If you’ve followed this column over the past year, you know I’ve been very hard on church leadership, especially progressive leadership, for failing to find ways to translate our values into political change. The God’s honest truth is my disappointment on that score runs all the way back to Viet Nam. I’m not apologizing or changing my mind, but I do believe in giving credit where it’s due.
Last night I attended a World AIDS Day vigil and healing service at Our Lady of Lourdes Church in Daytona Beach. Several hundred people were in attendance representing various faiths -- and not only Christian. I felt proud to be present as a believer in God, and proud to see the faith community taking the lead. There was no such parallel secular event. If you wanted to honor and remember those who have suffered and died, and recognize the progress being made in treatment and care, this was the only place to do it. And people of faith were behind it. So I say, hats off … but …
I’ve been thinking lately, in this time of worldwide economic unraveling, that the looming upheaval offers a choice of paths that can lead either to collapse and chaos, or a positive rebirth of our world culture. The church must decide whether it wants to be the point of the spear prodding us to a new, more compassionate order, or a nurse on the battlefield caring for the wounded. Just as no secular faction was capable of organizing World AIDS Day gatherings, no other institution has proved able to lead us beyond self interest to a vision of our culture as a common-good covenant with God and each other.
Of course, I’m not talking about supporting specific political parties or candidates; that is a violation of nonprofit status, among other things, and just serves to divide people. But, as wonderful as last night’s event was -- and it truly was healing for many -- it was another inside-the-walls event. Somehow, we have to find a way to carry our message of God’s love and its world-changing power beyond the walls of our sanctuaries. Evangelicals have been adept at getting their voices heard in the public square but, unfortunately, the things they say aren’t very helpful. When we on the progressive side pierce public consciousness, it’s usually in our role as nursemaids to the hurting, such as the hungry and homeless, or those touched by HIV/AIDS. That’s admirable and much needed, but it’s reactive. It’s not the point of the spear.
The stakes have never been higher. We stand at a moment in time when the Evangelical voice is losing force because of its narrowness and exclusiveness. Even the Republican Party is asking them to step back. So we have a soap box waiting, open to someone who can drive the right spirit-driven leadership straight into the heart of an eager populace.
Beyond opportunity, we have an obligation to act. God calls us to it, and the people desperately need us. Our secular leaders have failed and I believe there’s hopeful celebration in heaven as a corrupted and inadequate political/economic vision fades away. Sure there’ll be short-term pain, so we do need to be on the battlefield binding wounds of the fallen. But we also need to be the point of the spear as we prepare to rebuild the kingdom once more. With enough faith, this time it may emerge looking a little more like God’s kingdom.
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