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One of my favorite Taizé songs is titled "Jesus, Remember Me" and is taken from the mouth of a condemned and dying criminal. The words of the song, simply "Jesus, remember me when you come into your glory.*" are said by one of the men crucified with Jesus, according to Luke 23:42. The lyrics make a beautiful meditative song. The thought originates from a man who self-professes his guilt and condemnation to death. Such words are a plea from one who knows his own guilt in its fullness and is asking that the Child of God remember him in glory still.

I was reminded of that man's plea rather vividly today when I read a story becoming all too common (once is too common) on our society's newsreels. The headline reads "Teen to be tried as adult in murder." According to the report, "Little Mike," a 15-year-old boy is to be tried as an adult in the slaying of a homeless man in Abilene. Reporters describe Mike as "a small boy with peach fuzz barely sprouting on his face," but authorities find his record, already extensive for so few years on earth, and his demeanor inconsistent with rehabilitation by age 19. So, one of Abilene's children will be tried as an adult for a murder he (apparently) has already admitted to and may face the rest of his life in prison.

Now, I doubt that any person of faith could say with true conviction that Jesus has forgotten "Little Mike." Yet, something has gone terribly wrong with Mike's young life. As such, over and above the law of the land, what is the calling, the responsibility, for people of faith in response to Mike, his family, his deeds and his future? Even if he is convicted and sentenced to life in prison, the years he spends behind bars are still spent living. To what, then, are we called to do for Mike? How do we respond? I believe Jesus gave us the example.

Jesus responded to the dying man at his side with full forgiveness, saying, "Truly I tell you, today you will be with me in Paradise." Often, I think, we confuse forgiveness with lack of responsibility for one's actions, or dissolution of accountability. But Jesus did not take the criminal off of the cross he bore. Instead, Jesus accepted the man's acknowledgement of responsibility and his faith and moved forward from that moment.

I'm saddened by the realization that little to nothing can be done to turn the tables for "Little Mike." His first 15 years will now dictate how he lives the next 60-70 years, assuming he survives prison life. Yet, I have some hopeful optimism that the body of Christ will find a way to offer him forgiveness and family through the boundaries prison walls, just as Jesus did for the criminal at his side. If so, Mike may grow to understand that Jesus remembers him always.

Jesus, remember me when you come into your glory,
Jesus, remember me when you come into your glory.

May we not forget that, just as Christ brings the gospel to us in our times of need, we are called to share Christ's truth among those in the most humble of places.