A couple days ago there was another major stir in the family that made me wonder what exactly does it mean to be "my brother's keeper". Right now every one in my family is furious with my husband.
On Wednesday I was out running errands with my mother when I received a panicked call from my sister in law that her 16 year old, my step niece, didn't show up at school. (Don't worry all, she was found 6 hours later with her boyfriend but that is immaterial to my issue, although we do praise God for delivering her).
Of course my mother and I are concerned so we start calling every one we know to see if they could help look for her. Naturally the first person I call is my husband. When I called him and told him what happened he told me to "relax, because I just missed her by half an hour". So I asked him where she went and he told me that he didn't know and that she told him she was leaving home.
Upon hearing that my reaction was pretty much:
"She's doing what? ! And you didn't think to call me or her mother? ! You just let her go? ! You didn't even ask where she was going? !", and so forth. That's when my mom swung the car around and we both headed to my husband's office. On the way we managed to call my father, my brother, and my sister in law so we all arrived at my husband's office at the same time.
Naturally my sister in law was hysterical, her 18 year old had just recently left home and is estranged from the family and now this. She was shouting and screaming and demanding to know where her baby girl was and what my husband knew. It was so bad that my husband's boss made us all go into my husband's office and close the door. So this is what my husband told us:
He said that about an hour before we all got there, my step niece showed up at his work and was wanting to see him or the "Companions". So they got my husband and he asks her what's up and why isn't she in school. He then said that she told him that she wants to leave home and that she knew she could trust him so she came to see him for a small loan to "start her new life". At this point every one's reaction was "WHAT THE HELL, YOU DIDN'T THINK YOU NEEDED TO CALL HER PARENTS? YOU GAVE HER MONEY AND SENT HER ON HER WAY? WHAT KIND OF ADULT ARE YOU? " . He then told every one to "relax" abs he didn't just "give her money and send her on her way". He told us that he told her that it was "Dangerous to go alone" so he gathered his "Companions" and ordered each one of them to "give her an item of power which would aid her in her spirt quest". Right here you would have thought that of 7 grown adults (the 6 "Companions"plus my husband) some body would have stepped up and said that maybe they should call the parents or a truant officer, but no. Instead one of the girls pulled out a cell phone and started recording and every one of them gave her a nicknack for her quest. From what my husband said, corroborated on video that was shot, she received from the Comoanions: a coffee mug, a handful of rubber bands, a fidget spinner, a granola bar, 2 highlighters and a zippo. And all the while you can see that all 6 of them were snickering and joking. Then my husband said that he took her out to his truck and allowed her to select one item out of the back. He said that she chose a machete, so that's why it's unfair for us to accuse him of just sending her on her way. That's when my father erupted and was all like "WHAT WERE YOU THINKING? ! YOU GAVE HER A MACHETE?! AND LET HER LEAVE? " . My husband then cooly replied to him that even at the beginning of a video game they always start you off with one weapon a few items so he didn't see what the big deal was. My sister in law then chimed in that the "big deal" was that he turned a 16 year old, who should be in school, loose with out any real concern for her wellbeing or that of her family. That is when my husband told her that her daughter "wasn't his problem". Now everyone was shouting and my brother and father demanded to speak to the "Companions" so my husband opened the door and blew into a hunting horn and all six of them piled into the office. Again the questions of where she's went? Why did you let her leave? were asked and the answers were pretty much we don't know, we don't care this isn't our problem. He added that this is a relatively safe area and that since she is white she"will be fine " and that she will most likely come back when she gets hungry. My husband then said that he was expecting vendor to come meet him so he couldn't spend any more time on this but if we wanted help to look for her, he would let us have 2 of the Companions but I would need to take them to the house so they could "saddle up" (my husband still wasn't taking this seriously ). My sister in law then laid into him saying that he is the most immature insensitive a hole she had ever met and that he would be held accountable if anything happened to her little girl. He then retorted that he was sure that the bang up job she was doing as a mother had absolutely nothing to do with the fact that her older daughter is a basket case and that now her younger one ran off too. My sister in law was about to jump across the desk to hit him but she was restrained by the two female Companions. My husband then had us all thrown out.
Luckily we found her a few hours later when the parent of one of her friends called.
That night when my husband got home we had a long discussion about this. Basically he justified his actions with, "I don't like your sister in law, her daughter isn't my problem, so I have no responsibility or duty towards her". I tried to remind him if the story of Cain and Able and how God was displeased when Cain asked if he is his brother's keeper. My husband says that what displeased God was Cain's wrath and envy. And he said furthermore he nor I are even blood related to my sister in law or her daughters so the Cain and Able example doesn't apply.
This is what got me to thinking what does it mean to be one's keeper? Did my husband shirk his duty as my step niece's "keeper" did he have a responsibility as her keeper? Did his Companions have a responsibility? I am speaking of responsibility in a biblical sense.
On Wednesday I was out running errands with my mother when I received a panicked call from my sister in law that her 16 year old, my step niece, didn't show up at school. (Don't worry all, she was found 6 hours later with her boyfriend but that is immaterial to my issue, although we do praise God for delivering her).
Of course my mother and I are concerned so we start calling every one we know to see if they could help look for her. Naturally the first person I call is my husband. When I called him and told him what happened he told me to "relax, because I just missed her by half an hour". So I asked him where she went and he told me that he didn't know and that she told him she was leaving home.
Upon hearing that my reaction was pretty much:
"She's doing what? ! And you didn't think to call me or her mother? ! You just let her go? ! You didn't even ask where she was going? !", and so forth. That's when my mom swung the car around and we both headed to my husband's office. On the way we managed to call my father, my brother, and my sister in law so we all arrived at my husband's office at the same time.
Naturally my sister in law was hysterical, her 18 year old had just recently left home and is estranged from the family and now this. She was shouting and screaming and demanding to know where her baby girl was and what my husband knew. It was so bad that my husband's boss made us all go into my husband's office and close the door. So this is what my husband told us:
He said that about an hour before we all got there, my step niece showed up at his work and was wanting to see him or the "Companions". So they got my husband and he asks her what's up and why isn't she in school. He then said that she told him that she wants to leave home and that she knew she could trust him so she came to see him for a small loan to "start her new life". At this point every one's reaction was "WHAT THE HELL, YOU DIDN'T THINK YOU NEEDED TO CALL HER PARENTS? YOU GAVE HER MONEY AND SENT HER ON HER WAY? WHAT KIND OF ADULT ARE YOU? " . He then told every one to "relax" abs he didn't just "give her money and send her on her way". He told us that he told her that it was "Dangerous to go alone" so he gathered his "Companions" and ordered each one of them to "give her an item of power which would aid her in her spirt quest". Right here you would have thought that of 7 grown adults (the 6 "Companions"plus my husband) some body would have stepped up and said that maybe they should call the parents or a truant officer, but no. Instead one of the girls pulled out a cell phone and started recording and every one of them gave her a nicknack for her quest. From what my husband said, corroborated on video that was shot, she received from the Comoanions: a coffee mug, a handful of rubber bands, a fidget spinner, a granola bar, 2 highlighters and a zippo. And all the while you can see that all 6 of them were snickering and joking. Then my husband said that he took her out to his truck and allowed her to select one item out of the back. He said that she chose a machete, so that's why it's unfair for us to accuse him of just sending her on her way. That's when my father erupted and was all like "WHAT WERE YOU THINKING? ! YOU GAVE HER A MACHETE?! AND LET HER LEAVE? " . My husband then cooly replied to him that even at the beginning of a video game they always start you off with one weapon a few items so he didn't see what the big deal was. My sister in law then chimed in that the "big deal" was that he turned a 16 year old, who should be in school, loose with out any real concern for her wellbeing or that of her family. That is when my husband told her that her daughter "wasn't his problem". Now everyone was shouting and my brother and father demanded to speak to the "Companions" so my husband opened the door and blew into a hunting horn and all six of them piled into the office. Again the questions of where she's went? Why did you let her leave? were asked and the answers were pretty much we don't know, we don't care this isn't our problem. He added that this is a relatively safe area and that since she is white she"will be fine " and that she will most likely come back when she gets hungry. My husband then said that he was expecting vendor to come meet him so he couldn't spend any more time on this but if we wanted help to look for her, he would let us have 2 of the Companions but I would need to take them to the house so they could "saddle up" (my husband still wasn't taking this seriously ). My sister in law then laid into him saying that he is the most immature insensitive a hole she had ever met and that he would be held accountable if anything happened to her little girl. He then retorted that he was sure that the bang up job she was doing as a mother had absolutely nothing to do with the fact that her older daughter is a basket case and that now her younger one ran off too. My sister in law was about to jump across the desk to hit him but she was restrained by the two female Companions. My husband then had us all thrown out.
Luckily we found her a few hours later when the parent of one of her friends called.
That night when my husband got home we had a long discussion about this. Basically he justified his actions with, "I don't like your sister in law, her daughter isn't my problem, so I have no responsibility or duty towards her". I tried to remind him if the story of Cain and Able and how God was displeased when Cain asked if he is his brother's keeper. My husband says that what displeased God was Cain's wrath and envy. And he said furthermore he nor I are even blood related to my sister in law or her daughters so the Cain and Able example doesn't apply.
This is what got me to thinking what does it mean to be one's keeper? Did my husband shirk his duty as my step niece's "keeper" did he have a responsibility as her keeper? Did his Companions have a responsibility? I am speaking of responsibility in a biblical sense.