Henri Nouwen said that all evil can be traced to Greed and Anger. Perhaps that’s too simple–yet these two demons seem to lurk near the surface of our social injustice and discriminatory issues; and on the world scene, our pushing and shoving about borders and religious entitlements. The People of God are not immune: I confess my own misbehavior, whether actualized or merely fantasized. Readings for the coming weekend hint at such cosmic conflict.
Ezekiel’s oracle (33:7-11) first reminds the prophet of his/her responsibility to speak a warning to the errant community: “their blood I will require at your hand.” (brrrr!) And then a psychological insight, “Our transgressions and our sins weigh upon us, and we waste away because of them.” Even well-begun nations always waste away, as do individuals who’ve lost their expectations of holiness. The Church becomes prophetic by denouncing Greed and Anger.
We’ve been journeying, this Summer, with the Roman Believers as they’re growing the Church. Paul continues to spew gems of both behavior and attitude: “Love does no wrong to a neighbor.” (13:10) He takes religion and spirituality beyond the individual into the life of a practicing community. We learned in psychology that “the whole is greater than the sum of its parts”. This works when we “live honorably…not in quarreling and jealousy.”(v.13)
How vindictively we misread Matthew 18:15-17!! Telling your neighbor about a real or imagined offense is making a positive opportunity to contain and resolve the problem! Even taking along a posse is a form of mediation: how much better this is than to fume to your cronies and engage in a whisper campaign! “The Church” to which this problem is told is the ideal community of forgiveness and toleration, a covenant group which values each member with love. ONLY THEN do you give up on a friendship, for reconciliation is better than divorce. Notice that it’s the aggrieved party who is supposed to take the initiative toward arbitration and resolution.
There’s very little in scripture about individuality in faith and salvation. Rather this is the story of the development of the People of God, a faith-community finding new horizons to practice from one generation to the next. Until Advent, we’ll be following Matthew’s account of the Gospel as Jesus is building his Church on the foundation of love and mutual encouragement, “not in quarreling and Jealousy”.
God Bless Us, Every One Horace Brown King
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