c. 1999 Religion News Service
(Samuel K. Atchison is an ordained minister and has worked as a policy analyst and social worker to the homeless. He currently is a prison chaplain in Trenton, N.J.)
UNDATED _ There was much rejoicing at our friends’ home Saturday (June 12). Eighteen-year-old Michael _ all 6 foot 5 inches of him _ graduated from high school near Trenton, N.J. While this would be cause for celebration under any circumstance, Michael’s graduation was something special. As he put it,”Three years ago, I would’ve never thought this day would come.” And who could blame him?
In 1996, at 15, Michael was, to all appearances, an intelligent, well-adjusted teen-ager. Gangly, but with the grace of an athlete, he displayed a friendly, easygoing manner, making him a favored playmate of younger children, mine included.
Yet, beneath his easy, Southern-bred charm, Michael was a confused and angry young man. By 13, he had already endured the pain of his parents’ separation, the sorrow of leaving family and friends in his native Atlanta, and the subsequent adjustment to a new environment with a move to New Jersey with his mother. Now, just a few years later, he was faced with an even greater loss, in the death of his father.
As often happens in such cases, Michael began hanging out with the wrong crowd. Together with his friends, he became involved in a series of petty crimes, including the theft of a neighbor’s car, and was eventually arrested.
Appearing in juvenile court in 1997, Michael was sentenced to probation, contingent upon restitution for his neighbor’s loss, and to community service.
Thereafter,”the village,”aptly named by his mother, Angela, because of its impact on Michael’s life, began to step up its efforts on behalf of its prodigal son.
Literally scores of people, black and white, including dozens of men, made their presence known, functioning as coaches, big brothers and father-surrogates. As Michael himself noted later,”they were determined that this was one young brother who wouldn’t fall.” As approximately 60 of us gathered on Saturday to celebrate Michael’s achievement, many of us meeting for the first time, I was struck once more by the contribution each individual makes to the character of the village, and how God uses them all.
Indeed, the apostle Paul makes a similar observation when, with respect to the contributions he and another colleague, Apollos, made to the growth of the Corinthian church, he noted:”I planted, Apollos watered, but God was causing the growth”(I Corinthians 3:6).
Certainly it was God who caused the growth in Michael, utilizing for divine purpose the offerings of time, energy, money and love given by all of Michael’s friends. Because of their caring and devotion, Michael is looking forward to college instead of prison.
Yet, though we rightly celebrate Michael’s success, how many Michaels have we missed? For every at-risk young person that we embrace, how many others do we ignore?
Are not they as important as Michael? Is not God concerned about them?
And are we not our children’s keepers?
DEA END ATCHISON
