virtue

Idols of Virtue

/ JJS / Leave a comment

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Today’s readings (click below to open in new tab/window):
Psalms 104; 149, 1 Kings 18:41-19:8, Philippians 3:17-4:7, Matthew 3:13-17

John the Baptist was the antithesis of the scribes and Pharisees in both his message and his appearance. Rather than the elaborate and expensive garments favored by the religious elite of his day, he wore a rough, inexpensive, and probably itchy garment made of camel’s hair. When he wasn’t fasting, he ate locusts and honey. His commitment to humility and simplicity was a physical representation of his message of baptism and repentance. It’s no surprise that when Jesus came to him and asked to be baptized, John humbly objected, saying “I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?” When Jesus said “Let it be so now; for it is proper for us in this way to fulfill all righteousness” he consented.

Though he briefly questioned Jesus’ instructions, John was more committed to Christ than to humility.

Can we always say the same? Maybe it’s not humility we turn into an idol. Maybe it’s tithing. Or virginity. Temperance. Or – in an oddly paradoxical progressive twist – moralizing against the foibles of Christian culture (guilty).

Such spiritual disciplines can be excellent means of exploring and expressing our faith – many of them are even direct commandments – but we must remember they are tools and not currency; they do not buy us God’s favor – rather, they help us build an understanding  of God’s goodness and our relationship with our creator. We must remember they are tools and not weapons; when Christ and Paul talk to us about what is right and wrong it is so we can change our own hearts, not so we can aim those words at others who fail to fall in line.  Currency and weapons, even in a spiritual sense, are seductive idols; they offer us a false sense of control and power when we should be seeking to surrender.

So are we free to do whatever we wish? Of course not. But our moral successes and failures do not save us; Christ already did that. We can accept or reject that redemption, but we can’t diminish or improve upon it. Be generous. Be chaste. Be sober. But be these things out of grateful obedience, not because you think they can save you.

Comfort: Jesus has already done the work of your redemption. 

Challenge: Meditate on whether your spiritual impulses are motivated by gratitude or fear.

Prayer: God of Mercy, thank you for Christ the Redeemer. Amen. 

Discussion: When do you feel like you let God down?

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Welcome to the Disreputable Brood

/ JJS / 4 Comments

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Today’s readings (click below to open in new tab/window):
Psalms 119:49-72, Job 30:1–31, Acts 14:19-28. John 11:1-16

While describing his miserable lot, Job says the children of men he “would have disdained to set with the dogs” of his flock are now mocking him. He calls them a “senseless, disreputable brood” and offers as evidence the difficult lives they have led since being “driven out from society.” However, despite his own struggles, he does not seem to empathize with them. He claims to have “wept for those in trouble” and “grieved for the poor,” but his sympathies have definite limits. If irony were money his wealth would have been restored.

We can be a lot like Job. When bad things happen to us, we call it unfair. When bad things happen to other people, especially because of their own choices, part of us wants to believe things would have been different for us. Job’s friends insist he must be guilty of something partly because they are terrified to contemplate a world where they might suffer the same lot. In a less obvious way even young Elihu, who does not find Job guilty of anything, separates himself from Job by claiming Job’s suffering must be meant to instruct him in some special way. Not one of them accepts that fortune and misfortune are blind to virtue.

We don’t like to admit virtue is largely a matter of circumstance. While there are a few people of extraordinary character who rise above terrible experiences, and a few who are evil despite almost ideal upbringings, most of us are in large part who we were raised to be. We can’t honestly claim we are good (or better) in and of ourselves. A universe that favored the virtuous would actually be a universe that favored the lucky. God loves us all equally – lucky and unlucky, righteous and unrighteous – whether we are Job or the disreputable brood.

Why strive to be virtuous at all then? Because we seek a right relationship with God at all times. Not to earn God’s love or grace which are given freely, but to experience the eternal life – even in times of suffering – promised to us by Jesus.

Comfort: God understands and loves us all.

Challenge: Share a meal or cup of coffee with someone who is going through a bad time. Do not pity or advise them – just be there.

Prayer: God of earth and seed, plant empathy in my heart. Amen.

Discussion: Have you ever gotten into a debate that generated a lot of heat and little or no light?

Join the discussion! If you enjoyed this post, feel free to join an extended discussion as part of the C+C Facebook group. You’ll be notified of new posts through FB, and have the opportunity to share your thoughts with some lovely people. Or feel free to comment here on WordPress, or even re-blog – the more the merrier!