Little Idols Everywhere
Let me say at the outset - I mourn for those lost and injured in the Las Vegas shooting on Sunday. I mourn for those targeted in the daily shootings that occur in this country. I cannot minimize or take away the suffering of the victims or their families. But my empathy for the victims of gun violence has led me to, once again, take a look at our society that permits and, yes, encourages these tragedies to happen over and over again.
Let me be quite clear and say it quite loudly, in the spirit of the prophets of old - ya got trouble, folks, right here in River City, trouble with a capital I... (OK my parody of old musicals falls flat here)...and that stands for Idolatry. Whether it is the flag or the national anthem or 2nd Amendment or guns themselves, our nation seems to have chosen to revere these "things" over our devotion to God, the Bible, or simple moral decency. In their book, The Altars Where We Worship, Juan Floyd-Thomas, et al., write, "Though we claim to serve things that are sacred, in actuality we deem sacred those things that serve us."
Martin Luther said, "Trust and faith of the heart alone make both God and idol. Whatever then the heart clings to...and relies upon, that is properly thy God." And, recently, I think we've seen what many people in America cling to. Not a sense of justice and fairness for all, not a belief in the sanctity of life, not a call to be people of peace and non-violence. Nope - we want our Things! Don't take away our guns, don't dishonor the flag, don't politicize national tragedy! (And before I get eaten alive by commenters - I don't advocate getting rid of all personal guns in America, just enacting sensible controls and regulations such as banning semi-automatic weapons, large capacity magazine and armor piercing bullets; requiring universal background checks; and a national computerized registry.)
Lately, I've been studying the prophets - not just the Old Testament ones, but more modern ones such as Archbishop Romero, MLK, Jr., Dorothy Day and even Shane Claiborne. People who speak for God, who tell the truth to the powerful and powerless alike. People who warn us that our ways will lead to destruction. One thing that is common to all of these prophets is that they see no separation between the public and the personal sphere, between the political and the private, or between the religious and the secular. God's law of justice, love and mercy trumps (pardon the expression) all secular law. MLK, Jr. defined a just law as one that "squares with what is right, so that any law which uplifts the human personality is a just law." An unjust law, therefore ... "does not square with the law of God."
So, do our current gun laws "square with the law of God"? Does requiring someone to stand and salute a national flag "square with the law of God"? Does putting the 2nd Amendment to the US Constitution above the safety of innocent people "square with the law of God"?
Christians need to look deep into our own consciences and pray for the discernment to understand the law of God without the distractions of the media pundits and political spin doctors. As Isaiah asked the Israelites, "How long will you go limping with two different opinions? If the Lord is God, follow him; but if Baal, then follow him." People cannot serve two masters. Which one shall we serve?
Let me be quite clear and say it quite loudly, in the spirit of the prophets of old - ya got trouble, folks, right here in River City, trouble with a capital I... (OK my parody of old musicals falls flat here)...and that stands for Idolatry. Whether it is the flag or the national anthem or 2nd Amendment or guns themselves, our nation seems to have chosen to revere these "things" over our devotion to God, the Bible, or simple moral decency. In their book, The Altars Where We Worship, Juan Floyd-Thomas, et al., write, "Though we claim to serve things that are sacred, in actuality we deem sacred those things that serve us."
Martin Luther said, "Trust and faith of the heart alone make both God and idol. Whatever then the heart clings to...and relies upon, that is properly thy God." And, recently, I think we've seen what many people in America cling to. Not a sense of justice and fairness for all, not a belief in the sanctity of life, not a call to be people of peace and non-violence. Nope - we want our Things! Don't take away our guns, don't dishonor the flag, don't politicize national tragedy! (And before I get eaten alive by commenters - I don't advocate getting rid of all personal guns in America, just enacting sensible controls and regulations such as banning semi-automatic weapons, large capacity magazine and armor piercing bullets; requiring universal background checks; and a national computerized registry.)
Lately, I've been studying the prophets - not just the Old Testament ones, but more modern ones such as Archbishop Romero, MLK, Jr., Dorothy Day and even Shane Claiborne. People who speak for God, who tell the truth to the powerful and powerless alike. People who warn us that our ways will lead to destruction. One thing that is common to all of these prophets is that they see no separation between the public and the personal sphere, between the political and the private, or between the religious and the secular. God's law of justice, love and mercy trumps (pardon the expression) all secular law. MLK, Jr. defined a just law as one that "squares with what is right, so that any law which uplifts the human personality is a just law." An unjust law, therefore ... "does not square with the law of God."
So, do our current gun laws "square with the law of God"? Does requiring someone to stand and salute a national flag "square with the law of God"? Does putting the 2nd Amendment to the US Constitution above the safety of innocent people "square with the law of God"?
Christians need to look deep into our own consciences and pray for the discernment to understand the law of God without the distractions of the media pundits and political spin doctors. As Isaiah asked the Israelites, "How long will you go limping with two different opinions? If the Lord is God, follow him; but if Baal, then follow him." People cannot serve two masters. Which one shall we serve?
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