Perspective: A Religion for the Oppressed

I share these thoughts hoping they are of help to someone else.
Comments are always welcomed.
If you find these thoughts helpful, please share.

A Religion for the Oppressed

Jesus went to Nazareth, where he had been raised.  On the Sabbath he went to the synagogue as he normally did and stood up to read.  The synagogue assistant gave him the scroll from the prophet Isaiah.  He unrolled the scroll and found the place where it was written:

The Spirit of the Lord is upon me,
because the Lord has anointed me.
He has sent me to preach good news to the poor,
to proclaim release to the prisoners
and recovery of sight to the blind,
to liberate the oppressed,
and to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor.

He rolled up the scroll, gave it back to the synagogue assistant, and sat down.  Every eye in the synagogue was fixed on him.  He began to explain to them, "Today, this scripture has been fulfilled just as you heard it."

Luke 4:16-21 (CEB)

Paranoia strikes deep
Into your life it will creep
It starts when you're always afraid
Step out of line, the man come and take you away

From "For What It's Worth" by Buffalo Springfield

The Sunday school class I help lead at my church discusses current events in light of the Christian faith.  Not too long ago the class read and discussed a news story that mentioned a vibrant and growing underground church in a nation where Christianity is essentially illegal.  We considered the question of why the Christian faith seems to thrive in such places.  I do not have a definitive answer to this question, but I do have a theory.

I suspect that, in a nation where people do not have the freedom of religion, people probably do not have much freedom in general.  In other words, people in such nations are oppressed.  I believe that Christianity thrives when it serves the oppressed.  Furthermore, I believe that Christianity was always meant to be a religion for the oppressed.

Consider the Gospel story.  Over two thousand years ago, Jesus of Nazareth born into an oppressed group of people, namely the Jewish people.  He ministered to His own people and to people of other nations, teaching them to love their neighbors, giving them hope, and healing those in need of healing.  One day, Jesus was brutally and wrongfully executed by His people's oppressors, namely the Roman Empire.  A couple of days later, He was resurrected from the dead.  He was then raised up to Heaven and revealed to be both the Son of God and the true Lord of this world.

The Gospel story would naturally be compelling to people suffering with a proverbial boot on their necks.  It offers them the hope that their oppressors are not truly in control and the hope that the worst thing that their oppressors could do to them would not truly be their end.  It might even inspire them to boldly take a stand against their oppressors.

The Gospel story has the power to save people.

Everything good in this world has the potential to become corrupted, and sadly the religion inspired by the crucified and risen Jesus is no exception.  Ever since the days of the Roman emperor Constantine, the Christian church has made compromises with the powers that be, trading its prophetic power for political influence.¹  The religion for the oppressed becomes a tool of oppression.  The story with the power to liberate people from their fear is twisted into a message intended to control people with fear.  "Believe what I tell you to believe and live how I tell you to live, or else you will suffer forever and ever," people hear.

The separation of church and state is necessary for maintaining the integrity of the church.  A religion that partners with an oppressive government will inevitably become a tool of oppression.  The church will never reform the state with such a partnership, but the state will most certainly hijack the church.

The Sermon on the Mount, in which Jesus offers a way of life for people who follow Him,² begins with a series of blessings for certain people.  Jesus blesses "the poor in spirit" and "those who are persecuted for righteousness' sake," promising that the Kingdom of God is for them.  He also blesses "those who mourn," promising that comfort is on the way.³  Jesus is blessing people who are oppressed either by circumstance, by loss, or by other people, perhaps their government.  Jesus also blesses the gentle, the just, the merciful, the pure-hearted, and the peaceable.⁴  Jesus blesses the kind of people who would minister to the oppressed.

If Christ blesses people who are oppressed and people who would minister to the oppressed, then the religion that bears His name must be a religion for the oppressed and not a religion for their oppressors.  A religion for the oppressed offers people hope amid their oppression.  A religion for oppressors has nothing good to offer anyone.  It can only give people the false assurance that, if they support their oppressive leaders, they are in the right and numb their consciences to the suffering of their neighbors.

If you fear that Christianity is in decline where you live, consider how the religion is currently functioning in your society.  Is it serving the oppressed, or is it serving their oppressors?  Is it liberating people from their fears, or is it instilling fear into people?


Notes:

1. Wikipedia: "Constantinian shift"
2. Matthew 5-7
3. Matthew 5:3-4, 10 (NRSV)
4. Matthew 5:5-9

The Sermon on the Mount was painted by Carl Heinrich Bloch in 1877.

Perspective: An Unacceptable Loss

I share these thoughts hoping they are of help to someone else.
Comments are always welcomed.
If you find these thoughts helpful, please share.

An Unacceptable Loss

You have heard that it was said, You must love your neighbor and hate your enemy.  But I say to you, love your enemies and pray for those who harass you so that you will be acting as children of your Father who is in heaven.  He makes the sun rise on both the evil and the good and sends rain on both the righteous and the unrighteous.

Matthew 5:43-45 (CEB)

Hello, it's Me
I couldn't sleep
I was just counting sheep
And I'm missing you

From "Bring You Back" by Paul Alan

In the Gospels, Jesus tells a story about a shepherd who has one hundred sheep in his care.  At one point, the shepherd realizes that one of the sheep is missing, so he leaves the ninety-nine others where they are and searches for the lost sheep.  When he finds the missing sheep, he rejoices as if the sheep he just found means more to him than the ninety-nine sheep that did not go astray.¹

The Parable of the Lost Sheep is found in both the Gospel of Matthew and the Gospel of Luke.  Perhaps the most significant difference between the two versions of the parable is the context in which Jesus tells it.

In the Gospel of Luke, we read that one day Jesus overhears some religious leaders criticizing Him for associating with so-called "sinners."  He tells them the Parable of the Lost Sheep, along with two other parables, to help them to understand why he fellowships with the people they ostracize.²  Jesus concludes the Parable of the Lost Sheep, saying, "In the same way, I tell you, there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who changes both heart and life than over ninety-nine righteous people who have no need to change their hearts and lives."³

Jesus associates with so-called "sinners" because, unlike the religious leaders, He is unwilling to write them off as "lost."

In the Gospel of Matthew, we read that one day, when the Disciples ask Jesus "who is greatest in the kingdom of heaven," He calls a child to sit with them and tells them that, if they want to enter the kingdom of heaven, then they need to become like the child.⁴  Next, using some very strong language, Jesus warns the Disciples to take care that they do not do anything that might lead a child of God down a destructive path.⁵  Then, He tells them the Parable of the Lost Sheep to highlight how important all of God’s children are to God.  He concludes the parable, saying, "In the same way, my Father who is in heaven doesn’t want to lose one of these little ones."⁶

In Matthew's Gospel, Jesus follows up the Parable of the Lost Sheep by giving the Disciples some instructions for reconciling with someone in their faith community who has wronged them.⁷  Though we typically think that these instructions are for confronting wrongdoers in a faith community, I would like to suggest, given their placement in the Gospel, that their purpose is ultimately to repair fractured relationships between followers of Jesus.

Jesus does not want His followers to "lose" anyone through either their actions or their inaction.

In either context, one lesson we can glean from the Parable of the Lost Sheep is that, in the same way that the shepherd in the parable is not willing to write off any one of his sheep as lost, we must never write off a fellow child of God as lost.  We must not write off a person as lost if they fail to live up to our standards, and we must not write off a person as lost if they have personally offended us.  A wayward child of God is still a beloved child of God.


Notes:

1. Matthew 18:12-13; Luke 15:4-6
2. Luke 15:1-32
3. Luke 15:7 (CEB)
4. Matthew 18:1-3 (CEB)
5. Matthew 18:6-7
6. Matthew 18:14 (CEB)
7. Matthew 18:15-17

Le Bon Pasteur was painted by James Tissot in the late 1800s.

Introspection: Do Something!

I share these thoughts hoping they are of help to someone else.
Comments are always welcomed.
If you find these thoughts helpful, please share.

Do Something!

I hereby command you: Be strong and courageous; do not be frightened or dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.

Joshua 1:9 (NRSV)

I don't know what's right and what's real anymore
And I don't know how I'm meant to feel anymore
And when do you think it will all become clear?
'Cause I'm being taken over by the fear

From "The Fear" by Lily Allen

I would like to share more introspective writing this year, but, as I noted previously, I don't really feel like I have anything especially good to share about my life at this time.  Furthermore, as I also noted previously, if I have grown weary of the disappointment, bitterness, and self-pity that tends to infect my personal writing, then I cannot help but think that you would not want to read it either.

All that said, lately I've started to wonder if those of you who have been reading my introspective posts for a while want to ask me, "If there's so much you don't like about your life, then why don't you just freakin' do something about it?"

It's a good question.  So why don't I just freakin' do something?

There's a simple answer: fear.

If I don't like my job as a computer programmer, then why don't I quit my job, go back to school, and become a teacher, which is what I think I really want to be?

The truth is that I'm afraid of making a big mistake.  Though I don't love my job, I don't hate it either - at least I don't hate it every day.  Even on the days I do hate my job, I still take pride in the fact that, because I work at a local technical college, I am using my programming skills to make a positive contribution to my community.  Also, I have a lot of benefits beyond a monthly paycheck, including health insurance, a lot of vacation time, and the possibility of retiring with a pension.  I fell into a pretty sweet deal, and I'm afraid of giving it all up for something I don't even know I'll find more fulfilling.

I'm also afraid of getting in over my head.  I didn't especially enjoy writing papers when I was in college, and I have no idea how I would ever write a master's thesis, much less a doctoral dissertation.  Also, though I've taught some ten-hour classes for my church district, I have no idea how I would ever plan and teach a semester-long class.

If I'm lonely, then why don't I reactivate my dating profile and start swiping right?

The truth is that I'm afraid of rejection.  I'm afraid that, if I start swiping right, no one will swipe right on me.  I'm afraid that, if someone, for some reason, does actually swipe right on me, she will inevitably get to know me too well and realize she can do a lot better.  Maybe, deep down, I'm also afraid of change.  Maybe I'm afraid that I really will meet someone who loves me and accepts me, that we'll actually hit it off, and that I'll eventually find myself in a life that is nothing like the crappy yet comfortably predictable life I've always known.

There is a lot I don't like about my life, but I'm hesitant to do anything about it because I'm afraid.  Unfortunately, there is no figurative silver bullet that kills fear.  The only way to defeat this monster is to confront it head-on and to overcome it.

There is an old nursery rhyme about some children who are "going on a bear hunt."  As the young hunters look for bears, they encounter a series of obstacles in their path, including tall grass, a river, and finally a dark bear cave.  Whenever they meet an obstacle, they realize that they "can't go over it," that they "can't go under it," that they "can't go around it," but that they "got to go through it."¹  All these things are especially true about the obstacle of fear.

I have a personality that makes me a lot more adept at longing for the things I think I want in life than actually working for them.  If I want a better life, then I will have to take action, and, to take action, I will have to overcome my fear.  I can't go over it.  I can't go under it.  I can't go around it.  I can't shoot it from a distance with a magic bullet.  I will have to go through it.


Notes:

1. https://allnurseryrhymes.com/going-on-a-bear-hunt/

The photograph of the animal cave is used courtesy of PickPic.com and is understood to be public domain.  The photographer is in no way affiliated with this blog.