As the Great Recession drags on with nationwide jobless figures over 9% and GDP growth at a rate that barely keeps up with inflation and population growth, the president and Congress are in "negotiations" to try to raise the debt limit so that the economy isn't hit with yet another shock: federal default and the downgrade of our economic rating by Moody's and other rating agencies. Such an event would likely lead to a further economic downturn and the specter of even higher unemployment and a double-dip recession. Incredibly, political leaders in Washington are talking about further spending cuts, primarily targeting the poor, the disabled, and the elderly. No matter what happens this week with the debt ceiling, those least able to care for themselves throughout the nation will see their situations get worse before they get better, and more people will go to bed hungry every night. Today's reading from Isaiah speaks to people who find themselves in dire straits, and it offers them respite: "Ho, everyone who thirsts, come to the waters; and you that have no money, come, buy and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without money and without price." Was the prophet speaking figuratively? Certainly, based on the historical situation at the time--he was living among the Jewish exiles in Babylonia--the provision of free food and drink, all they could eat of rich food and drink, was not reality at the time, but I don't think his words were purely figurative. The prophet was looking toward a time when God would restore the fortunes of the nation of Israel, return them to their land, and provide such abundance of resources that there would be more than enough to go around, and even foreigners would seek to join them. We live in a land of superabundance, and yet the U.S. ranks near the bottom of industrialized countries in the percentage of the population that is hungry or that goes without adequate nutrition on a regular basis. Why? Because of greed, both simple, individual greed, and structural injustice that might be called institutional greed. Despite the serious problem of simple greed, the refusal of those with much to do anything to meet the needs of those with little, the problem of institutional greed is more far-reaching, both because it affects more people and because institutional reform has the potential to end the problem entirely. For example, if tax rates were at the same level now as they were under President Kennedy, people who rely on Medicare, Medicaid, and SNAP (food stamps) would have more to live on, and more people would have access to these life-saving programs. If real medical insurance reform were instituted, those who now have to ration their medication and spend perhaps hundreds of dollars per month on necessary medicine would have more disposable income to spend on more nutritious food. If military spending were reduced by half (or more) and spending on pointless wars were eliminated, the federal government could reinvest the savings in work projects, rebuilding crumbling roads, bridges, and schools, and maybe even reinvigorating the space program, formerly a source of national pride but now an afterthought, all of which would not only strengthen our infrastructure but also provide millions of jobs to the unemployed, reducing the unemployment rolls and allowing countless families the dignity of relying on themselves rather than government "handouts" for survival. It is interesting to note that of all the deprivations suffered by the Jews in exile, the prophet uses food as a stand-in to represent all of them. Food is one of the bare essentials of life, and the people of God should do all they can, both as individuals and as part of the body politic, to ensure that all our country's residents, indeed all the inhabitants of our shared planet, have access to all the food they need to survive and thrive.
It never ceases to amaze me the way in which candidates for political
office parade their religious ties before the voters. Mostly I'm amazed
at the things they say, and the policies they advocate, that are
contrary to the core values of the very religious traditions they claim
to represent. When Barack Obama was running for president, his ties
with the Rev. Jeremiah Wright came to light, and when people took lines
from one of Wright's sermons out of context (see my earlier comments), Obama was quick to distance himself from
Wright, even though in the controversial sermon Wright was articulating
a message taken straight from the Hebrew prophets, that the call to
follow God and God's ways takes precedence over other commitments,
including nationalism. Current candidates Michele Bachmann and Rick
Santorum, among others, advocate the unequal treatment of gays and
lesbians, a stance at odds with the biblical message of equality before
God. Herman Cain has frequently lashed out against peaceful Muslims,
saying that communities have the right to ban Muslim houses of worship
from their midst, violating both the First Amendment to the U.S.
Constitution and the Christian principle of religious liberty. In
today's reading from the Psalms, the psalmist says, "The LORD upholds
all who are falling, and raises up all who are bowed down. The eyes of
all look to you, and you give them their food in due season. You open
your hand, satisfying the desire of every living thing." This psalms
portrays a God who is generous, who "abounds in steadfast love," who
sees the needs of the people and meets those needs out of the abundance
of God's provisions. Too often politicians of all stripes, to a greater
or lesser extent, seek to limit God's blessings, perhaps to those who
are more deserving (e.g., U.S. citizens), or more traditional (e.g.,
heterosexuals), or members of the "right" religion (Christians,
obviously, especially conservative Christians). They pander to rich
corporations (e.g., to weaken laws protecting unions or devastate
environmental laws), or powerful interest groups (e.g., the pro-Israel
lobby, neglecting the legitimate concerns displaced and disenfranchised
Palestinians), or groups who shout the loudest (e.g., the Tea Party),
rather than showing a genuine concern for the most vulnerable among us.
We are suffering through a period now in which economic crisis coincides
with political malfeasance, but there is always the hope that the next
election, or the next appointment of a Supreme Court justice, will swing
things back in the direction of social justice. More important than
possible electoral victories, however, is the certainty that God remains
committed to the welfare of all people, and God's followers can draw on
the strength God provides to care for those in need around them, and to
persuade others of like mind to join them.
Romans 9:1-5 (first published 31 July 2005)
When Rabbi Michael Lerner was a little boy, he attended a private
Christian school in his community. He participated in Christmas plays
with the other children and drew the nativity scenes assigned by his
teachers (although an occasional enlightened teacher allowed him to draw
Hanukkah scenes instead). It came as a great shock to him one day, then,
when a fellow classmate hit him in the face and called him a
"Christ-killer." Anti-Semitism is nothing new, of course. Its presence
among Christians can be traced back through the refusal of Western nations
to accept Jewish refugees who were fleeing to Holocaust in Nazi-controlled
Europe; to the Nazi-inspired Kristalnacht in 1938; to pogroms
against the Jews in Russia and elsewhere; to Martin Luther's treatise "The
Jews and Their Lies"; to the expulsion of the Jews from Spain in 1492 by
Ferdinand and Isabella; to medieval laws restricting where Jews could live
and forcing them to wear identifying patches on their clothing; to
massacres of Jews during the First Crusade; to the Code of Justinian
suppressing Jewish worship and study; to the anti-Semitic writings of John
Chrysostom, Augustine, Gregory of Nyssa, Ambrose, Origen, and other
Christian leaders; to the early second-century Epistle of Barnabas; and
perhaps even to the gospels themselves. What a contrast, then, to read of
Paul's love for his fellow Jews, in today's reading from Romans: "I could
wish that I myself were accursed and cut off from Christ for the sake of
my own people, my kindred according to the flesh." The Jews are people
blessed by God, Paul says, and nothing can take that away. The fact that
Paul's understanding of Judaism had changed to encompass Jesus of Nazareth
as the Messiah did not mean that Paul rejected the Jews. On the contrary,
it was his burning desire to see them accept Jesus as Messiah just as he
had done. Paul's love for the Jews echoes Hosea's love for the nation of
Israel. Whereas Amos prophesied against the Northern Kingdom with a
certain degree of relish, Hosea spoke with a heart full of pain, for he,
too, was an Israelite from the north. Why Christianity as a whole
discarded Paul's attitude of love for the Jews for an attitude of hatred
may be explained by the church becoming predominantly Gentile, by the
ascendancy of Christianity as the dominant religion of the Roman Empire,
or by fear and prejudice. It should be noted, however, that some
Christians did stand against anti-Jewish attitudes and practices
throughout history, to a greater or lesser extent, and in the wake of the
Second World War, almost all Christians today give at least lip service to
a condemnation of anti-Semitism. What about the dispensationalist
position, which strongly supports the nation of Israel as a key player in
the drama of the end times that their theology envisions? While one would
certainly welcome their apparently (and often sincerely) positive attitude
toward Jews in today's world, we must remember that their picture of the
future includes a massive conversion of Jews to Christianity. It is fair
to say that dispensationalist theology (though certainly not every
dispensationalist as an individual) values Jews primarily for the role
they play in the eschatological events surrounding the Great Tribulation,
not for their contributions to society, their values, or their beliefs.
Progressive Christians, of whatever eschatological bent, welcome the more
positive attitude toward the Jews that the last half-century has brought,
but which is still far from universal among Christians. Christianity has
a special relationship with Judaism: we read the Jewish scripture, we
honor Jewish patriarchs and matriarchs, and we follow a Jewish Messiah.
Christians owe a debt of gratitude to Jews, past and present, and it is
our sacred duty to oppose and renounce anti-Semitism in all its forms.
Matthew 14:13-21 (first published 31 July 2005)
It had been a grueling few days. Jesus' disciples were tired, and they were excited when Jesus suggested that they take the boat across the Sea of Galilee to a secluded spot where they could rest. When they arrived, they were chagrined to find that a huge crowd of people had followed Jesus to that very place, walking several miles along the shore of the lake. Seeing the crowd seemed to revive Jesus, however, and he began healing all those who were sick. As evening approached, his disciples urged him to send the crowd away. "You've done all you can do," they said. "Send the people into the surrounding villages so that they can get something to eat." Jesus' reply startled them. "You feed them," he replied. "Where will we get the resources to feed so many people? There are thousands of them!" the disciples asked. What transpired then is the only miracle included in all four gospels, the Feeding of the Five Thousand. It's easy to hear this story and say to ourselves, "If only I could perform miracles! Then I could really make a difference in the world today." The fact is that we can perform miracles. Maybe we can't literally multiply loaves and fish, but we can definitely do what Jesus did: heal the sick and feed the hungry. Some people argue that people are poor because they're lazy, or because they choose to be poor, but no one chooses to miss a meal, much less starve to death. Yet millions of people around the world go to bed hungry every night. No one chooses to be sick, yet millions of people suffer from preventable or easily treatable diseases. Why? In both cases, because not enough people care. Just this week Congress passed CAFTA, the Central America Free Trade Agreement. One of the provisions of this law that purportedly helps the average citizen of Central America or the Dominican Republic is a guarantee that big pharmaceutical companies can extend their patents on drugs throughout the region, thus denying less expensive, generic drugs to those who are sick but can't afford them. The agreement will also help commercial farmers, while family farms, especially in rural areas of Central America, will suffer. How can Christians imitate Jesus today? We can oppose future legislation like CAFTA (i.e., the FTAA). We can state clearly and powerfully that Christianity opposes the exploitation of the poor and the sick. We can support groups like Pastors for Peace who attempt to deliver food and medicine to the poor in Cuba. We can give money to non-profit organizations like Oxfam, Bread for the World, and Doctors without Borders that are on the front lines of meeting the needs of people around the world. Finally, we can elect people to represent us who reflect our values and who recognize that access to affordable health care and food are basic human rights, not privileges of the wealthy.