By Larry Peterson
Last week I wrote a piece about Arthur Flegenheimer aka Dutch Schultz. The notorious bootlegger, gangster and murderer, along with his henchmen, prowled the streets of the Bronx during the 1930's spreading murder and mayhem wherever he took his negative pride and enormous ego. But the old cliche, "Live by the sword, die by the sword" rang true for the "Dutchman". On October 23, 1935, he was gunned down in a bar in Newark, N.J. The "hit" was ordered by Lucky Luciano and carried out by members of Murder Inc. As things would have it, Dutch did not die right away. Enter the sacrament of Penance and Forgiveness. Enter God's Mercy.
Pope Francis brought us into The Holy Year of Mercy on December 8, 2015. But I have come to believe, based on the rules of Zero Tolerance, true mercy can only come from God. Dutch Schultz was a bad guy who did very bad things. He murdered, he stole, he ruined people's lives. Yet, in the end, the man sought out God and His mercy. And he received it.
Dutch was a converted Catholic and, as he was dying, asked for a priest. He went to confession, received absolution and was administered the Last Rites of the Church. Dutch Schultz was granted mercy and forgiveness by God through the power given to the priest. What if Dutch had been applying for the job of a part-time school bus driver for a Catholic school? Zero Tolerance rules would NEVER have allowed it.
Therein lies the two edged sword for us Catholics. If God can give forgiveness and mercy to all who truly seek it, how can we, His good people, pick and choose from those doing so? Zero Tolerance, in my opinion, is the great enigma we all face as Catholics. We must always protect the vulnerable (young & old) against the predators out there. But what about the others? I think, especially during the Holy Year of Mercy, we must all pray for an answer to this dilemma.
My article on Zero Tolerance and The Holy Year of Mercy appeared in Aleteia last week. I ask you to refer to that link for more on this topic.
Slogan for The Holy Year of Mercy: "A Time to Heal, to Help, to Forgive"
©Larry Peterson 2016 All Rights Reserved
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