From Ephesus to Tucson

by Bob Setzer, Jr.
The book of Acts is dotted with riots caused by Paul. Then as now, Paul had a finely-honed knack for annoying people.

In Acts chapter 19, Paul and his helpers, Gaius and Aristarchus,  incite another riot. Paul’s preaching is causing a dip in sales of silver idols of the local goddess, Artemis. Some enraged silversmiths drag Gaius and Aristarchus into a 25,000 seat amphitheater. The theater is soon packed with a raging mob that shrieks, “Great is Artemis of the Ephesians!” Things are about to get ugly for Gaius and Aristarchus. Paul is restrained by friends from entering the theater, lest he inflame the situation even further.

After others have failed to calm the mob, an unnamed town clerk steps forward. He is a respected leader with the moral capital to gain a hearing. After quieting the crowd, he appeals to his fellow citizens’ decency and common sense. “We all know Artemis is the greatest goddess ever,” he argues. “That is not open for debate! And if anyone has a complaint against this Paul, the courts are open. So disband and go home before you do something you will regret.” Remarkably, the seething crowd heeds his counsel, disperses, and violence is averted.

In the aftermath of the tragedy in Tucson, one of the “ordinary heroes” to step forward was the local sheriff, Sheriff Clarence Dupnik. His calm, frank demeanor in the immediate aftermath of such terrible, senseless violence, helped reassure an anxious public, both in Tucson and throughout the country. With seasoned, no-nonsense professionals like him on the job, we knew somehow we would get through this.

Other “ordinary heroes” stepped forward to keep an unbearably awful tragedy from becoming even worse: the bystanders who tackled and restrained the shooter before he could wound or kill even more innocent people; the people in the crowd who rendered immediate aid to the victims; the 20-year-old college student who stayed Congresswoman Gifford’s bleeding until the EMTs arrived; the doctors, nurses, and other medical personnel who rendered state-of-the-art, life-saving aid. And there were no doubt others at the scene, many known only to God, who did their part to quell the shooter’s violence and comfort and help the victims.

None of this is to suggest that awful day in Tucson was anything other than a living nightmare of horrific proportions. But there is no doubt it would have been even worse had not some “ordinary heroes” stepped forward to do their duty. In the face of a senseless tragedy, that is one thing we can be thankful for.
    
Yes, in the wake of the Tucson massacre, hard questions need to be asked about access to guns, helping the mentally unbalanced before they hurt themselves or others, and the state of our nation’s very uncivil discourse. But for now, I’m just giving thanks that this country still produces ordinary heroes who in the moment of crisis, do what God and their neighbors need most.