A Bit of Summary

Murder, rape and all things evil are happening as the town of Chester’s Mill swirls deeper and deeper into despair, circling down the drain as we watch in horror. There was a moment of hope in this section as the military tries to blow up the dome, but that ends with a whimper. We are left feeling the hopelessness that the people in the town feel. All of them, that is, except Big Jim. He seems to relish the fact that there is no hope from the outside. It means more power for him and that is what he wants most.

We learn more about Barbie, and like him even more than before. Here is a man of principle that we can believe in. He desires nothing but the ability to leave this town, and yet there is so much more pain that comes to him. There is something that reminds me of Joseph (Genesis 37-50) in his story.

We are forced to come along with Junior and his buddies as they sink into depravity we would rather not know about. But we also learn about the murderous anger of Big Jim. The young people in the town do not own all the sin in this town. There is even a meth lab run by a pastor, the drug store owner, Big Jim and a man called the Chef.

What became clear in this section is that human depravity is dark. The cultural reference that appeared here is The Lord of the Flies. It is a great reference and one that rings true with what we are learning. What would man do if all trappings of normalcy and accountability are taken away? To me, it sounds like the refrain from Judges:

“In those days there was no king in Israel. Everyone did what was right in his own eyes.”

That sure sounds like Chester’s Mill.

For all the evil we are hearing about, there is still hope—somewhere. We still cling to the possibility that Dale Barbara and his buddies will win out over Big Jim. I guess we will have to wait for the next section to see if things get better or worse. My guess is worse before better.

My Meditations:

Have we lost our ability to have compassion today? Sure, we will contribute aid for natural disaster (Haiti), but do we really care about the people or just want to appease our conscious? As I was reading the book, I was horrified, but probably not as much as I should be. I am safeguarded from much of the seedy side of humanity that this book is showing us. Either I ignore what I do see or I avoid the places I would even see it. Either way, I have been protected. I guess it is a telltale of a good novel that I actually start to care about the characters. Not many of them appeal to me, but I don’t want them to be hurt all the same. When I read about these atrocities or see them on TV, how does it actually affect me? Do I need to turn my head and entertain myself with my life so that I will not think about what really happens out there? Have I grown too accustomed to hearing about these things in movies and television so that they are not even real to me anymore? On one show I was watching last night, there was a murder, but it was the vehicle so that I would be able to see the resolution at the end. The murder was not the focus, since it is the other characters that I really care about. I didn’t even meet the murdered character. This can lead to disinterest or complacency—no compassion in the face of suffering. Don’t miss hear what I am saying. I am not blaming the television show. We are so good at blaming our sins on other things. No! I am saying that we let exposure deaden our feelings toward other human beings. We stop caring. Sure we will throw money at issues so that our consciences feel better, but we don’t care like we should. Jesus wept over Jerusalem. Would we?

In the book we do get an abrupt example of compassion. It hits us like a ton of bricks because it comes from Junior and his buddies. A few orphaned kids strip all bravado away and pull pity and compassion out of these hardened young men who have no difficulty with murder and rape. What are we to think of this?

As we prepare for the rest of the story, I pray we stop and reflect on our own compassion. It is just a story. That is true. But I fear that the way we react to simple stories trains us to react the same way when the atrocities are real.

Join me next week as we catch up with the children of the story who seem to know more than they should through their “seizures.” If nothing else, the ride should be interesting. Thanks for reading.

Tags: compassion, evil, Joseph, Lord of the Flies, Stephen King, total depravity, Under the Dome