Why Christians Should Celebrate the Civil Rights Victory of Daniel Penny

The Holy Bible has an important arc of justice written throughout its pages. Christians naturally have a hope that scores are settled and wrongs are righted, and every time justice prevails on this side of eternity’s veil, we are reminded in the justice that will ultimately be done by God at his judgment.

The Scriptures are replete with calls and pleas for justice. Consider Amos 5:24…

But let justice roll down like waters,
and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream

This verse was quoted by Martin Luther King, Jr. in his I Have a Dream speech on August 28, 1963 at the Lincoln Memorial.

King was not a Christian, of course, because he denied the deity of Christ (he called the deity of Christ “detrimental and harmful”), denied the Holy Trinity, and denied Scriptural inspiration, but he was well versed in certain Biblical narratives. King famously preached…

No, no, we are not satisfied, and we will not be satisfied until justice rolls down like waters, and righteousness like a mighty stream. I am not unmindful that some of you have come here out of great trials and tribulations. Some of you have come fresh from narrow jail cells. Some of you have come from areas where your quest for freedom left you battered by the storms of persecution and staggered by the winds of police brutality. You have been the veterans of creative suffering. Continue to work with the faith that unearned suffering is redemptive.

Just as the Abolitionist movement in the United States – as well as the Civil Rights Movement – were propagated primarily by those who professed the Christian faith, Christians today are largely invested in justice that comes from God. And that’s exactly why we are so enthusiastically relieved to see the ‘not guilty’ verdict in the case of Daniel Penny.

For those unfamiliar, Daniel Penny was a then-24 year-old veteran of the United States Marine Corps, who was charged with manslaughter for the death of violent criminal, Jordan Neely. Neely – who had 42 arrests for various offenses – had assaulted exclusively women in the New York subway system, in all unprovoked incidents. On May 1, 2023, Penny became physically erratic, and lashed out at bystanders while threatening them with death.

Penny, seeing Neely’s behavior and hearing his threats, put Neely in a choke hold until the police could come. Neely later died from a combination of Penny’s restraint and health complications caused by drug use (and possibly, health complications exacerbating breathing difficulty among those with Sickle Cell Anemia). Penny, who heroically acted to prevent the victimization of innocent women around him, was then arrested and charged with his death.

Yesterday, a jury of his peers absolved Penny of guilt in the matter. And today, criminals are vandalizing the New York subway system, massive protests are taking place in the streets, and Black Lives Matter is gearing up for more looting if, for no other reason, stealing electronics and cigarettes is the best way to grieve. I would image the riots will really kick off after pallets of bricks mysteriously start to appear in the streets.

But for those who are capable of independent thought, general literacy, familiarity with laws, and not instantly empathizing with the worst, most derelict and depraved criminals known to man (like George Floyd), we are celebrating that justice is done.

But it should also be clear what we aren’t celebrating. We aren’t celebrating that someone is dead. We aren’t celebrating that the justice system failed to protect the public from Jordan Neely. We aren’t celebrating that Alvin Bragg unjustly charged and prosecuted Penny. We aren’t celebrating America’s disinterest in helping the country’s mental health crisis.

But, as the prophet Amos wrote, justice will eventually roll down like great waters and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream.

However, perhaps, it’s not best to allow heretics like Martin Luther King to apply Bible passages without careful consideration of the way those verses were intended to be taken. Let’s reevaluate that passage from Amos and let it tell us if there’s anything else about justice we should understand.

¹⁸Woe unto you that desire the day of the Lord! to what end is it for you? the day of the Lord is darkness, and not light….²¹I hate, I despise your feast days, and I will not smell in your solemn assemblies….²³Take thou away from me the noise of thy songs; for I will not hear the melody of thy viols. ²⁴But let judgment run down as waters, and righteousness as a mighty stream.

Amos was prophesying against the people of Israel, telling them to be careful when they ask for justice. They may not understand what they’re asking for. Justice, you see, is poured out upon the guilty. And we are all, according to the Bible, guilty.

The Scripture tells us that “all have sinned and fallen short of the Glory of God (Romans 3:23) and the wages of sin is death (Romans 6:23). There is certainly an earthly justice that will be poured out on crime. But there is a heavenly justice that is awaiting us, and it will be poured out on sin. And all of us, in that respect, are criminals.

If you’re unfamiliar with the Biblical categories, they work like this:

Justice is getting what you deserve. Mercy is not getting what you deserve, if you deserve punishment. And grace is getting what you do not deserve, if what you get is a reward.

Liberation Theology, the type that has so ravaged the Black church in America, teaches that the gospel is about demanding justice. But the gospel is precisely the opposite; the gospel is about us avoiding justice poured out on our sins, because it was poured out on Christ instead, so that we might be shown grace and mercy.

If you exulted in joy when you heard of Penny’s acquittal, you’re not alone. All Christians and all reasonable people should be happy that a man will not be punished for preventing a criminal from carrying out his promises to harm innocent bystanders around him. Penny provides for us, in that incident, a picture of Christlikeness, who put himself on the line to save people who didn’t even know him.

There is something, down in your heart, that is resonating with that. I’d submit to you, God put that joy in your heart. Don’t feel guilty about it, but rather, embrace it.

Daniel Penny’s civil rights were maintained yesterday. He had a right not to be punished for doing good deeds. And for that reason, it’s a victory worth celebrating.