Cincinnati Zoo Killing a Gorilla Named Harambe: Was It Justified?

Many (maybe most) of you readers probably have read about the Cincinnati Zoo shooting a gorilla named Harambe on Saturday, May 28, 2016, after a three or four-year-old boy fell into its enclosure. Numerous news sources reported about it, including the Daily Mail, CNN, WLWT, and the Cincinnati Enquirer website.

You may not be interested in my opinion about it based on my very limited information. If so, please stop reading this article now.

First, I am confident that zoo officials who stated that a tranquilizer would not have killed an agitated gorilla fast enough to prevent it from doing harm know more about tranquilizers than most (if not all) of the persons criticizing them. I do support developing better tranquilizers, though.

Second, I am confident that zoo officials know better than most others that if the gorilla intended to kill the boy it could have done so easily during the perhaps ten minutes the boy was in the enclosure with Harambe, and that the gorilla at least part of the time was seeking to protect the boy.

Third, I am confident that zoo officials know better than most that it was necessary to get the boy out quickly and safely. I like to think that there was someone at the zoo that knew the gorilla well enough and that the gorilla knew well enough that the person could have entered the enclosure and coaxed the gorilla into allowing the boy to be removed. But if someone else had entered the enclosure and the gorilla had attacked and injured that person (in a misguided attempt to protect the boy?) or the gorilla had attacked and possibly killed the boy, the zoo may have faced criminal charges. I am trying very hard not to second guess the decision made by persons more knowledgeable than me about the situation.

Fourth, it may not be possible to make every zoo exhibit child proof, but I hope that this incident leads to improvements in safety. And if they give the animals more room to move around, I'd love that, too. 

Last, we often focus on one interesting or unusual story at the expense of all the other news. I hope that the care and compassion shown for this boy and this gorilla help lead us to perhaps see the bigger picture and show more compassion for all God's creatures.

I began writing this article on Memorial Day and am posting it the day after Memorial Day. Maybe reading about this gorilla and boy will give us more incentive to find alternatives to war and violence. Let's all seek to treat everyone and everything with love and compassion.

NOTE: Minor editing was done on this article on May 31, 2016, less than a day after its original posting.

The Christian Restoration Movement and Restoration 200 in Lexington, Kentucky May 15, 2016

This afternoon (May 15, 2016) I attended an event in Lexington, Kentucky called Restoration 200, celebrating 200 years since the first Restoration Movement church congregation that was located in Lexington formed in 1816. The Restoration Movement itself began some years earlier, with the exact year depending on how one defines the movement. But the Cane Ridge Revival in Kentucky in 1801 was a key event.    

I love the concept of "restoration." Today's event included music, prayer, communion, booths for various organizations, food truck vendors, and short messages from three ministers.

The three ministers spoke on "unity," "liberty," and "love," in that order. First, Jon Weece from Southland Christian Church where thousands worship spoke on "Unity." Then Barrett Coffman from Southside Church of Christ an acapella congregation near my apartment and the University of Kentucky that has a successful college ministry spoke on "Liberty." The third minister, David Shirey from Central Christian Church which has a significant ministy in downtown Lexington, spoke on "Love." The photos below were taken of the three as they spoke today (from top to bottom, Jon Weece, Barrett Coffman, and David Shirey, in the same order in which they spoke).

Ideally all Christians would seek to obey God perfectly and would be joined together as one large congregation working together toward this goal. Unfortunately, in actual practice all Christians fall short of perfectly obeying God, and Christians are divided into numerous groups that meet in various buildings in various congregations in various denominations with various beliefs.

In my opinion, one of the key movements that has sought to try to restore unity within the Christian faith is what is often called the Christian Restoration Movement, which is what the group that met today in Lexington from 3 p.m. till 5 p.m. is part of. The Restoration Movement, also sometimes called the Stone-Campbell Movement in honor of two men instrumental in its early success, has sought to unite the Christian faith in its basic beliefs.

Alas, after over two centuries of work not only has the Restoration Movement failed to restore unity within the Christian church as a whole, the movement itself has split into three factions, one group being Christian Churches known as Disciples of Christ Christian Churches, a second group known as nondenominational Christian Churches and Churches of Christ, and a third group known as acapella Churches of Christ. This permits illustrates the difficulty of uniting the Christian faith.

I have no illusions that today's event in Lexington will bring together the three factions that split. But I hope that the few hundred persons who gathered together today are part of a group of Christians committed to coming closer to obeying God's perfect guidance. I hope, pray, and trust that as Christians seek to unite together to do good things in accordance with God's desires, good things happen for Christians individually and for Christians collectively. Maybe somehow, in some way, today's event helps in that regard.