A Stabbing in Bergenfield

Monday Ministerial Musings

By Rev. Mark William Ennis

2024 Blog #18

April 29, 2024

A Stabbing in Bergenfield

We suffered a tragedy here in Bergenfield this past week. A young middle school student was stabbed. This incident didn’t take place in the school, nor on the school property but on land adjacent to railroad tracks behind the school property. Because juveniles were involved, very few details have been released. Yet, it is tragic that one middle school student was detained by police, and another was hospitalized because of a stab wound.

Most of us have seen altercations between school students. Some of us have been involved with them. Few escalate into violence although, tragically, some do. I saw my share at that age in Jersey City. I was involved in a few myself. When I was that age, any escalating altercation ended in a fist fight, not shootings or stabbings.

What causes these tragedies? What causes arguments to escalate like this? My experience, and research that I have done, indicate that in most cases, it all begins with bullying. A child is bullied by parents and the child in turn takes his rage out by bullying others. The one who is getting bullied has a choice as to how to react. In most cases the perceived choices are either flight or fight.

It is sad that in our community there are children who feel the need to carry knives. I can only guess at the circumstances that such children are living in at their homes. Are they bullied at home? Are they neglected and seek their esteem on the street instead of with family? How would the family of a middle school student not know that a young man was carrying a knife, or even felt the need to carry such a weapon?

Yes, it is certainly a tragedy, and a sin, that a boy was stabbed. I believe that it is even a greater sin that two boys were put into such bad circumstances.  Family and community put these two into the position where they felt this fight was a good idea, or at least, the lesser of evils. A Biblical teaching is that “sin causes more sin.” I’m sure that this stabbing is an example of that principle. It takes a village to raise a child, but it also takes a village to set up the circumstances that makes these tragedies happen.

I pray for these two young men, that they will find the resources to change the trajectories of their lives so that further tragedies can be avoided. I pray for the families of these two, that they may make some changes in how they relate to these youngsters. I pray for the middle school students whose innocence has been lost by a classmate getting stabbed and one being arrested. How much fear do these students now carry with them as they wonder which of their classmates might own weapons and if their lives might be in danger?

Sin does cause more sin and it is up to all of us to help prevent the sin that leads to other sin. These two young people did not act in this way in a vacuum. It is up to all of us of good will to do all that we can to prevent the next tragedy from happening.