THE PROPER RESPONSE TO THE EVENTUAL DEATH OF JOE PATERNO
As I type this, one news source has reported that former Penn State Coach, Joe Paterno, has passed away from complications of cancer. Other sources have not! Sometimes, navigating the murky waters of the internet can be tricky. While one website can be reliable, other sites can not.
Either way, if he has passed on or not, there’s only one word to sum up the last six months,
SAD!
One thing that kept coming to the frontal lobe region of my head is this: WHAT IS THE PROPER RESPONSE, AS A CHRISTIAN, TO THE EVENTUAL DEATH OF JOE PATERNO?
I ask this because I truly believe there’ll be some who will spew vile comments about the former Nittany Lions coach, simply because of what has transpired in 2011. Let’s get one thing straight, Joe Pa made a terrible mistake and had a lapse in judgment when he failed to report Sandusky for allegedly abusing young boys on school campus. He admits it himself. Monumental mistake! There’s no telling how many kids could have been saved from the evil hands of Sandusky had he gone further with personally investigating the matter.
I certainly do not want to grant him sainthood, but as believers, we have an obligation to be careful with our words.
I vividly recall how some Christians responded to the sudden and untimely death of Michael Jackson. Pedophile or not, it really bothered me how some almost rejoiced in the fact that he died. It was as if they were thumbing their nose at such tragedy. All I could think of was, “Wow! You’re really not making a good name for us as Christians!”
Whether Joe Paterno has asked God to forgive him for sins of omission, I don’t know. BUT, it isn’t our place to stand in judgement and ridicule him or point the finger, lest we make a similar mistake.
I believe our position should be as such: Be kind and thoughtful with our words and not come to a conclusion about him that isn’t warranted.
Whether or not Joe Pa has passed from this life into the next, isn’t the main thing for us. How we respond as Christians is important.
I would like to say that I hope he’s resting peacefully and not in pain–if he’s still alive. If not,
God speed and Rest In Peace!
Excellent article!
What we need to remember here is an “old school” individual. He reported things to his superiors and abided by what they instructed. Was he right ??? Probably not by today’s logic. Let me say that personally I believe that anyone that sexually abuses a child has the right to a swift but painfully slow and excruciating death. Our grandparents were taught by different ethics, they learned to abide by what their superiors said and trust them unconditionally. JoePa probably trusted their judgement above anything else- he reported the details to them and trusted the outcome. If they told him everything was OK then that explains the last 15 years of his career. I believe he is a man of integrity and honor that would have told his bosses what they could kiss had he had any issues in believing them.
As a normal person, and college football fan, this entire situation sickens me. Religion need not be a factor. As a matter of fact, nothing need be a factor as far as child abuse is concerned. I believe Joe had faith in his superiors and trusted that till his doom. As a species, we need to have a more educated realization of our superiors and subordinates and evaluate that constantly.
Jay Miller
Mikey good write-up!
As a Penn State Alumni this day saddens me on many different levels. I have heard in some news reports that JoePa died from a broken heart, however science does say that it was lung cancer. My opinion, I think this whole situation accelerated his health downward which ultimately led to his demise…
I have a tendency to smirk when I hear people giving their own opinions on this topic. The most common misconception is of JoePa. They believe he is just another pompous football coach. When in all reality JoePa cared more for others than football itself. Don’t get me wrong football was the mans life, but he also instilled many great values in his players. When I went to school there, I would read about many great things that JoePa did for Penn State (outside of the football program). One of which you need to focus on the books and not going “Pro”. Another fact many critics don’t know is that he gave something around 80% of his salary back to the school. I mean the guy has a library named after him for him donating $1,000,000.00. The fact of the matter is at the end of the day, yes he should have followed up with the matter, but from a legal point of view he did what needed to be done.It’s not like he can go to the police and say “Hey somebody else witnessed x,y,z.” It doesn’t work that way. Should he have been fired? Yes. Many Alumni disagree with me on this, but in order for the University to show that it was taking this matter seriously, serious measures needed to be done. We should be focusing on the real person SANDUSKY and the individuals that blantently covered this up. People are getting it mixed up. JoePa didn’t molest any boys… Sandusky did… It really makes me sick that Sandusky ran his “Children’s” camp for all of those years knowing what we do now…
One more thing that I think is important. If Mike McQueary was so upset and bothered by this incident, then why did he stay at Penn State? Why did he not take a stand and leave based on what he believes he saw. Instead he stuck around with an organization that he knew was corrupt and was hiding this…
As a Christian, it goes to show you that we live in a sinful world and that you can do many great things for 60 years and then just like that it is all gone… God Bless JoePa and his family, one can only hope that he was saved…