Do not rebuke an older man harshly, but exhort him as if he were your father. Treat younger men as brothers … 1 Timothy 5:1

Today’s Scripture Reading (February 8, 2015): 1 Timothy 5

As Henry Kissinger prepared to testify in front of the Senate Armed Forces committee on January 29, 2015, members of Code Pink decided to protest against the 91 year-old, demanding that he be arrested for war crimes. Senator John McCain tried to silence the protestors and then apologized to the former Secretary of State for the outburst, and for the inability of the government to stop the protest faster than it did. It was at that time that the Senator called the protestors “low-life scum.”

The accusation likely stems from a book written by Christopher Hitchens appropriately entitled “The Trial of Henry Kissinger” in which he outlines the war crimes charges that he believes should be levelled against Kissinger.  The charges raised by Hitchens are for crimes against humanity, including conspiracy to commit murder, kidnapping and torture – all connected with the United States presence in Vietnam during the 1960’s and early 1970’s. Whether there is any real solid evidence against the former Secretary of State or not, the reality is that no action has ever been taken against Kissinger. And considering Hitchens track record of skewering politicians and celebrities, including a book, The Missionary Position, against the status and celebrity of Mother Teresa, one wonders how serious his accusations should really be taken.

Paul writes to Timothy and clearly instructs him against the practice of rebuking an older man harshly. (It is evident by the inclusion of the instruction to treat younger men as brothers that Paul is referring to older men, and not to ecclesiastical elders.) Unfortunately, the honoring of our elders is something that we seem to have lost in Western Culture. Too often we take advantage of or criticize our older generations, considering them to be out of date or not worthy of our respect. And it was for this reason that Senator McCain felt he needed to apologize to the embattled Kissinger. In a place Henry Kissinger should have been honored, he was rebuked – and the rebuke was certainly harsh.

But it should be noted that Paul’s message is not that age gives you a free pass from the crimes of society. His message is that such charges should be carefully and respectfully exercised. Proper channels need to be adhered to, and if there is guilt proven through those channels, then the penalty should be applied. This may be especially true for crimes that were committed a long time in the past. And the biggest problem seems to be that as time passes, the proof seems to fade.

So the question that begs to be asked is simply “what should the Christian response be to charges like the ones leveled against Henry Kissinger?” It seems likely that Paul would advise those charges to go through appropriate channels, while giving the accused the honor and respect (and encouragement) for the things that they have done did right in their lives. And if the proper channels refuse to indict for the wrongdoing, then allow the honor to remain. Code Pink’s error was that the rebuke was harshly applied and the proper channels were ignored – probably because the authorities believe that the evidence against Kissinger is weak or tainted. And, yes, sometimes that may be a frustrating situation to accept, but we need to be able to accept it and to allow the honor to remain. But as Christians we can also be sure in the knowledge that the God we serve is a righteous judge, judging even the unprovable secrets of the people of the earth (Romans 2:16).       

Tomorrow’s Scripture Reading: 1 Timothy 6