Mercy Street
June 14, 2007
If you’re like me, and you generally avoid any blog posts dealing with Paris Hilton, can I ask you to try to make it through to the end of this post?
The story so far as I understand it is that she was sentenced, had her sentence reduced, went to prison, was released, was taken back to court, then sent back to prison.
It’s not right
When the judge announced that she would have to return to jail to complete her original sentence she was taken from the court screaming “Mom, Mom, it’s not right”.
So what’s not right? I guess it’s the fact that she’s been able to live without consequences for so long. It would seem that her parents, her friends, the media and her adoring fans have failed to let her know that we need to live within boundaries. It’s also not right that at her age she hasn’t woken up to those facts herself and started taking responsibility for her own actions.
My initial reactions are that she should be punished and that she deserves all she gets but I must say that I’m glad that I don’t get treated the way I deserve. I’m glad that people are ready to forgive me and give me another chance when I screw up.
Give me mercy
The older I get the more I see the beauty of mercy. When my natural reaction is to say, “She’s a spoiled little rich kid who deserves all she gets”, mercy says she’s a fractured person, just like me who needs healing and restoration. She might not realise that she needs that healing and restoration but that shouldn’t change my attitude toward her.
I know that a lot of people say that they’ll only offer forgiveness when someone else shows contrition. Is it right that we only offer mercy and forgiveness when the other person has recognised the error of their ways and shown remorse? I’m reminded of the example of Jesus ho was prepared to endure a violent death to offer forgiveness. Was that because we had shown remorse? No. It was while we were still his enemies that he made that sacrifice. His offer of forgiveness was not based on our actions but on his love for us.
Am I suggesting that we just let Paris, or anyone else for that matter, do whatever they like and that we should keep forgiving? Yes I am.
Am I suggesting that peoples actions shouldn’t attract consequences? Absolutely not. There are natural consequences to everything we do and there are other consequences when we step over the line and operate outside the laws of the land in which we live.
I think it is right that Paris serves her sentence but I can’t take any pleasure from her suffering. I also think it’s up to the legal system to judge her and prescribe the correct sentence. It’s not up to me. Thankfully that lets me off the hook from having to keep score of everyone else’s wrong doings. I don’t have to compare everyone else’s record against mine and complain when others behave more badly than I do.
Getting it wrong
We all make mistakes and Paris seems to have made more than most. Maybe mistake is the wrong word. I understand that we sometimes mess up unintentionally and at other times we quite willfully make the wrong choices. Either way, we need forgiveness and restoration.
How are you going with mercy? Are you only able to show mercy when someone else’s transgressions don’t exceed your own? Do you take delight in the suffering of others while still crying out for someone to help ease yours?
Posted by Rodney Olsen
Technorati Tags: Paris Hilton - Prison - Mercy
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June 14th, 2007 at 6:41 am
June 14th, 2007 at 7:29 am
Aaah such a hard commandment it is to keep forgiving. But man am I grateful for forgiveness - from God and other people.
June 14th, 2007 at 12:37 pm
I love it when you bring these things to mind. I have noticed the Paris Hilton saga many times, but immediately dismissed it from my mind. I struggle with thinking of these people as real people. You know what I mean?
June 14th, 2007 at 2:08 pm
June 14th, 2007 at 9:58 pm
June 15th, 2007 at 11:53 am
Firstly I really like the way you set ouy your blog page, it`s very clear and concise and pleasing to the eye. Secondly you are bang on target about your comments about Miss Hilton. I don`t usually comment on celebrity blogs, because most of them do not deserve to have my comments!
I simply cannot stand wannabes and the type of society they represent, but your blog post sums up how I also saw the Paris saga in the recent news. Even though she has ultimately broken the law and should be punished according I do not understand why anyone would gain happiness for her suffering.
It`s all very sad really.
June 15th, 2007 at 6:14 pm
I feel sorry for the girl, I honestly do. I pray that her life can be fulfilling and meaningful. Stranger things have happened.
June 15th, 2007 at 11:08 pm
June 15th, 2007 at 11:39 pm
There are a couple of things being forgotten here. Firstly, the only reason this became an issue is because she basically tried to buy her way out of a prison sentence the first time around. If it had been Billy Bloggs up on the same charges, I doubt very much there would have been any thought of reducing the sentence or releasing him. Most people would have just said he got what he deserved and forgotten about it.
Secondly, it’s worth reflecting on the reason such laws exist in the first place. As far as I’m concerned, they aren’t there to benefit PH or anyone else who flouts them, they exist to protect the public. I’m fairly certain that anyone who has had a family member killed by a drunk driver will have a very different view of mercy — they will quite justifiably ask why we can’t show mercy to every other member of the community by removing those who fail to live up to the rules designed to protect them.
As far as I’m concerned, this was no “innocent mistake”. Nobody was tied to a chair and had alcohol poured down their throat, and nobody was tied to the drivers’ seat after the event. This was a conscious decision to flout a law that was designed to protect the community. If someone is going to show such blatant disregard for the safety and welfare of everyone else, they deserve no sympathy from me when they face up to the consequences.
June 16th, 2007 at 6:05 am
Chris, maybe I didn’t make myself clear enough but I certainly don’t believe that she shouldn’t have to serve her sentence. As I said in the post “I think it is right that Paris serves her sentence but I can’t take any pleasure from her suffering”.
You made a great point about those who have had loved ones killed by drunk drivers. That’s exactly why the law states that we shouldn’t drive drunk. Paris broke the law and under the law she should suffer the consequences.
I agree that it wasn’t an ‘innocent mistake’ on her part. I said in the post, “I understand that we sometimes mess up unintentionally and at other times we quite willfully make the wrong choices”. I believe in this case that Paris willfully made the wrong choice. I believe that she didn’t have a problem with making that choice because, as I said early in the post, she has never learnt that actions have consequences. She made a wrong, potentially fatal, choice and she’s old enough to know better. You’re so right when you say, “This was a conscious decision to flout a law that was designed to protect the community”.
My main point was that we let the law do what the law was designed to do but that we also realise that we all make bad choices and when we do we can be grateful for those who are still prepared to look past our actions and give us another chance.
June 17th, 2007 at 6:37 am
cheers
June 18th, 2007 at 5:49 am
June 18th, 2007 at 12:11 pm
June 18th, 2007 at 4:11 pm
When we do wrong, there are consequences. What we have today is a society where everyone blames the other and few own up to their mistakes.
I don’t know if her story about “finding God” is true, but I sure do believe that this incident should at least get her thinking about her life.
If jail time causes reflection, she might come out the better for it.
Once she has PAID her debt to society, then I agree, mercy and restoration, to her, just like everyone else.
June 18th, 2007 at 5:02 pm