Do not pollute the land where you are. Bloodshed pollutes the land, and atonement cannot be made for the land on which blood has been shed, except by the blood of the one who shed it. – Numbers 35:33

Today's Scripture Reading (December 31, 2021): Numbers 35

As we close the book on 2021, there are a couple of outstanding issues that we will be carrying into the new year. Maybe the biggest is that, despite how hard we have fought, the COVID-19 pandemic is still not in the rear-view mirror. There is still work to do in fighting the virus. One of the problems is that there are still not enough of us who are vaccinated. The only way to prevent new variations of the virus is to stop it from being transmitted. Every time the virus jumps from one person to the next, even if they are asymptomatic, there is a chance that the virus will change. Some of us cannot be vaccinated, but that only makes it more important for the rest of us to take the shot. I get it, no one likes to be told what to do, but we need to choose to do this so that we can get back to some semblance of normality. If we don't, then normality will include the idea of new variations of the virus and more death of the people we love. We need to fix this situation in 2022, or that new version of normality will be how we will live out our lives. (and if you aren't clear, I don't like this version of normalcy.)

Another of the other holdovers is our climate situation. Yeah, I have heard the arguments. I know that there is evidence that our world has had more carbon in the atmosphere in the distant history of this planet. But there is also something else that was true when the carbon level of the atmosphere was higher; there were no humans. If our endgame is a version of the earth post, or after, humanity, then we are well on our way to that reality. But if we want humans to continue on the earth, we need to change.

As it nears its closure, Numbers makes this comment: "Do not pollute the land where you are." It is good advice for all of us. Take care of the place where you live, and if all of us do that, then the world will be in good shape. Somehow, we have to stop trying to justify what we want to do. Just don't pollute.

But then Numbers adds this thought. Bloodshed also pollutes the land, and the only way to clean up that bloodshed is by making sure that we convict the ones responsible for the death. This is the Bible's idea of justice. We don't need a scapegoat or to blame the victim. What we need is to make sure that the ones who are responsible for the bloodshed are convicted of the crime. And that requires that we stop trying to justify the things we do. We need to begin to see each other as valuable to God and to stop trying to justify our bad behavior. If we don't, we will irreparably damage the land on which we live.

In our race-divided world, sometimes that is harder than we think. It is too easy to blame, and those who instigate the crime often receive a pass, especially if the criminals look "like us." But that pollutes the land in a way that we will never be able to clean up. And the victims of our violence deserve more, as does the land on which we live.

Tomorrow's Scripture Reading: Numbers 36