Volume 30, No. 25                                                
June 26, 2005

Crimefighters Get A Lift

  When it comes to fingerprints, C.S.I. could stand for Constant Scientific Inaccuracy.  

   The experts will tell you that finding a match in any computerized system is painfully slower than anything you see on TV.  All those scenes of police picking up a pistol by putting a pen under the trigger guard are bogus, too — investigators rarely get good prints because most handguns don’t have many smooth, flat surfaces. At the risk of sounding picky, even the notion that every person’s fingerprints are unique isn’t technically accurate.  Scientists estimate the odds of finding two sets the same are one in two quadrillion, which is a million times the planet’s population.

   But the current system sure beats the way they did things a hundred years ago, and we can thank Will West for that.  In 1903, he was sentenced to Leavenworth Penitentiary but, when he arrived, officials discovered that Will West was already there, according to their records — which included a photograph.  At first, guards thought he’d escaped unnoticed but, when they checked his cell, he was still there.  West and the new Will West looked identical!  

   At that time, criminals were identified with the Bertillon System, a series of 14 body measurements, including height, weight and head size.  The chances of finding two people with exactly the same dimensions were 286,435,456 to one.  Still, the two Will Wests beat the odds.  Not knowing what else to do, officials tried that era’s version of “digital” technology, a system developed by Scotland Yard:  they fingerprinted the men and found completely different characteristics.

   That wouldn’t have surprised William Herschel.  Working in India for the British government in the 1850s, he collected fingerprints as a hobby and soon found that no two sets seemed the same, and that fingerprints didn’t change much as people aged.  When he paid out pensions, he made his clients put their thumbprint next to their signature in his payroll book.  Then in 1880, Scottish missionary Dr. Henry Faulds wrote an article about how the Japanese had been signing legal documents with fingerprints for centuries.  He called on police to use fingerprinting and, in 1901, Scotland Yard decided to give it a whorl.  The F.B.I followed 20 years later and, today, 2,700 criminals a month are identified by the files of just that one agency.  Though some criminals try cutting or burning off their fingerprints, that’s not only painful but pointless because the scars are just as unique as the prints they replace.

   In much the same way, it’s impossible for any of us, as followers of Christ, to hide our true identity.  Each of us is known and recognized by the impression left behind by our unique spiritual marker:  the imprint of our love.  “If you want to be my follower, you must love me more than your father and mother, spouse and children, brothers and sisters — yes, more than your own life,” says Jesus.  “Otherwise, you can’t be my disciple.” (Luke 14:26, 27)

   Once we’re born again, that love becomes part of our spiritual genetic makeup.  We inherit it from our Father.  As Romans 5:5 tells us, “we know how dearly God loves us because He’s given us the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts with love.” A love that flows from our hearts into our hands as we serve those around us, especially our church family.  “Love each other.” the Lord says.  “Just as I’ve loved you, you should love each other.  Your love for one another will prove to the world that you are my disciples.” (John 13:35)

   The fingerprints of love prove our blood-bought innocence and keep us out of the prison of pride and self-importance.  Further, there’s no other measurement we can use to identify ourselves as true believers:  not the height of our achievement, the weight of our intellect, or the size of our bank account.  As Jesus reiterates, “You are truly my disciples if you keep obeying my teachings.  And you’ll know the truth and the truth will set you free.” (John 9:31, 32)
   Those around us will know the truth, too, perhaps enough to want it for themselves. So get your hands dirty.  Leave some evidence of liberating love.  You’ll soon be fingered as a Christian.

By Rick Gamble, published in Cross Current, the weekly newsletter of the Followers of Christ church family in Brantford, Ontario, Canada.  Reprint at will in not-for-profit publications.  To receive these free weekly articles via email, send a note to sgamble@bfree.on.ca