Live by the Sword, Die by the Sword

“The Arrest of Christ”, artwork from Wikipedia (public domain)

The phrase comes from Matthew 26:52, in which one of Jesus’s disciples is rebuked by Jesus for having struck the servant of the High Priest of Israel and cut off his ear. Yesterday, Donald Trump was grazed in the ear by a bullet at the beginning of a rally in Butler, PA.

Weird coincidence, huh?

Seriously, though, I’m not trying to make light of such an awful, traumatic event. Unlike many on the other side, I do not wish death upon any of our political enemies.

But that Bible quote was my first thought when I heard the news. Here were the thoughts that followed:

1. Republicans will all blame Biden and say it was some “deep state” hit;
2. I hate to say it, but this is what happens when you continually use violence as a political weapon against your opponents. It normalizes violence. MAGA IS a violence-worshipping cult. Why should anyone be surprised when it is turned around on them?
3. Democrats will behave responsibly and condemn the act, as they always do, and in fact probably OVER-react to it. Nobody is going to praise the shooter, or laugh or make fun of it like MAGA did when Paul Pelosi was attacked with a hammer (at least not publicly.)
4. Speculating about who did it, I figured it could be ANYBODY.