Hello, my friends,

In these heavy times, we are in, I want to invite us to look at Simeon’s prophetic words about Jesus in Luke 2:22-40 and reflect on some of the ways they are playing out before us within American Christianity. In doing so, I hope you find a measure of hope and encouragement in charting your path forward, even when Jesus is, to use Simeon’s words, a sign that people oppose.

Before we get into it, here are some resources to consider:

​-How To Oppose H.Res. 59. For those of you who do not know, House Representatives are trying to pass Resolution 59, which seeks to have the U.S. House of Representatives declare Bishop Mariann Budde’s sermon at an interfaith prayer service a “distorted message.” This is a religious liberties issue. While differing opinions on matters of faith and interpretation of Scripture are to be expected in a free country, we must continue to be clear: it is our role, not that of the government, to decide what is true and right in matters of faith. We must let people know our opposition to efforts – such as H.R. 59 – that undermine these ideals. My friends over at Christians Against Christian Nationalism have made it easy to do this. Simply click the "how to" link above to contact your member of the U.S. House of Representatives. They have a pre-written letter you can use, or you can adjust the text to make it your own. It took me 30 seconds. I encourage you to do so and then share if you are willing.

​-How to Help: DC Plane Crash If you're like me and want to help with things outside your local area, it can be hard to make sure you are giving to verified fundraisers. In my search, I found that GoFundMe has compiled all the recent fundraising efforts for the people impacted by the loss of their loved ones. Needs range from covering funeral expenses to taking care of immediate family needs. You can find them through the link above. Please pray for those who are grieving such a tragic loss.

​-When ICE Comes to Church This article from Christianity Today looks into the case in Atlanta where immigration agents arrested a Honduran man outside the church he helped plant. It looks into the possibility of it becoming the trend. Also, this incident has prompted the Quakers to file suit to stop ICE raids on houses of worship. You can read about that here.​

​-How a German Thinker Explains MAGA Morality by David French. I have grown to admire David for his legal expertise and his analysis of current events from his Christian perspective. I think you will find his work here both insightful and helpful. I was also honored to be quoted by him in this article as well.

​
Okay, onto today’s content.

​
​The Falling and Rising of Many

Luke 2:22-40

When the time came for the purification rites required by the Law of Moses, Joseph and Mary took him to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord (as it is written in the Law of the Lord, “Every firstborn male is to be consecrated to the Lord”), and to offer a sacrifice in keeping with what is said in the Law of the Lord: “a pair of doves or two young pigeons.”

Now there was a man in Jerusalem called Simeon, who was righteous and devout. He was waiting for the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit was on him. It had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not die before he had seen the Lord’s Messiah.

Moved by the Spirit, he went into the temple courts. When the parents brought in the child Jesus to do for him what the custom of the Law required, Simeon took him in his arms and praised God, saying: “Sovereign Lord, as you have promised, you may now dismiss your servant in peace.For my eyes have seen your salvation,which you have prepared in the sight of all nations:a light for revelation to the Gentiles, and the glory of your people Israel.”

The child’s father and mother marveled at what was said about him. Then Simeon blessed them and said to Mary, his mother: “This child is destined to cause the falling and rising of many in Israel and to be a sign that will be opposed so that the thoughts of many hearts will be revealed. And a sword will pierce your own soul too.”

There was also a prophet, Anna, the daughter of Penuel, of the tribe of Asher. She was very old; she had lived with her husband seven years after her marriage,and then was a widow until she was eighty-four. She never left the temple but worshiped night and day, fasting and praying. Coming up to them at that very moment, she gave thanks to God and spoke about the child to all who were looking forward to the redemption of Jerusalem.

When Joseph and Mary had done everything required by the Law of the Lord, they returned to Galilee to their own town of Nazareth. And the child grew and became strong; he was filled with wisdom, and the grace of God was on him.

This is the same passage of scripture that many churches around the world will hear this Sunday who follow the lectionary. We are in the season of Epiphany, which is the season after the Christmas season. Epiphany is the season when we reflect on the light that has come into a world of darkness through Jesus’ birth. The light that brings healing, liberation, justice, and renewal among those who thought it would never be possible.

With the theme of Epiphany in mind, we hear the words from Luke’s gospel about Mary and Joseph bringing little Jesus to the temple, according to their religious customs. We hear about Simeon, who was waiting for both the liberation and comfort of his people Israel, and the light of salvation for all the world. Simeon proclaims to God that he has seen that promise fulfilled in the little baby Jesus he holds in his arms. This redemption was then proclaimed in the streets by the prophet Anna, who had also long been waiting to see God move the world out of darkness.

This passage is not only meant to leave us in awe with Mary and Joseph over how their son is the messiah that the prophets had long foretold but it is also meant to highlight what his life and teachings will bring about in his years ahead.

I want us to pay special attention to Simeon’s words to Mary, when he said, “This child is destined to cause the falling and rising of many in Israel and to be a sign that will be opposed so that the thoughts of many hearts will be revealed. And a sword will pierce your own soul too.”

As Luke shows us in the rest of his gospel, Simeon’s words accurately reflect how Jesus was received. As Jesus went about teaching and living out his message in the world, some heard it as good news, while others heard it as bad news. While the poor, the sick, the marginalized, and the oppressed sought Jesus out and sang his praises, others opposed his welcoming, forgiving, and compassionate words and actions as a threat. So much so that people were plotting to kill him his entire ministry, from trying to throw him over a cliff in Luke 4, trying to destroy him in Luke 19, and, of course, his arrest and execution beginning in Luke 22. As Simeon said, all of this pierced Mary’s heart like a sword.

I don’t know about you, but it feels like this has been playing itself out within American Christianity recently as well. We saw the tremendous backlash to Bishop Budde’s appeal to mercy for scared people at the inauguration prayer service. We endured a devastating air collision only to see it turned into a political football, framing diversity as a threat, and an opportunity to blame rather than show compassion. We witnessed the Vice President’s words go viral about how there’s a Christian concept of how loving our neighbors and the rest of the world is a secondary priority to loving our immediate family. This all happened against the backdrop of raids happening within our immigrant communities across the nation.

Mercy, compassion, loving our neighbors as ourselves, and caring for the stranger are all central to the life and teachings of Jesus, and yet it led to the “falling and rising of many” and was a “sign opposed,” which revealed the thoughts and hearts of many.

When Evil Is Called Good

We are actually living in a time where some Christians see mercy as offensive, empathy as a sin, and diversity, equity, and inclusion as a threat.

I’m reminded of the words from Isaiah 5:20, “Woe to those who call evil good and good evil, who put darkness for light and light for darkness.” Lord, have mercy.

Like Mary, many of us feel like recent events and the inhumanity on display have been like a sword to our hearts.

I think that the most heartbreaking thing about recent events isn’t really that those in the highest positions of power will take every opportunity to blame and dehumanize others and even resort to racism and conspiracy theories to score political points.

I think that the most heartbreaking thing is that far too many people will not only refuse to stand up to this rhetoric and behavior but will even believe and support it. Even among those who claim to be Christian.

We saw this with the disinformation campaign around Covid-19. We saw this with the racist and false claims of migrants eating pets. We saw this with the false claim that Democrats were controlling the weather to target red states with hurricanes. We saw this in the act of blaming this tragic plane crash on “DEI” as well as other false claims.

People suffering and dying just isn’t a reason enough to be truthful and compassionate.

Yet no one is allowed to criticize or stand up to this behavior without being flooded with anger and “both-side-ism.” We are all just expected to somehow accept and tolerate it when tragedies that should bring us together are instead turned into tools to blame and dehumanize others and to create outlandish claims that frame even the diversity of our country as some kind of threat.

Again, the current administration’s lack of humanity isn’t the most heartbreaking thing. Our lack of humanity that leads to both tolerating it and even justifying it is the most heartbreaking thing.

My heart breaks over waiting for Christian leaders of integrity to speak out against this, only to see far too few. How hateful and ignorant will it have to get for it to be enough for us to stand up to it?

“For the time will come when people will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear. They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths.” -2 Timothy 4:3-4 NIV

In the midst of this overwhelming reality, we must not forget Simeon’s words that there are those “rising” as well. We must not forget Epiphany’s reminder that into the darkness, a light has come.

Just as we see in Jesus’ ministry, there were those who saw his light, heard his teachings, and chose to live them out by loving and serving their neighbors as Jesus did for them. The same is true in our time too.

After my newsletter last week and posting about Bishop Budde’s appeal to mercy, I was flooded with messages from people expressing a passionate interest in the teachings of Jesus. Many of them told me a similar story. They had been very opposed to Christianity because of all they had seen in politics and in our culture, yet once they heard Bishop Budde’s sermon and spoke truth to power, they said, “That’s what I always believed being a Christian looked like, and I want to engage in my faith again.”

I also heard from many people who openly shared with me that they had been longtime advocates of hardline Christianity and politics, yet these last few weeks have really caused them to question or even break away from that line of thinking. One told me that she was in her mid 70's and proof that God still changes people!

My friends, I know it is so easy to feel a sense of hopelessness and despair for so many reasons right now, but I want to encourage you to persevere and love all the more boldly. In a world where those who claim to be Christian are opposing the very teachings of Jesus, we need to follow them all the more. In a world where the teachings of Jesus are causing people who claim to follow him to fall, we need to rise up all the more. In a world where the days seem to grow darker, we need to shine our light all the more.

“Through Jesus all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. In him was life, and that life was the light of all humanity. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.” -John 1:3-6
​

What To Do:

I want to share a few practical things I’ve been doing that have brought me stability and endurance these days. Maybe you’ll find them helpful as well.

The first is what’s called “what’s my role parties.” A friend and I have put out a few invitations to local faith, political, and community leaders in our area who are dedicated to the betterment of our community, and we are going to just get together, have some good food, and ask, “What’s my role?” The purpose of this is not only to hear about the work we are all doing locally but to see if there is any points of inspiration and connection where we could collaborate. I believe that building community, especially locally, is going to be vitally important in the days ahead.

The second is to not allow the tactic of shock to overwhelm me into inaction. So much of what is happening in the political realm right now is purposefully done to shock and overwhelm us in order to make us scared, apathetic, or even hopeless. Once I understood that this was the game being played, I began to put up my boundaries and practiced refusing to be overwhelmed by the tactic of shock. Sometimes, this looks like actively looking for ways to advocate or get involved in the issue at hand, and other times, it looks like disconnecting for a few hours, if not the rest of the day, in order to preserve my mental state and show up for the things that need my attention right in front of me.

Finally, I have been trying to remember that I am just one person. I can’t tackle all the problems I’m seeing unfold in the world. So, I choose to focus on what I can do. I’ll pick two or three issues to focus on understanding for the time being and not try to address everything all at once. I’m also practicing waiting a day or two before reacting to new policies or executive orders. This allows me to regulate my mind and gain a deeper understanding before engaging on the issue. Initial reporting on issues can often miss essential details and context, so this allows time for better information as well.