate for the continuation of separation, anger, hostility, and vitriol that continues over these cases. He noted that Jesus was a revolutionary. He went against the establishment. So too did Martin Luther King, Gandhi, Mandela, and many other great leaders. They were all courageous, but did not advocate for hatred and separation. They believed in “loving one’s enemies,” even those they disagreed with. Notably, this is what made them great leaders and instruments for tremendous change.
We discussed that Love (as Father Robert Barron would define it) is “willing the good of another person.” Love in this sense is a verb, not a noun. My friend and I agree that love is an action, not a sentiment. When love prevails, meaningful change occurs. Our betterment starts with each individual, then a community, then a Nation. Love is strength and the exact thing we need to heal and come to solutions to the problems these cases invoked.
My friend then asked some interesting and powerful questions: “Isn’t love what Jesus showed us from the Cross?” “Did He not ask God to forgive those that were killing Him, rather than attacking them with personal insults and hateful speech?” “Did He not have a resurrection to show us all that He with love could conquer all of the hatred, even onto death?” “Were we not commanded by Him to do that very same thing in our precious lives?” “Were we not tasked to pick up our own crosses and handle them exactly as Jesus did?” “Is our reaction to these cases by many a demonstration of that example Jesus gave to us?” These are some bold and powerful questions, indeed.
We discussed the author Marianne Williamson when in her book, “A Return to Love,” she opines that the entire world would have changed for the worse had Jesus on the Cross not stated “Father forgive them for they know not what they do” but rather stated, “I hate you guys!” The revolution of Jesus was in His love and forgiveness. Had Jesus hated, He would have been a footnote in history, if even that. It takes courage to love in the face of hate.
But my friend asked rhetorically, “Is that not what we are instructed to do?” We wondered if we all are following this courageous message when discussing these cases. Are we advocating our position with precise, caring, careful speech that addresses the issues and at the same time does not attack the person? Of course, the answer we agreed is mostly a woeful “no.”
In the end, we agreed that all of the reforms by government, money thrown at a problem, and all laws and sage advice in the world will mean nothing without committed and loving hearts. We wondered if a great action plan is to do as Corinthians tells us. We are told there that we should all have Faith in our position. We need courage and strength in advancing that cause, regardless of where you stand on the issues. We both agreed that we need to act in a spirit of love as a necessary “call to action” to make it all work and bring differing opinions to a place of reconciliation and healing.
My dear friend then brought up a very important perspective about our need for meekness, which is never weakness as the Beatitudes in the Bible tells us. He indicated that the greatest leaders are strong but act with humility, and they attempt to resolve issues with respect, kindness, and fortitude. We both agreed that we all in this Nation could use a heathy dose of meekness in our discussion of issues as intense as these.
It is the Advent (a new beginning) season. We both agreed that our Christmas wish to everyone (faith based or not), is that we take the opportunity to move into a more productive and holy response to all of this. To be sure, we agreed that if we all tried to eliminate our rhetoric and do our best to speak as Jesus would have you, then profound change can occur. We agreed that in this way you will be following the example of God. .
Accordingly, it does not matter even if you are not a believer in God. Love can always come from the heart – and that will be perfect – believer or not. We agreed that these cases again illustrate that you can be a “believer,” but yet, not act in accordance with that belief. And, you can be a “non-believer” and live your life in love and peace, as we should.
In the end, we agreed that these cases present a perfect opportunity for us all to examine just how we wish to live our lives when confronting difficulties and challenges. He asked “Do we act, think and speak with love and peace or, conversely, with fear and hate?” I believe he is right when he stated, “It is really as simple as that.”
If we were to do this, then perhaps we can then take the crosses that we are now bearing as a Nation and turn them into a resurrective place.
It is the Christmas season, so we decided to take a turn to analyze these issues in that Spirit, rather than just one from a purely legal perspective. I found the conversation interesting, engaging and thought provoking. I hope that you do too.
Peace and blessings be with you!
© 2014 Robert A. Bianchi, Esq.
The Bianchi Law Group, LLC is a full-service litigation law firm practicing in the areas of criminal defense, personal injury and business litigation. The firm is led by Robert A. Bianchi, Esq., the former Morris County Prosecutor, one of only 250 Certified Criminal Trial Attorneys in New Jersey, as designated by the New Jersey Supreme Court, and the only former County Prosecutor among this elite group. Bob is joined by David Bruno, Esq., a former Assistant County Prosecutor and Certified Criminal Trial Attorney, and Brielle Perelli, Esq.
We work intimately with police groups and many state, federal and municipal public servants, matrimonial attorneys, mental health providers, the business community to assist them with their legal matters and provide customized training in their respective disciplines. Our extensive network of contacts and relationships in these fields, as well as many others, is invaluable in assisting our clients in achieving the results they desire in their cases.
