MOURNING THE DEATH OF INNOCENCE, ROBBED CHILDHOODS, STOLEN FUTURES, DESTROYED FAITH AND CRIMES AGAINST BOTH GOD AND HUMANITY
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Sunday BibleTalk: October 14th, 2018
Sunday BibleTalk with Sunday Video Chat!
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Greetings, SBT Readers:
We are a world divided.
Here in Chicago, the trial of white Officer Jason Van Dyke heightened racial tensions as the city waited for the jury to deliver its verdict. On trial for murder having shot Laquan McDonald, a black teenager, 16 times in 2014, Van Dyke claimed he did so in self-defense -- and that was the establishment's narrative, until the forced release of a police dashcam video showed that Laquan, who was carrying a knife, posed no threat to Van Dyke or to anyone else. With all the evidence pointing both to a murder and a cover-up, anything less than a guilty verdict would have resulted in mayhem. Extra security was in evidence throughout the city, with heightened security in downtown buildings and street barricades waiting in readiness. Once the verdict was delivered, protesters danced and cheered in the streets, eventually dispersing peacefully. But not everyone was celebrating:
State Lodge President Chris Southwood of
the
Illinois Fraternal Order of Police
issued a statement describing the trial as "sham" and the verdict as "shameful." Also, neighborhoods on the far south side of Chicago --home to many police and their families-- demonstrated their support for Van Dyke with blue ribbons tied to all the trees. For most residents, Van Dyke was a "sacrificial lamb."
We are a world divided.
Here in the U.S., the appointment of Brett Kavanaugh to the Supreme Court has heightened not only political divisions, but divisions of every other kind as well, especially gender. Mass protests not only over Kavanaugh's appointment but also over the
process
by which he was appointed have riveted the nation. Many fear that the judicial system has been compromised and that democracy is in shreds; many fear what his appointment will mean for civil rights, environmental rights, and for the scope of presidential powers. These fears go beyond partisan concerns but raise questions as to what it means to be an American-- questions that reinforce the uncertainty about core U.S. values with which we have also been grappling because of current immigration policies separating children from their parents. A former Yale Law School dean describes Kavanaugh's confirmation as "An American tragedy," while the
American Bar Association
revisited its endorsement of his candidacy on account of his partisan- ship and lack of suitable temperament.
We are a world divided.
Recent weeks have seen an attack on Pope Francis by his enemies, most notably, by Archbishop Carlo Maria Vigano who claimed the pontiff had reversed sanctions against ex-Cardinal Theodore McCarrick. Denials, accusations and counter-accusations seem to be the order of day among the hierarchy, leaving the faithful shocked, confused, alienated. Meanwhile, Archbishop Vigano is apparently in hiding; Cardinal Marc Ouillet has accused him of "calumny and defamation"; and astounding tales of horror have just emerged from Germany -- more than 3700 children (mostly boys under 13 years of age) were abused by 1670 clergy predators over a 70 year span. However, according to interviews on
D.W.com
, these figures do
not
include any data from religious orders and investigators were
not
given direct access to files. As one survivor put it, it was like "the Mafia investigating the Mafia."
How do we even begin to bridge these divisions?
Will we ever stand on common ground, arms linked in solidarity as we confront evil and work for justice? As long as we are divided, our legacy will be further division, hatred, abuse and discrimination; as long as we are divided, there will be further racism, sexism, ageism, homophobia and xenophobia. As Jesus points out,
“Every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation, and every city or house divided against itself will not stand" (Matt 12:25).
Many Blessings!
Elizabeth
PS
Please note that my video reflection,
Sunday Chat
(see below),
is an imperfect production, entirely unscripted and therefore prone to some "rough spots" in terms of clarity and expression! There's no time for "re-takes"!
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SCRIPTURE REFLECTION
So Jesus again said to them,
"Children, how hard it is to enter the kingdom of God!
It is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle
than for a rich person to enter the kingdom of God."
They were exceedingly astonished and
said among themselves,
"Then who can be saved?"
Jesus looked at them, saying,
"For human beings it is impossible, but not for God.
All things are possible for God."
MK 10:17-27
Whether Jesus was referring to a literal needle (the kind one can lose in a haystack), or to a tapered passageway in a geological formation such as a mountain pass, or to the narrow gateway to a city, the meaning is the same:
fat camels just don't get through
.
Now, there could be two explanations here. In the first place, camels (dromedaries, that is) have that single fatty hump on their backs which allows them to go without food for up to three weeks; they can also go without drink for seven days because of the oval shape of their blood cells (I'm not going to attempt a scientific explanation here, but you are welcome to check this out on the internet). Perhaps these physical characteristics simply make camels too large to enter restrictive spaces. Secondly, camels at the time of Jesus would often travel in caravans, decked with elaborate leather saddles for their riders and large bundles of baggage. The only way to push, pull or coax a camel through a narrow space would be to 1) wait for its hump to decrease in size (if this is a possibility!); or 2), to remove saddle, rider and luggage. Since the dimensions of a "needle's eye" cannot be changed, it is the camel that has to become more diminutive.
Just as fat camels have their limitations when it comes squeezing through narrow spaces, so do humans. Of course, I am not speaking of physical obesity here but of spiritual obesity which, like a camel's fatness, comes in two forms. Just as the camel's hump is an extension of itself, so we can be bloated with pride, greed, self-infatuation, arrogance, narcissism, lust, a sense of entitlement and so forth. Just as a camel comes into this world without a hump, so we come into this world without any sign of spiritual obesity; in fact, we arrive as naked, squealing infants who want to be fed, loved and kept dry. Our needs are simple: we are completely dependent. As we grow, so does bloat, and it is this bloat that keeps us out of the kingdom of God. Only when we begin serious inner work to lose the weight of this obesity will we become available to God's grace.
Then there is the issue of what we cling to and accumulate. Not content to grow our spiritual bloat, we also acquire "stuff": we spend; we hoard; we over-spend; we want more. Never satisfied, we "live to shop." We "shop till we drop." We fritter away hours online, shopping the latest sales, then wait impatiently for Amazon to deliver. You could say that many of us are addicted to shopping-- it consumes us more than we consume goods! However, scripture tells us that it is only with empty hands that we can enter the reign of God. As long as we cling to things, we are too distracted to know what we are missing spiritually or even to desire it.
The disciples are right in asking, "Then who can be saved?" Only God's grace can prompt us to uncurl our fingers until we let go of all the "things" we so desperately cling to! The good news is that with God, all things are possible!
FOOD FOR THOUGHT
- Are you "humpless" like a newborn camel or have you built a magnificent hump of inflated self-notions and attitudes?
- What baggage weighs you down, preventing you from entering through the narrow doorway?
- Is there anything you can let go of to allow God greater entry into your life?
- Have there been any times in your life when you have consciously "let go" to "let God"?
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