A Witness to Love and Peace
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by Patience Robbins
In recent months I have been carefully following the case of Stanley "Tookie" Williams, a person convicted of killing four people, on death row for 24 years, and executed on December 15, 2005. I was captivated by his story in the local paper and then began reading whatever I could find on his life as well as seeing the movie about him entitled, "Redemption." His life has reminded me of that wonderful line from Deuteronomy: "Choose life and you shall live." He bears witness to the deep courage within us all to choose life and the mysterious movement of a person to goodness, to God, even in seemingly impossible circumstances.
At 17, Tookie formed a gang with a friend in order to survive on the rough streets of Los Angeles. He had realized that he needed to be strong, tough and use whatever violence and brutality was necessary in order to make it. He really lived into this image of a gangster and became one of the most notorious and feared gang leaders in California. All types of cruel methods, beatings, killings, stealing, were part of that role, and so he lived and breathed the role of destruction and hate. He was arrested at the age of 28, and even in prison, continued to harass and attack other prisoners and create trouble; eventually, he was put in solitary confinement. During those six years of solitary confinement, he began a process which he described as "self-education, soul-searching, spiritual cultivation, all of which led to my redemptive transition."
For me, he is a striking example of conversion, what he called redemption! Turning full circle was radical since it involved letting go of all he had known of power, control, and survival. He was willing to allow life patterns and his image of himself to be transformed. As he saw and owned the error of his ways, he even had the courage to make this public by speaking out, especially to young people-owning the destructive and vengeful ways he had previously embraced. He begged young people to turn away from gangs, hate, violence, revenge and turn to peace.
He authored 14 children's books and an auto-biography as a way of conveying this new life and awareness that he had found. His message was so clear, real and so compelling, that he was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize five years in a row and the Nobel Prize for Literature a few times. Truly he was a voice of one who had undergone a dramatic transformation.
As the politicians and others debate capital punishment and the need for justice, my heart reaches out to the generosity and courage in this man. His capacity to see and acknowledge self-hate and destructive ways and his willingness to open that to God and receive love and forgiveness is very inspiring. He made a profound and dramatic choice for good over evil, for life over death. His transformation reminds me of what is possible in and through the grace of God. I recall Meister Eckhart's words:"The seed of God is in us. Now the seed of a pear tree grows into a pear tree; and a hazel seed grows into a hazel tree. A seed of God grows into God."
Currently, I am feeling called to work with teenagers--to be (as Tookie was) a presence, a witness and reminder of the power of love. Although I have found it very intimidating to be surrounded by a group of cynical, questioning, and preoccupied teenagers, I see how hungry they are for hope, meaning in their lives, and for role-models who embody the choice for life and goodness. Like Tookie, I tell the kids, each of us has a unique contribution to our world that no one but we can make. How we choose to be does make a difference in our world, and that is powerful. And so I stand with Tookie--with a deep prayer in my being--that I too might be a witness to love and peace in our world and I, too, choose life.
Patience is the director of Shalem's Personal Spiritual Deepening Program.