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Civic Order, Martin H. Scharlemann

Concordia Theological Monthly

Order is a gift. It may not be taken for granted. The tensions inherent in every social situation tend toward disruption unless they are harnessed toward creative ends.

Violence on our streets and in our cities has brought us up short to the realization that the social order is much like a garden: if left untended, it will produce only the weeds of exploitation, decay, frustration, and outrage. During some of the riots in our major cities we watched our television sea in sheer disbelief that this evil could erupt in our midst. Somehow we assumed that such things could …