USA (MNN) — On Wednesday, protestors stormed the Capitol building in Washington D.C. as Congress was certifying the November 2020 general election results. One woman died from gunshot wounds, and three others died from medical emergencies, police have stated.
Vice President Mike Pence was evacuated shortly after protestors breached the building, and other politicians were evacuated soon after. Police eventually herded the protestors out of the building, and the mayor of D.C. has declared a 15-day state of emergency. The D.C. national guard has been activated to help quell any future outbreaks over the next two weeks.
Several police officers suffered injuries in the event, and at least 52 people have been arrested. Authorities discovered and neutralized six firearms and two pipe bombs on the grounds.
In the United States?
It isn’t the kind of thing people expect to see at the heart of democracy in the United States, says Bruce Allen of FMI. “I do go to places where I have seen dysfunction in government: fistfights and wrestling matches in halls, parliaments, and congresses. People taking the law into their own hands just because they don’t like a particular outcome. That is a common occurrence in many, many parts of the world. Some of the reports I get are astounding.”
The U.S., meanwhile, has enjoyed a relatively stable political history, especially since the Civil War. The last time the Capitol building was breached, the British were sacking Washington D.C. during the War of 1812.
Allen says, “We’re susceptible to operating under the delusion that these other people who live in other nations are the ones with problems. We’re the experts. We’re the ones who have all the answers. But that truly is a delusion. Events like this show us that we too have significant struggles.”
Pray for unity
Allen says Christians need to pray right now, not only for the unity of the U.S. and people’s safety but for our hearts as God’s people. Allen prays, “We confess that Caesar is not Lord and that only You are. May I recognize that my salvation does not come at the hands or from the minds of politicians and that my battle is not against flesh and blood. It is against powers of darkness instead. And I pray that I would know what it means that my citizenship is ultimately in the kingdom of heaven.”
Congress worked into the early morning hours on Thursday to finish certifying the election results. With a new administration comes new chances for Christians to love each other despite their political differences, and glorify Christ as a result.
The header photo shows protestors gathering in D.C. the morning of January 6th. (Photo courtesy of Elvert Barnes from Silver Spring MD, USA, CC BY-SA 2.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0>, via Wikimedia Commons)
