Come and See
These past few weeks have been particularly challenging for our country.
Two weeks ago, when last I spoke with you from this pulpit, our country had just illegally attacked Venezuela, at the instigation of the current occupant of the White House, who seems to believe he is above all laws.
Last week a woman, Renee Nicole Good, was killed in Minneapolis – shot multiple times in the face by a federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agent. That agent violated standard law enforcement protocols by firing into a vehicle that was exiting the area. That agent, too, seems to believe he is above all laws.
I mourn the death of Ms Good and I expect that you do as well. Like all of us, Ms Good was a beloved child of God. Like any person living in this country, she did not deserve to die for driving on the street in her own neighborhood.
In the days since Ms Good’s death, people in Minneapolis and St. Paul (“the Twin Cities”) and surrounding areas have been demonstrating in the streets, standing up to call attention to the brutal force the federal government is imposing on the area.
The federal government has responded with increased presence of masked, armed agents, who have been given the authority to stop and harass and assault and grab anyone they see who they consider to be a threat – usually because of the color of their skin or the language they speak. These agents act with aggression, with impunity, and without due process. They too believe they are above all laws.
The people living in the Twin Cities area are afraid; afraid for their lives; afraid of who will be next to be picked up or assaulted or shot. I hear the fear from my colleagues in the area who describe the chaos, trauma, and impact on their communities – children separated from their parents; families afraid to go out of the house; small businesses closed. I see it in the photos posted online.
The fear is real. And the fear is not confined only to the midwest.
ICE agents are on the streets here in New England as well – in East Boston and Worcester and Framingham and Hartford; most likely in the cities and towns surrounding Easton as well; picking up and detaining family members and coworkers and community members without warning, without a warrant, without any legal documentation; judging people by the way they look and they way they speak. People are afraid. I hear the fear in the voices of my colleagues who serve in these areas; I see the fear in their faces when we meet.
This current administration appears determined to provoke civil unrest in major cities and to instill fear in the people who live there. Perhaps that is the point.
This current administration appears determined to assert its power over people (rather than with people); to dominate and take control of our country; to move away from the democratic way of life on which this country was founded and move, instead, toward fascism.
This current administration is centered in the belief that only white wealthy men are capable and destined to lead this country.
This is the white supremacy culture – the sin of racism – in which we live today.
I mourn what is happening in our country. I feel the pain of the people living in fear and I abhor the injustice of the government actions on the streets of our cities and towns. I renounce the sin of racism.
If we are honest about who we are as people of God – if we truly are people who love all people as Jesus loves us – we will all feel the pain and abhor the injustice of what is happening. We will all renounce the sin of racism.
We can do better. We must do better.
In the words of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, whom the ELCA commemorated this past week as a renewer of society, a martyr and our country honors with a national holiday tomorrow:
Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere. We are caught in an inescapable network of mutuality, tied in a single garment of destiny. Whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly.
(From Letter from a Birmingham Jail, written in April 1963).
We are all connected. We are all related – and interrelated. There is a mutuality among people of every tribe and ethnicity that binds us together in our humanity. For those of us who confess our faith in God the creator of heaven and earth, this mutuality is based in our belief that God creates all people in God’s own image.
In our worship life together as followers of Jesus, we are in the liturgical season of Epiphany. This is the season of light shining in the darkness of this world; revealing the true presence of God-with-us – Emmanuel – through the birth and ministry of Jesus Christ.
The presence of God-with-us in Jesus Christ is revealed to us in this morning’s gospel story:
John the Baptist saw Jesus coming toward him and declared,
“Here is the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!
John describes Jesus as the one revealed to Israel; on whom the Spirit descended and remained; the Chosen One (that is, the Son of God).
There is no doubt in John’s mind that Jesus is from God; that Jesus is God; God-with-us embodied in the flesh. Jesus is the one who forgives our sin – actually takes away our sin – and restores us to right relationship with God and with each other.
Notices what happens next in this gospel story – Jesus turns toward the people who are following him and asks them a question What are you looking for? He invites them into conversation; into relationship.
Even today, in this time of national chaos and trauma, Jesus is turning toward us and seeing us and asking us – What are you looking for? Jesus invites us into relationship with him – to ask him questions; to spend time with him; to dwell with him; to follow him into a new way of life.
Come and see, Jesus says.
What do you see when you follow Jesus? Do you see Jesus…
- proclaiming that the kin-dom of God has come near?
- feeding people and healing people?
- looking at people with compassion and love?
- making friends with his followers and with sinners and tax collectors?
- centering people living on the margins of society?
- giving rest for the weary?
- praying for us that we all might be one?
- speaking truth to power by confronting the religious and political authorities?
- calling you to lay down your life for someone else?
- dying on the cross and rising to new life?
The good news for today is that God-with-us – Emmanuel – is still being revealed through Jesus Christ.
The good news for today is that God is faithful1; all God’s promises will be fulfilled.
The good news for today is that Jesus still calls us into relationship with him; Jesus longs to dwell with us; to give us abundant life2 and joy3 and peace4, even in this time of evil and sinfulness within our country.
The good news for today is that following the example of Jesus will change us and transform us into the people God has created us to be; people who can see the face of God in everyone we meet; who treat each person with the dignity and respect they deserve.
We can do better. We must do better.
Come and see what Jesus has to offer you.
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1 Let us hold fast to the confession of our hope without wavering, for he who has promised is faithful. – Hebrews 10:23
2 I came that (you) may have life and have it abundantly. – John 10:10
3 I have said these things to you so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete. – John 15:11
4 Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled, and do not let them be afraid. – John 14:27