Faith Around Us
God and Our Community
Faith in God and in humanity is where the majority of officers struggle the most (Friedman 42). Seeing the horrific things that law enforcement sees each day on the job leaves them pondering God’s existence (or presence), and how He could let these horrible things happen? Law enforcement constantly sees people at rock bottom, and are often dealing with the worst of humanity. Being surrounded by this everyday, it is easy to lose faith in humanity. Sergeant Ryan Smith (who works in the Criminal Investigations section of Huntersville Police Department) emphasizes the importance of surrounding yourself with people who remind you that good people do exist. When you are constantly seeing the bad, you forget how much good is in the world. He says, “I always have to remind myself that I am dealing with only a tiny percentage of the population while I’m coming into contact with criminals. My wife has really helped remind me that there are so many good, normal people out there” (R. Smith, personal communication, June 10, 2022).