A terrible evil has been visited upon the Amish people of Nickel Mines, PA. No words adequately describe my feelings towards a man who can walk into a school, take children hostage, then systematically shoot ten little girls. Five have died.
If there is any test of the power of the Amish to practice the philosophy of forgiveness then this is surely the test to end all tests. I cannot imagine how they will cope with this.
Apparently Charles C Roberts had no previous history of mental illness of criminal activity and has been described by his wife as a loving and caring person. It is said that the loss of his newborn baby nearly ten years ago made him feel bitter and angry towards God and life in general. Well, he's not the first person to have lost a child, and you have to be pretty damned twisted to think that because you've lost one it would be a good idea if several others sets of parents should experience the same thing. There has also been mention of some abuse he committed against a family member when he was twelve, though the police have been unable to corroborate this.
In any event it must be the case that here was a man who was unbelievably bitter, mentally disturbed, or evil, or all three and yet managed to conceal these characteristics to those all around him.
I hope and pray that this Amish community can find it within themselves to come through this ordeal with their core beliefs intact.
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