An 'Unlikely' confession encourages compassion

Ashley Smith, the Christian who talked a killer into surrendering as he held her hostage, has published a book. She calls it "Unlikely Angel." Angel, because her spiritual prowess outwitted the devil. "Unlikely," because she's no angel. Smith has a history of shoplifting, drug abuse and other ills. She even offered the killer a hit of meth.

Hearing that has disappointed some folks. They wanted a Roma Downey — an angel as pure as snow in the Rockies.

But I'm not one of those people.

In fact, her confession encourages me. I see it as an example of "Yin and Yang."

The Yin and Yang symbol (a black paisley piece and white paisley piece forming a circle) is the ancient Chinese version of today's LDS notion, "There must needs be an opposition in all things." Light and dark must play off of each other. But in Yin and Yang, the white piece has a dab of black in it and the black section sports a spot of white.

And that, I think, is the way the world is.

Ashley Smith was a spiritual light, but she'd been contaminated by the world.

Her would-be killer, Brian Nichols, had a heart of darkness, but with just enough spiritual light in that heart to be touched.

And between those two, there's room for us all: the humanitarian who has a streak of anger, the drug dealer who dotes on his mother, the dutiful mother who cusses, the sterling young man who races on the freeway, the burglar who loves children, the virgin with racy thoughts. The list goes on, and includes us all.

The idea of "pure black" and "pure white" are ideals. But Smith and Nichols — Yin and Yang — are real.

And knowing there's a touch of light in the darkest soul gives us some hope.

Just as knowing there's a touch of dark in the brightest life makes us feel charitable and compassionate.

I admire idealists — people who are crushed when they learn that a person they felt was beyond temptation falls to temptation. And I have a healthy respect for cynics — people who feel the most admirable life holds unsavory secrets.

But I trust people who believe no sin is so scarlet it cannot be bleached and no soul is so pure it doesn't need to be redeemed.