April 8, 2009: Deputy U.S. Marshals and U.S. Postal Inspectors seize an automobilefrom the home of Shawn R. Merriman in Aurora, Colo
Last Tuesday, the SEC filed a lawsuit against a former LDS bishop in an attempt to recover funds that had been embezzled in a ponzi scheme over the last 13 years. Shawn Merriman is accused of milking almost $20 million from investors as his scheme grew.
The real importance of this story is not that that there is another person that has been caught stealing money from others, rather who that person was, a religious leader. I have often come across those who feel there comes a time in life when a person becomes so righteous that they are no longer tempted to do things which may be unethical or even illegal. At a certain point, a righteous member of their religion is free from the trials that face the rest of us. That could not be any farther from the truth.
Each member of society is responsible for their actions. That does not change with age or position. The only thing that does change with age is our ability to make a bad decision. As we are given more responsibility in life, we are also given the change to succeed or fail. If we fail to act with a basic level of morality, then we are failing in our responsibility as members of our community. These decisions can be very small at first. They may come out of desperation. Merriman was at one time trying to do some legitimate investing, however, after losing $400,000 of his investors money, he turned to a dishonest practice to cover up the losses.
They may come from greed, but they well come given enough time.
What may be upsetting to many is that Merriman was a respected member of his community. He was not simply a "banker on Wall Street", but was a religious leader and respected by many of his neighbors.
We must remember that each one of us has the potential to be the next victim of a bad decision. The choices we make effect others in ways we may not be able to see, and the consequences of those decisions may last for years. While it may be easier to think that there is an easy way out, or that if I go to church, then it won't happen to me, we need to understand that it can and does happen to the best of us, bishop or CEO or member of the congregation.
If we truly want to live in a peaceful society, we must recognize that the problem exists, and that we will be forced to face it from time to time. When we are prepared for the challenge, regardless of who we are and what positions we may hold in our community, they we will be well on our way to living in our own personal Zion.
2 comments:
Should someone with more authority be held to a higher code with stricter punishment than everyone else? I can see how the obvious answer might be, of course the CEO should be held more accountable, people trusted him/payed him to not screw up, and, no, a bishop shouldn't be judged harsher, all callings are important, and we're all equal in God's eyes... something like that. But I'm not sure what I think. Any thoughts on accountability for "the best of us"?
I don't think it is necessarily holding someone to a 'higher' standard. I think we should have similar standards for all, but I can see coming down harder on a person of authority. They have greater responsibility so more people are injured when they mess up.
I think I feel more strongly about elected authorities. If a person WANTS a position of authority and the general masses grant it to them, they should be held to a higher standard than someone who was asks to take a position.
That may be a complete double standard, I'm not sure, but it feels right to me.
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