Memorial of Saint Alphonsus Liguori, Bishop and Doctor of the Church
As I read and reflect on scripture, I often wonder how God might be calling me to find similar expressions of truth and grace in our current world. In today’s scripture, both readings describe prophets who are instruments of God. Both Jeremiah and John the Baptist accept the rejection and suffering of speaking out to proclaim God’s call to renewal and repentance. At the recent passing of Congressman and civil rights activist John Lewis, I have come to recognize that in many ways this man was a prophet for our age who spoke of love, hope, courage and equality for all people. God speaks through prophets in every age- the question is “are we listening?”
In today’s first reading, Jeremiah speaks out and calls the people to repentance. Jeremiah tells the people that “It was the LORD who sent me to prophesy… reform your ways and your deeds.” The people threaten Jeremiah because of his message, but Jeremiah does not shrink even in the face of death. He places his life in their hands because he knows the “in truth it was the LORD who sent me to you, to speak all these things for you to hear.” Jeremiah remains steadfast in his mission to share God’s truth, and he does not respond with violence or resistance. Upon seeing Jeremiah’s courage and self-sacrifice, the people recognize that Jeremiah is in fact an emissary of God, and they save his life.
The gospel reading recounts the life and death of John the Baptist. John preaches the coming of the Kingdom of God and the call of repentance. John also calls out Herod and his unlawful marriage. Without cause, Herod arrests John and places him in prison. He is hesitant to kill him because people “regarded him as a prophet.” John is killed because of a promise that Herod must keep. John has not done any evil, and he does not respond with violence or resistance. He gives his life because of his commitment to speak God’s truth to the people of his time.
John Lewis (1940-2020) lived the majority of his life striving for equality, justice, and hope for all people. His training in the American Baptist Theological Seminary provided him a foundation that was based on his faith in God. The understanding of “redemptive suffering” and its impact on how he lived his life speaks of how Mr. Lewis truly lived his Christian faith.
In his memoir he shared the following:
“We must honor our suffering, that there is something in the very essence of anguish that is liberating, cleansing, redemptive. I always understood the idea of the ultimate redeemer, Christ on the cross. But now I was beginning to see that this is something that is carried out in every one of us, that the purity of unearned suffering is a holy and affective thing. It affects not only ourselves, but it touches and changes those around us as well. It opens us and those around us to a force beyond ourselves, a force that is right and moral, the force of righteous truth that is at the basis of human conscience. Suffering puts us and those around us in touch with our consciences. It opens and touches our hearts. It makes us feel compassion where we need to and guilt if we must.”
John Lewis lived this type of redemptive suffering throughout his life. He was present on “Bloody Sunday” as he marched for voting rights for African Americans. When he spoke about experiencing this violence, he said that the individual suffering must hold “no malice towards the inflictors of his suffering.” He stated that non-violence had at its very base-“a love that accepts and embraces the hateful and hurtful.” John Lewis described one “method” of practicing this kind of love.
“One method of practicing this approach when faced with a hateful, angry, aggressive even despicable person is to imagine that person, actually visualize him or her as an infant, as a baby. If you can see this full grown attacker who faces you as a pure innocent child that he or she once was, it is not hard to find compassion in your heart.”
John Lewis lived his life in pursuit of a society where all people were treated as equals. His understanding that each of us was created in the image and likeness of God impelled him to find ways to fight for people who were marginalized. He stated,” Not one of us can rest, be happy, be at home, be at peace with ourselves until we end hatred and division.” Like the prophets from scripture, John Lewis spoke out because he believed he had a message of truth that God called him to share with all people. Mr. Lewis’ commitment to people who are marginalized and his commitment to speaking the truth despite the cost, both are shining examples of how he was a true disciple of Christ.
Like the people in the time of Jeremiah and John the Baptist, there are prophets among us that are speaking out about God’s love and call to unity. I believe that John Lewis is one of those voices. The question for us is whether we will have the ears to hear, the eyes to see, and most importantly the heart to heed the call to renewal and repentance.
Father, Your Son shows us the way to love even accepting suffering that brings redemption. Allow your Spirit to give us courage and grace to seek a world that all are united with You in love, peace, and equality. We pray this through Christ our LORD. Amen
- Marylynn Herchline