WIX Archives
Thanks Karen. The article was dead-on. n/t
Posted by Ray Crawford on Thu Feb 19, 2004 11:23:27 PM
In reply top A Columbine victim's parent's speech before Congress posted by Karen on Thu Feb 19, 2004 04:52:08 PM
: This is off topic, but I think it is worth reading....
:
: Columbine update
: Guess our national leaders didn't expect this, hmm? On Th
: ursday, Darrell Scott , the father of Rachel Scott, a vic
: tim of the Columbine High School shootings in Littleton, C
: olorado, was invited to address the House Judiciary Commit
: tee's subcommittee. What he said to our
: national leaders during this special session of Congress w
: as painfully truthful. They were not prepared for what he
: was to say, nor was it received well. It needs to be heard
: by every parent, every teacher, every politician, every s
: ociologist, every psychologist, and every so-called expert
: !
:
: These courageous words spoken by Darrell Scott are powerfu
: l, penetrating, and deeply personal. There is no doubt tha
: t God sent this man as a voice crying in the wilderness. T
: he following is a portion of the transcript:
:
: "Since the dawn of creation there has been both good & evi
: l in the hearts of men and women. We all contain the seeds
: of kindness or the seeds of violence. The death of my won
: derful daughter, Rachel Joy Scott, and the deaths of that
: heroic teacher, and the other eleven children who died mus
: t not be in vain. Their blood cries out for answers."
:
: "The first recorded act of violence was when Cain slew his
: brother Abel out in the field. The villain was not the cl
: ub he used. Neither was it the NCA, the National Club Ass
: ociation. The true killer was Cain, and the reason for the
: murder could only be found in Cain's heart." "In the day
: s that followed the Columbine tragedy, I was amazed at how
: quickly fingers began to be pointed at groups such as the
: NRA. I am not a member of the NRA. I am not a hunter. I
: do not even own a gun. I am not here to represent or defen
: d the NRA - because I don't believe
: that they are responsible for my daughter's death. Theref
: ore, I do not believe that they need to be defended. If I
: believed they had anything to do with Rachel's murder I w
: ould be their strongest opponent."
:
: "I am here today to declare that Columbine was not just a
: tragedy-it was a spiritual event that should be forcing us
: to look at where the real blame lies! Much of the blame l
: ies here in this room. Much of the blame lies behind the
: pointing fingers of the accusers themselves.
:
: "I wrote a poem just four nights ago that expresses my fee
: lings best. This was written way before I knew I would be
: speaking here today":
:
: Your laws ignore our deepest needs, Your words are empty a
: ir.
: You've stripped away our heritage, You've outlawed s
: imple prayer.
: Now gunshots fill our classrooms, And precious children d
: ie.
: You seek for answers everywhere, And ask the question
: "Why?"
: You regulate restrictive laws, Through legislative creed.
: And yet you fail to understand, That God is what we
: need!
:
: "Men and women are three-part beings. We all consist of bo
: dy, soul, and spirit. When we refuse to acknowledge a thir
: d part of our make-up, we create a void that allows evil,
: prejudice, and hatred to rush in and wreak havoc. Spiritua
: l presences were present within
: our educational systems for most of our nation's history.
: Many of our major colleges began as theological seminaries
: . This is a historical fact.
:
: What has happened to us as a nation? We have refused to ho
: nor God, and in so doing, we open the doors to hatred and
: violence. And when something as terrible as Columbine's tr
: agedy occurs - politicians immediately look for a scapegoa
: t such as the NRA. They immediately
: seek to pass more restrictive laws that contribute to erod
: e away our personal and private liberties. We do not need
: more restrictive laws. "Eric and Dylan would not have bee
: n stopped by metal detectors. No amount of gun laws can st
: op someone who spends months
: planning this type of massacre. The real villain lies with
: in our own hearts. Political posturing and restrictive le
: gislation are not the answers. The young people of our na
: tion hold the key. There is a spiritual awakening taking p
: lace that will not be squelched! We do not need more
: religion. We do not need more gaudy television evangelists
: spewing out verbal religious garbage. We do not need more
: million dollar church buildings built while people with b
: asic needs are being ignored. We DO need a change of heart
: and a humble acknowledgment that
: this nation was founded on the principle of simple trust i
: n God!"
:
: "As my son Craig lay under that table in the school librar
: y and saw his two friends murdered before his very eyes-He
: did not hesitate to pray in school. I defy any law or pol
: itician to deny him that right! I challenge every young pe
: rson in America, and around the world, to realize that on
: April 20, 1999, at Columbine High School prayer was brough
: t back to our schools. Do not let the many prayers offered
: by those students be in vain. Dare to move into the new
: millennium with a sacred disregard for legislation that vi
: olates your God-given right to
: communicate with Him. To those of you who would point your
: finger at the NRA - I give to you a sincere challenge. Da
: re to examine your own heart before casting the first sto
: ne! My daughter's death will not be in vain! The young peo
: ple of this country will not allow that to happen!"
:
: Do what the media did not - - let the nation hear this man
: 's speech.
: