By Scott Herr
“Be the change you wish to see in the world” is a famous quote from Mahatma Gandhi. Although the wording is disputed, the point is clear: If you want to see change in the world, it starts with you! In the Christian tradition, this is the season of Epiphany, a season when we reflect not only on Jesus (Mr. “Light of the World”), but also how God’s light is refracted through our daily thoughts, words and actions. It is a time to ask, “How then shall we live?”
I am still absorbing the contrast of President Trump’s Second Inaugural Address and what many call Jesus’ Inaugural Address. Unsurprisingly, they cast different visions. One could argue Jesus has two versions of what his ministry was all about. The first is called the “Sermon on the Mount” found in the gospel according to Matthew, chapters 5-7, which includes the bit about “Blessed are the merciful…” The second is found in Luke 4, and was recently the prescribed gospel text in many churches. Jesus read in his hometown synagogue from the scroll of Isaiah:
“The Spirit of the Lord is upon me,
because he has anointed me
to bring good news to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives
and recovery of sight to the blind,
to set free those who are oppressed,
to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.”
After finishing the reading he declared, “Today this scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.”
President Trump proclaimed through a controversial Executive Order a literal release to the captives. Some are outraged and some say, “He answered our prayers.” Whatever one thinks of the release of the J6 prisoners, clearly our new President is not setting free all those who are oppressed. Bishop Budde in the Prayer Service at the National Cathedral on Tuesday, January 21st, directly asked the President to have mercy: “There are gay, lesbian and transgender children in Democratic, Republican, and independent families, some who fear for their lives.” She also pleaded on behalf of the millions of undocumented workers who live and work among us.
As far as I’m concerned, we need to pray for all of our elected political leaders, that some good might come of their decisions and actions to bless our nation. And when things don’t seem to be going in a direction that seems fair or just, we need to speak up and act out. Not by throwing insults, but by doing acts of kindness and justice that embody what is good, true and beautiful.
With President Lincoln’s birthday coming up next week, I have found inspiration in his Second Inaugural Address given on March 4, 1865. Lincoln’s words continue to offer wisdom and a bright north star for leadership:
“With malice toward none; with charity for all; with firmness in the right, as God gives us to see the right, let us strive on to finish the work we are in; to bind up the nation’s wounds; to care for him who shall have borne the battle, and for his widow, and his orphan – to do all which may achieve and cherish a just, and a lasting peace, among ourselves, and with all nations.”
Lincoln’s words inspire me to be a better version of myself, and I hope can inspire us all to be a better version of ourselves as a community. How do we refrain from malice; show more charity for all; strive to do what is right by binding up the nation’s wounds and caring for those who are most vulnerable, and work together toward a just and lasting peace for all?
Whatever your spirituality or faith tradition, it is daunting to know even where to begin to “be the change you wish to see in the world,” or to engage in “binding up the nation’s wounds,” etc. I offer you a blessing from the Black Rock Prayer Book, and hope you will receive and live into it:
“The world now is too dangerous and too beautiful for anything but love. May your eyes be so blessed you see God in everyone, your ears, so you hear the cry of the poor. May your hands be so blessed that everything you touch is a sacrament. Your lips, so you speak nothing but the truth with love. May your feet be so blessed you run to those who need you. And may your heart be so opened, so set on fire, that your love, your love, changes everything.”
The Rev. Dr. Scott Herr is one of the pastors at the First Presbyterian Church of New Canaan.
