52 THE FAITHFUL READER groups. Thus, at the root of Maycomb’s racism is a sense of pride that ultimately results in indifference toward the suffering of others. In her depiction of Maycomb, Lee puts many “good people’s” ills on display and dares us to absolve this behavior as “just the way people are.” In effect, To Kill a Mockingbird forces us to watch the natural evolution of the effects of pride through the depictions of Tom Robinson, Boo Radley, Walter Cunningham, and others. Lee’s assertion is that the small indignities meted out by seemingly well-meaning people all too often produce unmitigated suffering in the lives of the vulnerable and less desirable. The lessons of To Kill a Mockingbird challenge Christians to recognize the imago Dei in each human being and call them to self-assessment. The people of Maycomb, convinced of their own righteousness, fail in these tasks, and their inaction leads to great injustice. Maycomb excuses its own sin while harshly judging others, ignoring the biblical injunction to examine ourselves: “Why do you see the speck that is in your brother’s eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye? (Matthew 7:3). Good Intentions and Culpability Our instinctual response to stories about places like Maycomb is to see them as distant from our own reality—after all, we and our neighbors are nice people who are doing our best to live decent lives—we would do better. Maycomb’s familiarity disabuses us of this notion and encourages the recognition of its likeness to ourselves. In the aftermath of Tom Robinson’s trial and death, Jem comes to this sort of awakening in a conversation with his neighbor: Jem was staring at his half-eaten cake. ‘It’s like bein’ a caterpillar in a cocoon, that’s what it is,’ he said. ‘Like somethin’ asleep wrapped up in a warm place. I always thought Maycomb folks were the best folks in the world, least that’s what they seemed like.’” “We’re the safest folks in the world,” said Miss Maudie. “We’re so rarely called on to be Christians, but when we are, we’ve got men like Atticus to go for us.”
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