Our country is on moral life support. We are hanging by a thread. So many people are either oblivious to, or feel powerless in the face of the reality that we are systematically destroying any chance of hope for our children and grandchildren. For their sake, we must do better.
I believe this tragedy, though it has been ongoing for hundreds of years, probably longer, falls on those who have bought into the beliefs of Christian Nationalism, which, according to Pew Research, now claims about 43% of American Christians. Basically, they believe that White Americans are superior to everyone else. Ignorance is not bliss here, people. Check out:https://www.au.org/the-latest/church-and-state/articles/origin-story-the-history-of-christian-nationalism-is-littered-with-hate-and-extremism/)
So how did we get here? It may seem I’m veering off topic, but stay with me a moment.
Let’s go back to Moses (yeah, that far) climbing that mountain so many times. Each time God spoke to him and told him what to tell the Israelites. He relayed God’s message to them, and they chose to ignore him and do what they wanted. He finally had enough. So, he went up that mountain one last time.
Actually, I believe this is where the real story was lost. I think he decided he was not, no way, going to climb that damn mountain again just to have those bull-headed, stubborn people ignore God’s words. Shoot, as soon as he was out of sight, they started worshipping that creepy golden statue they made.
So, Moses frantically carved out his version of commandments he thought would finally scare them enough to change their ways. Could he have embellished them a bit? Possibly. Anyway, he let them know they were not suggestions. They had to follow every single one to the letter to get into heaven, which kept them in line, kinda, sorta, for the next forty years – give or take a few – who knows.
Since that fateful moment in time, many church leaders picked up that mantle and, to this day, claim to speak for God through those commandments to keep their followers under control by way of fear and guilt – and it has worked for a lot of people for a very long time.
I can’t speak for everyone, but I can tell you that for years I was one of those people, except I went even further. I was so certain about it that I felt obligated to use every opportunity I had to let others know if they were on the road to hell. And when they looked at me with that “who do you think you are?” stare, I would shrug and offer a “don’t say I didn’t warn you”, and leave them to their demise. You’ll be happy to know that God eventually corrected my pathetic attitude.
Now, come on, honestly, is fear and guilt what God is selling? You have to know it’s not. God is and always has been about Love. Have we forgotten Jesus’ words that should have put an end to all that? He pronounced the “Greatest Commandment” to those with ears to hear: “Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and all your strength” AND secondly, “Love your neighbor as yourself.” (Matthew 22:38-39) PERIOD. There’s nothing ambiguous about that.
Of course, trying to love God that profoundly and love our neighbor as ourselves if we don’t love ourselves might be a pretty tall order. So, I would like to challenge each of us to start with the Beatitudes.
Can we try to live the Beatitudes in our lives within a country that is broken? Can we be the hands and feet of Christ for those who are suffering the consequences of the hatred and fear we see played out every day?
The Beatitudes aren’t commands from God; they are examples of how we are to live and move and have our being in the world. We need to get this right. The hurting and suffering are counting on us. God is counting on us!
Let’s be:
The poor in spirit
Those who mourn
The meek
Those who hunger and thirst for righteousness
The merciful
The pure of heart
The peacemakers
Those persecuted for righteousness
I will leave you with these words from Father Richard Rohr and Pope Leo. Both show us that the Beatitudes should fill us with peace, renew our hearts, and bring joy to our broken world.
This from Richard Rohr, written by author Debie Thomas – what the Beatitudes are not:
“The Beatitudes are not to-do items. They are not suggestions, instructions, commandments, or quid pro quos. There is nothing transactional about them, nothing that smacks of a “should,” a “must,” or an “ought.” It is emphatically not the case that if I try very hard to be poorer, sadder, meeker, hungrier, thirstier, purer, more peaceable, and more persecuted than I am right now, God will like, love, reward, and appreciate me more than God already does.”
Then, this from Pope Leo:
“The Beatitudes are written on the heart where joy resides.” That “living the Beatitudes can bring us happiness, bring light to the world’s shadows, and renew our hearts even when the world seems to have failed us and is full of misery.” Only God “can satisfy those who seek peace and justice. He is the author of eternal peace.” Only in God do “the meek, the merciful, and the pure of heart find joy, because he is the fulfillment of their expectations. In persecution, they find redemption, and in falsehood, they find an anchor of truth.”Christ is “the poor man who shares his life with everyone, the meek man who perseveres in suffering, the peacemaker persecuted to death on the cross.”
PASSION, PURPOSE & POOPYHEADS 