I don’t think there’s a single soul in our congregation that doesn’t mourn the atrocity of George Floyd’s murder and the circumstances surrounding it. I don’t doubt anyone’s heart, at all. The aftermath of his death, however, is another thing. So instead of trying to defend one way versus another, how about this: Let’s talk about what Jesus did.
When the house of God was defiled by money lenders and ‘that den of robbers’, Jesus marched into the Temple, made a whip out of cords, and drove out those who were practicing undesirable acts in the house of God. He did so out of righteous anger. People were misusing the space intended for peace and prayer, opting instead to further their own agendas. For literally the rest of his life, outside that one event, Jesus chose peace and the path of kindness. He turned the other cheek…do we? He lowered himself to serve others and seek the best in them while also trying to teach truth…do we? He sought to bring people together while peacefully challenging the existing orthodoxy…do we?
When George Floyd was murdered, many people took to the streets in peace. I was among them, in spirit, as COvID is still around and we’re about to open again—I am not chancing that. The protests during the day were peaceful, but then the day turned dark…and night presented a whole different side of ‘protesting’. I use quotes here because I don’t consider looting and violence to be a Christian, or viable, form of protest. I understand the anger—well, as much as I can as a white guy who has lived with an entirely different experience—but it doesn’t excuse the action. From what I’ve heard from my conversations with those of color, their anger stems from years of trying everything else to be heard, so now they feel (not speaking for all, but just from my experience through these conversations) as though this is the only means of getting attention. It doesn’t make it right, but it does pose the question “Have we been listening?” And if you have, then good for you, I’m not writing to you and you have no need to defend yourself or get angry at my words! But, if like me, listening is not something you’ve done well over the years, then perhaps it’s a starting point.
Jesus’ anger was righteous—he flipped tables and drove people out because they were misusing sacred space. What is occurring in the destruction of property is not done out of righteous anger—it’s done out of violent anger. Righteous anger is protesting with signs and words, not with fists and spray paint.
Since the dawn of America, protest has been part of our DNA. Americans threw tea into a harbor due to taxes; marched on Washington for women’s right to vote; marched for civil rights in the sixties; marched for gay/lesbian rights in the nineties. These are all (with the exception of the tea incident, which to be honest none of us really care about) viable means of protest. And righteous. There’s sanctity in standing up peacefully for one’s belief in a noble or humanitarian cause. There is no sanctity in watching the world burn.
The thing is, we have to listen. Not just with our preconceived notions or our own experience, but really listen to others even when we don’t understand and especially when we don’t agree. Half of remaining connected is being able to hear someone without needing to be ‘right’, without inserting our own opinions and trying to fight our way to being on the winning team. Because right now, no one is winning. Streets are burning, families are mourning, people are jobless, people are dying from the virus, and yet all most people want to do is get on a soapbox to prove how their ‘side’ is the right one. I include myself in this. I stand by my words, but I also want to invite conversation in, as I’ve realized that I have a threshold that has been crossed and my objectivity has been diminished. Jesus turned tables to change an ethos within a particular context. But let’s not be so hasty as to liken his actions to those who destroy businesses and homes in the name of righteous anger, or to those who dismiss anger as petulant behavior. They’re not protecting anything. They’re causing destruction. We’re not listening to anything, we’re dismissing voices.
For my part, I will do better to listen, listen to the Holy Spirit, and listen to my neighbor. In all of this, it seems that prayer and thoughtfulness has taken a back seat to pride and prejudice. I must question my own call from the Spirit and make amends where I can, rather than simply blasting away on a keyboard and holding myself up as the one who is right. So, I hope that you can hear the truth I believe, and I hope that you’ll kindly share yours. That form of communication is the only way forward; otherwise, we’re just continuing to throw things into the fire—and wheat and chaff will both be consumed. Together, we can gain understanding. And instead of being ‘right’ according to my own standards, I’d rather discover the right in relationship with as many people as possible.
Because though we are many, we are one Body. And right now that Body is broken.
Fr. Sean+