Do You Know Why This Happened To Me?

One question victims of crime often want the answer to is "why?" Why was I made a victim? Why did the offender choose to commit this crime? Why did he target me? Some victims may even wonder why God would let something happen to them like it did. 

Perhaps one of the most important steps in restorative justice practices is the opportunity for the victim to get answers to some of these questions from the offender. This sometimes happens in a victim offender mediation. Oftentimes, prisoners may not know the answers to these questions. their work toward restorative justice is to begin examining themselves and seeking to understand for themselves the motivation behind their criminal behavior. When an offender truly wants to change his life, he must understand the why, the cause, for his criminal behavior.

The very work an offender does to answer the question of why he committed a criminal act will work to lead that offender towards avoiding this behavior in the future. Answering the question "why?" may be the most important step in an offender's own healing. And by giving this answer to the victim, and showing a true insight into his behavior, an offender can become a part of the healing process for the victim of his crime.

I do not know whether or not anyone can adequately answer the question of why God allows innocent people to suffer the effects of crime. But perhaps by dealing with the human element we can begin to see spiritual dimensions of living in a fallen world. Maybe in answering the question "why?" we can begin to speak about what forgiveness looks like and how an offender can help restore his victim and be restored himself in the process.