My family and I were gathered with our fellow members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints two Sundays ago when we heard the news that a 40-year-old veteran of the Iraq War with an apparent vendetta against the church had rammed his truck through the front doors of a Latter-day Saint meetinghouse in Grand Blanc, Michigan, begun firing an assault rifle at the worshippers and then set the building ablaze. Four people were killed and eight others, ranging in age from 6 to 78, were injured, two critically.
We may never fully understand what led the assailant to commit such an unspeakable act. He must have carried deep wounds within his soul and suffered immense pain. Our hearts ache for all who were impacted, including the attacker’s widow and young son, who were also victims of this horrendous deed.
We are deeply grateful to those who serve in the military for our country. They are brave protectors and exemplary citizens. Tragically, our veterans, particularly those who served in combat zones, suffer from a disproportionately high percentage of mental health problems.
According to a 2021 report of the United States Sentencing Commission, 40.7% of veteran offenders (military veterans who have been charged with an offense for which a term of imprisonment may be imposed) who served in a combat zone reported having PTSD, and two-thirds of offenders whose military service was cited by a court indicated that they had some sort of history of mental health problems.
An article published in 2017 in Social Psychiatry + Psychiatric Epidemiology asserts that “evidence indicates that a substantial proportion of military personnel are involved in high-risk and antisocial behaviors that place them at jeopardy for criminal justice system involvement.”
Given all this, the recent proposed cuts to resources that could impact health care and other benefits for veterans seem particularly ill-advised.
Also ill-advised is the rhetoric of Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth. His recent speech to hundreds of senior military officers on Sept. 30 — just two days after the horrific attack on the congregation in Michigan — was shockingly tone-deaf. When the Secretary of Defense says things like, “You kill people and break things for a living. You are not politically correct and don’t necessarily belong always in polite society” — is it any wonder that some of our veterans struggle when they try to integrate back into civilian life?
The night before the heinous shooting in Michigan and three days before Secretary Hegseth’s speech, Russell M. Nelson, the beloved 101-year-old president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and a world-renowned heart surgeon, passed away. It is instructive, I believe, to compare the words of this humble religious leader to those of Secretary Hegseth, a man who openly professes to be a disciple of Jesus. Certainly, the responsibilities of a global faith leader and the Secretary of Defense (or War, as Hegseth would prefer) differ in some important ways, but the contrast in both substance and tone is striking.
Secretary Hegseth declared: “We’re going to go on offense, not just on defense. Maximum lethality, not tepid legality. Violent effect, not politically correct. We’re going to raise up warriors, not just defenders.”
President Nelson taught: “The Savior’s message is clear: His true disciples build, lift, encourage, persuade, and inspire — no matter how difficult the situation. True disciples of Jesus Christ are peacemakers.”
In his acceptance speech upon receiving the Morehouse College Peace Prize award in 2023, President Nelson said:
“During my earlier career as a heart surgeon, I stood in an operating room thousands of times. I even cared for wounded soldiers in MASH units during the Korean War. I have literally touched the hearts of men and women of many races and nationalities around the world ... In those operating rooms — where life hung in the balance — I came to know that our Heavenly Father cares deeply for every one of His children. That’s because we are His children. Differences in nationality, color and culture do not change the fact that we are truly sons and daughters of God.”
What if we all saw those who sacrifice so much to serve our country as human beings, as sons and daughters of God, as our cherished brothers and sisters, rather than as expendable war machines? How might that change things for them, for all of us?
Ours is a deeply fractured and troubled world. Terrible things happen on a daily basis. Innocent children are gunned down in cold blood. There is much we can’t control. But we can try to care for one another. We can tend to the wounds of our brothers and sisters. We can forgive each other. And we can strive to be makers of peace.