Together on the Journey: A Weekly Blog from Fr. Andrew Sheldon
Just over a week ago, the Right Reverend Mariann Budde preached a sermon. In her sermon, she quoted from the Hebrew and Christian scriptures and reminded the hearers of the admonition to seek justice, love mercy, and walk humbly with your God. She referenced Jesus’ teaching and especially the mandate to accord dignity to every human being, to show mercy and forgiveness, and to care for those most marginalised. She spoke of the importance of honesty and humility in our dealings with one another. And she made a passionate plea to especially consider the most vulnerable in our society. In other words, she preached a message that many thousands of us preach on a weekly basis to many millions of people around the world. The only difference is that she preached her sermon in the presence of the President of the United States.
A President, as it turns out, who was not all that impressed with the bishop’s homiletical prowess. He called the sermon nasty, boring, and uninspired; he demanded an apology; and his supporters have followed up with everything from mere condemnation to death threats toward the bishop and her family. And all this for simply stating simple core Christian beliefs.
But let us not be naïve. The Christian message is potentially a subversive one and can be threatening to those who seek stuff, status, and power. And it is our responsibility to speak this truth to that power. Indeed, as much as we have tended to not want to mix politics and religion, the gospel of Jesus Christ is a decidedly political manifesto. Politics is simply the process of determining the affairs of a society, and the Christian gospel has much to say on how a society should be ordered. Something to keep in mind when having an opinion or casting a vote.
On a not entirely unrelated matter, those of us who are residents of Ontario have, are, or about to receive a cheque for $200. Party politics aside, I’m not sure most of us really need those funds; could use them – sure, but need them, maybe not so much. Given the great needs many have in our province for food, housing, healthcare, and employment, I might have wished these funds were allocated elsewhere. But they have been given to us and I intend to allocate mine to St George’s and specifically to our outreach fund which primarily addresses food insecurity in our community. As an act of generosity, and in the spirit of the gospel, I invite you to consider doing something similar.
And to close, the closing words of the bishop in her address: “May God grant us the strength and courage to honour the dignity of every human being, to speak the truth to one another in love, and walk humbly with each other and our God. Amen.”
Andrew+