Bullying and the Bullied

Bullying has recently come to the forefront of pop-culture. And the issue is receiving some much needed attention. Everyone from Jamie Foxx to Desmond Tutu has weighted in on the conversations. I am a bit confused to see why nearly all the attention is is focused on helping kids deal with being bullied. The U.S. Government defines bullying as:

 Unwanted, aggressive behavior among school aged children that involves a real or perceived power imbalance. 

     Why do we choose to reduce the cultural issue to the school yard and social media of school aged children? The problem is much much bigger. We need to take a step back and look at the issue a bit more objectively. Does our American culture make room for this type of aggressive behavior outside the school yard, yet criticize the very same behavior when children simply imitate adults. What does the Bible say about bullying? How should handle the larger culture issue? 

The Bible says much about the issue of how we should treat one another. The "Golden Rule" comes to mind, "So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you" (Matthew 7:12). I cannot tell you how many times I heard this expression during my childhood. And so often I wished that the guy picking on me knew it as well as I did. But there has to be more than simply giving anecdotal advice to the kid getting picked on. King Solomon said, “drive out a scoffer, and strife will go out, and quarreling and abuse will cease” (Proverbs 22:10). Think about this in the context of social media. Facebook is a powerful platform for bullies. Twitter allows many horribly embarrassing comments and photos to hurt adults and children. 

The bullies are no longer the big kids with an attitude. They are often individuals that feel no other recourse is available to resolve conflict or pain. How easy it has become the belittle others with complete remote anonymity. This problem is sharply felt in the lives of our kids, but it is an adult culture that feeds into the patterns of our youth. We must drive out a scoffer, but with what? The answer is found in the words of Paul.      

If your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink. In doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head. Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good. -Romans 12:20-21

     The aggression and hurt that is passed around on social media must be displaced by love and encouragement. Yes, the bullies need to be punished and misbehavior should not be tolerated by those in authority, but what can we all do to reverse the culture of insult retribution? Make Facebook a place of positive communication. Create a culture among your friends where the scoffer is not inspired to tear down others. Do not allow an insult to go unchecked in our adult lives; and in doing this, we can set an example and standard for our children and youth culture in general.