Sermon 2022.08.14
Wesley Menke
Jesus said we are great at predicting the weather, but lousy at understanding what is going on. Sounds a lot like watching the news. Do you ever get frustrated with the news; like they do not tell the whole story? Take Ukraine as an example. We are told the names of places that are attacked without very much or no context. What are these places and what is their significance? So I decided to read a history of Ukraine. It is very complicated. I would like to read more. Initial impressions are that Ukraine is very important. It is ancient in terms of a people, culture, and language, and it is also fairly young as a country with Zalensky as its 6th president. It wasn’t just part of the USSR, it provided key leadership to it. Nikita Krushveb was born near what we consider Ukraine and relied heavily on Ukrainian political leadership. And it hasn’t just been the USSR, but many previous empires like Austro-Hungary, the Ottoman, and the Greek empires all reached into Ukraine and depended on its people and natural resources. It is an area that has been highly contested. One popular example of the historically complicated slavic lands and peoples would be Fiddler on the Roof, focusing on the particular history of Judaism under empire. So the struggle to resist external imperial ambitions is much of Ukraine’s history.
So now we hear from Ukrainian leaders asking us to support their right to resist, their right to sovereignty and self determination. Supporting this seems like the only decent thing to do. But the question is: How? Is the procurement of billions of dollars worth of weapons the only way to support Ukraine? This is where Jesus’ words might show us another path.
Contrary to popular belief Jesus doesn’t seem to want peace.He envisions divisions within families as to be expected. Jesus wants us to be prepared to deal with conflict.
One thing I’ve learned about Ukraine is that in the Eastern Donbas region of Ukraine you could probably find families where one member wants to be Russian and other members who do not. Armed conflict has existed in that area before the recent invasion.
The problem is when someone or some group runs out of patience and in a desire for peace and an end to conflict resorts to violence or coercion to stop the maddening arguings and division.
This is something that parents deal with constantly. A child or children may argue or bicker; it may escalate and then the parent faces a choice:
- Do I escalate? Do I raise my voice even louder and consider other corporal means to settle this thing?
- Do I try to de-escalate, ask questions and invite reflection. In the heart of the moment it isn’t easy.
I feel that option 2 is better, and I strive to do it. What we do in our homes has a great impact on the world writ large. To this Jesus says, it’s ok to get fired up. It’s okay to think differently than even the most intimate people in your life. If we can figure out non-violent confrontation at home; then we can handle it better in larger cases too. Can you let yourself and people you love get angry? Maybe burying conflict and avoiding it will only let it fester.
By seeking to end conflict hastily we can unleash great and terrible suffering. Maybe peace shouldn’t be our goal. Maybe we need to lower our expectations and strive for something more realistic. Ask yourself what am I willing to live without? What am I willing to lose? Maybe it’s time to let go of the fantasy of a comfortable peaceful life. You can’t earn heaven or salvation, so how could we earn peace? We are all guaranteed to lose our lives someday. By grace we know that this isn’t a punishment, but just a fact of life.
I recently heard that the most dangerous man in America was Walt Disney. Why? Because he made it possible for millions if not billions of people to believe that if they wished upon a star they could live happily ever after like royalty. Sometimes we think that conflict or disagreement is a sign that we are doing something wrong. What if it’s just the opposite? What if conflict and disagreement means that people care and are struggling to come to terms with difficult realities? Remember that God doesn’t mete out punishments. Your sins are forgiven on the cross. Faith is striving to uphold life and dignity even with our enemies. Peace depends on us; and our actions.
Jesús dijo que somos buenos para predecir el clima, pero malos para entender lo que está pasando. Se parece mucho a ver las noticias. Tomemos Ucrania como ejemplo. Es antiguo en términos de gente, cultura e idioma, y también es bastante joven como país con Zalensky como su sexto presidente. Y no ha sido solo la URSS, sino muchos imperios anteriores como los imperios austrohúngaro, otomano y griego, todos llegaron a Ucrania y dependieron de su gente y sus recursos naturales.
Así que ahora escuchamos a los líderes ucranianos pidiéndonos que apoyemos su derecho a resistir. Apoyar esto parece ser lo único decente que se puede hacer. ¿Pero la pregunta es cómo? ¿Es la adquisición de miles de millones de dólares en armas la única forma de apoyar a Ucrania? Aquí es donde las palabras de Jesús podrían mostrarnos otro camino.
Contrariamente a la creencia popular, Jesús no parece querer la paz. Visualiza divisiones dentro de las familias. El problema es cuando alguien o algún grupo pierde la paciencia y en afán de paz y fin del conflicto recurre a la violencia o a la coerción para detener las enloquecedoras disputas y divisiones.
A veces pensamos que el conflicto o el desacuerdo es una señal de que estamos haciendo algo mal. ¿Qué pasa si el conflicto y el desacuerdo significan que las personas se preocupan y luchan por aceptar realidades difíciles? Recuerda que Dios no impone castigos. Tus pecados son perdonados en la cruz. La fe es esforzarse por mantener la vida y la dignidad incluso con nuestros enemigos.
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