Today’s Readings: Psalm 150; 2 Chronicles 24:17-22; Acts 7:55-8:8; Acts 6:1-7; Psalm 126
One of the curious things I’ve learned about faith communities is that many of them are in love with the notion of having a prophetic leader. At least they love the idea of a prophetic leader in the abstract. When it comes times to actually receive a ministry whose voice is prophetic, however, many faith communities are not so thrilled about the idea. Why is that? Why do we love the idea of being prophetic in the abstract but resist it in the concrete? I can’t speak for everyone in answering those questions, but I do have an answer based upon my own life experiences. Over the years I have observed that many people think being prophetic means simply criticizing those with whom you disagree. Conservative congregations, for instance, think someone is being prophetic if he/she rails about the Roe v. Wade decision and the legalization of domestic partnerships in various places around the country. Liberal congregations, on the other hand, think someone is being prophetic if you criticize the Bush administration and decry the erosion of civil liberties in our times. As long as you stay within those comfortable confines (i.e. criticizing your “opponents”), the voice of a prophet is safe. It is only when you move outside those comfortable confines and start challenges the beliefs and practices of the community to whom the prophet is speaking that things get a little dicey. That’s certainly what Zechariah found when he summoned the courage to prophetically speak to King Joash and the community about their ways of being. When Zechariah said, “You can’t live this way! If you walk out on God, God’ll walk out on you” (2 Chronicles 24:20 from The Message); the community adopted a two-fold response: first, ignore him and hope he goes away; and then kill him if doesn’t go away. As we culminate the Christmas season when prophets have played such an important role, I would invite you to think about whom you consider to be a prophet. Do you consider someone to be prophetic simply because they share your opinion and protest those with whom you already disagree, or do you have a different definition of what being prophetic means? Til next time…
One of the curious things I’ve learned about faith communities is that many of them are in love with the notion of having a prophetic leader. At least they love the idea of a prophetic leader in the abstract. When it comes times to actually receive a ministry whose voice is prophetic, however, many faith communities are not so thrilled about the idea. Why is that? Why do we love the idea of being prophetic in the abstract but resist it in the concrete? I can’t speak for everyone in answering those questions, but I do have an answer based upon my own life experiences. Over the years I have observed that many people think being prophetic means simply criticizing those with whom you disagree. Conservative congregations, for instance, think someone is being prophetic if he/she rails about the Roe v. Wade decision and the legalization of domestic partnerships in various places around the country. Liberal congregations, on the other hand, think someone is being prophetic if you criticize the Bush administration and decry the erosion of civil liberties in our times. As long as you stay within those comfortable confines (i.e. criticizing your “opponents”), the voice of a prophet is safe. It is only when you move outside those comfortable confines and start challenges the beliefs and practices of the community to whom the prophet is speaking that things get a little dicey. That’s certainly what Zechariah found when he summoned the courage to prophetically speak to King Joash and the community about their ways of being. When Zechariah said, “You can’t live this way! If you walk out on God, God’ll walk out on you” (2 Chronicles 24:20 from The Message); the community adopted a two-fold response: first, ignore him and hope he goes away; and then kill him if doesn’t go away. As we culminate the Christmas season when prophets have played such an important role, I would invite you to think about whom you consider to be a prophet. Do you consider someone to be prophetic simply because they share your opinion and protest those with whom you already disagree, or do you have a different definition of what being prophetic means? Til next time…
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