It was the poet Alexander Pope who said that "To err is human
. . ." Mark Smith looks at human failings and the nature of
forgiveness.
During the recent disintegration of Tiger Woods' marriage
several confessions were made.
"I regret those transgressions," said Woods, and in other
places he spoke of his "personal sins".
Some have commented "the guy's a human being and we forget
that", but beyond the infidelities of sporting legends there
are plenty of examples of human failings.
As Alexander Pope said "To err is human . . ." And as humans
we do indeed err pretty badly.
Closer to home, we have our own examples of the Swann fraud,
Clayton Weatherston's horrific attack and Dr Bouwer poisoning
his own wife.
Are these just extreme examples - bad apples in a largely
good basket? Or is it that all apples have something flawed
about them to a greater or lesser degree?
Even reading the Otago Daily Times you can't get as far as
the court news before you become aware of the reality of
human failings.
Why are people so selfish, jealous or greedy? Why are
addictions so hard to break? Why do people lust rather than
love? Why are people so self-absorbed? Why do people struggle
with anger, anxiety and arrogance? Why do people err so
often?
At some point, most of us are confronted with our own
personal failings where we have strayed far from our ideals.
It is then that the question arises that if life is just the
result of a massive but accidental cosmic explosion and human
nature is just animal instinct with a craving for survival,
then what do values and ideals really count for?
Human nature is human nature for better or for worse, and
there is nothing morally right or wrong about it.
Indiscretions could hardly be referred to as erring let alone
"personal sins" as suggested by Tiger Woods.
It seems to me that the situation is far more complicated
than this.
C. S. Lewis, an ex-atheist, suggests that this is too simple
an explanation to deal effectively with the complexities of
the real world.
Historic Christianity argues that we are fallen and broken.
That erring, per se, was not part of our original make-up.
Rather, through our rejecting of the One who gave us life and
significance, we break down and malfunction, acting outside
of our original design.
Erring, or sin as the Bible calls it, dehumanises and
enslaves us.
The very core of our being is affected and it influences the
way we relate to everything: God, people, the world and even
ourselves.
In Stephen Covey's book The Seven Habits of Highly Effective
People he talks about re-examining the centre of your life,
your source of security, guidance, wisdom and power.
He reasons that if someone is spouse-centred they tend to
have an emotional dependence on their partner.
Money-centred people can't handle the ups and downs of
economic life, and tend to sideline family or other
priorities.
A pleasure-centred person fails to get that lasting
satisfaction they crave, and tends to follow the paths of
least resistance, generally leaving them lethargic and
unfulfilled.
I agree with Mr Covey that we all centre our lives on
something, and that something influences or shapes us, and in
effect controls us.
Having the wrong thing at the centre is the dilemma behind
the erring.
I would suggest that this is the spring from which our
behaviour flows, and it is this "wrongness within" that
accounts for the tragic headlines in our newspapers, and the
burdens of our hearts.
But there is more that needs to be added because Alexander
Pope not only said "To err is human . . ." but also "to
forgive is divine . . ."
And he was right; Christianity says there is no situation
that is unredeemable, no flaws so great they are
unforgivable.
God is in the business of restoration.
He begins with the offer of forgiveness, because in all our
flaws and failings He is the one who is most offended.
He then starts reclaiming the centre or core and works
towards a transformation of our lives.
He does it through the costly redeeming work of his own Son.
So instead of hearing about another celebrity indiscretion
and sadly exclaiming once again "To err is human . . ." the
Christian faith allows this person, along with the rest of us
who mess up, the opportunity to face the reality and
consequences of our wrongness, and the chance to experience
something of the divine forgiveness and restoration.
Mark Smith is pastor of Grace Bible Church
