Church as conscience

"The Church must be reminded that it is not the master or the servant of the state, but rather the conscience of the state. It must be the guide and the critic of the state, and never its tool. If the Church does not recapture its prophetic zeal, it will become an irrelevant social club without moral or spiritual authority."

Martin Luther King, Jr.

Strength to Love (1963)

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Prophetic Compassion

Prophetic messages delivered by prophet-like people make us squirm.

We don't like "in your face" challenges, especially when they call us to task, suggest that we change and/or do things in a completely different way.

Recently, a note from SoJo mail, the list serve for Sojourners magazine and community, shared this quote with everyone:

"There is no dearth of Christian service today. But because much of it is service without prophetic compassion, it is powerless to bring about a radical change in individuals and society." Vishal Mangalwadi, quoted in "Cry Freedom", by Charles Ringma.

True statement.

Radical change forces us to work with compassion and imagination on systems, policies, processes, relationships and connections, rather than on individuals alone.

Compassion without prophetic heart is not so hard, but very limited and very much of and about the status quo.

Prophetic message without compassion is not very effective, and it gets heartless and angry and ends up being largely counterproductive.

Marry the two and you discover a powerful energy for producing change. Again, not so easy, at times very dangerous, but so full of hope.

"Prophetic compassion."

That's the ticket.



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Amos. . .little heard, much needed

Eugene H. Peterson's The Message is a refreshing and challenging way to read the Bible. The sub-title of Peterson's interpretive translation is "The Bible in Contemporary Language."

It is that alright!

In addition to the interpretation of the original languages, Peterson provides a background introduction to each of the sixty-six books of the biblical text.

Not long ago, someone pointed me to his introductory comments on the words of the Hebrew prophet, Amos. They are worth sharing, at least for the strong of heart!
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More people are exploited and abused in the cause of religion than in any other way. Sex, money, and power all take a back seat to religion as a source of evil. Religion is the most dangerous energy source known to humankind. The moment a person (or government or religion or organization) is convinced that God is either ordering or sanctioning a cause or project, anything goes. The history, worldwide, of religion-fueled hate, killing, and oppression is staggering. The biblical prophets are in the front line of those doing something about it.

The biblical prophets continue to be the most powerful and effective voices ever heard on this earth for keeping religion honest, humble, and compassionate. Prophets sniff out injustice, especially injustice that is dressed up in religious garb. They sniff it out a mile away. Prophets see through hypocrisy, especially hypocrisy that assumes a religious pose. Prophets are not impressed by position or power or authority. They aren't taken in by numbers, size, or appearances of success.

They pay little attention to what men and women say about God or do for God. They listen to God and rigorously test all human language and action against what they hear. Among these prophets, Amos towers as defender of the downtrodden poor and accuser of the powerful rich who use God's name to legitimize their sin.

None of us can be trusted in this business. If we pray and worship God and associate with others who likewise pray and worship God, we absolutely must keep company with these biblical prophets. We are required to submit all our words and acts to their passionate scrutiny to prevent the perversion of our religion into something self-serving. A spiritual life that doesn't give a large place to the prophet-articulated justice will end up making us worse instead of better, separating us from God's ways instead of drawing us into them.