In those days there was no king in Israel....

...and the people did what was right in their own eyes...

Is that still true today?

I have heard so many stories lately about people taking justice into their own hands; or people in power simply ignoring the checks and balances that were put into place to assure the rule of law; or going off and starting a war based on half-truths and personal motivations.

It is simply too bad that the last chapters of the book of Judges, 19-21 are not part of the common lectionary. I never hear them in church. It seems that we could benefit from hearing these stories again.