Eleazar spoke thus, and went immediately to the instrument of torture. Those who shortly before had been kindly disposed,
now became hostile toward him because what he had said seemed to them utter madness.
Eleazar's tormentors, like many of the German guards in Nazi concentration camps, were ordinary human beings doing a job. They didn't start out as fiends or monsters. They needed employment; they had obligations; they were constrained by circumstances beyond their control.
Finding themselves in a difficult moral situation -- they were under orders to torment and kill an old man -- they looked for an out. "Perhaps," they said, "we can reason with this Jew. We will give him a plausible excuse for cooperating with us and sidestep the king's merciless decree. He can appear to obey his religious law and still obey the tyrant's rule. Everyone goes home happy."
Eleazar would not work with them.
Which of us has not lost control of our temper in the face of such intransigence? Suddenly something gave way and we were caught up in a fury of righteous anger. It seemed at the time reasonable. "You brought this on yourself!" we said.
The Pharisees -- the dominant religious party of Jesus' Jerusalem -- found themselves in a similar predicament. They feared the Roman rulers. They had bitter memories of Roman soldiers unleashed on Galilean guerrillas. They had inherited a religion which no longer aspired to civil rule. David's kingdom had lasted over four hundred years but that was ancient history. Since the Babylonian exile Judaism was a religion of synagogue and household. They could live with alien empires, especially if the empire didn't invade their private lives. They observed the Law of Moses, cared for their families, piously worshiped their God and kept their heads down when trouble appeared.
Jesus spoke openly of the Kingdom of God. He claimed to be a Son of David with authority to rule. He invited and challenged them to expect something new, unforeseen, unpredictable and unmanageable. He himself was unmanageable. They had no authority to stop him but they knew the Herodians could -- and would.
When the consequences of his intransigence fell on him they went home and shut the doors.
The twentieth and twenty-first centuries tell us many stories of men and women who fled to their homes to avoid trouble. They didn't want to get involved in controversial issues of justice or mercy. They felt they had more important things to do than challenge the government or church with their moral scruples.
But recent history also tells us how these innocuous citizens were hunted down and exterminated. Ever since Sherman marched through the Confederate states, innocent bystanders have become fair game. The Communists and Nazis in particular searched for citizens who were less than enthusiastic supporters and destroyed them. Citizens in a democracy must be terrified into accepting tyranny. It's not hard to engineer. Public relations specialists can be hired to create slogans. When the price is right lobbyists are eager to persuade anyone to do anything. Laws can be flouted; constitutions can be changed. If necessary, thugs can be employed to chase dissenters back into their rabbit holes. Minorities can be demonized.
During this month of November, as we ponder death and the meaning of life, we pray to be given the Courage of Eleazar and Jesus.
Finding themselves in a difficult moral situation -- they were under orders to torment and kill an old man -- they looked for an out. "Perhaps," they said, "we can reason with this Jew. We will give him a plausible excuse for cooperating with us and sidestep the king's merciless decree. He can appear to obey his religious law and still obey the tyrant's rule. Everyone goes home happy."
Eleazar would not work with them.
Which of us has not lost control of our temper in the face of such intransigence? Suddenly something gave way and we were caught up in a fury of righteous anger. It seemed at the time reasonable. "You brought this on yourself!" we said.
The Pharisees -- the dominant religious party of Jesus' Jerusalem -- found themselves in a similar predicament. They feared the Roman rulers. They had bitter memories of Roman soldiers unleashed on Galilean guerrillas. They had inherited a religion which no longer aspired to civil rule. David's kingdom had lasted over four hundred years but that was ancient history. Since the Babylonian exile Judaism was a religion of synagogue and household. They could live with alien empires, especially if the empire didn't invade their private lives. They observed the Law of Moses, cared for their families, piously worshiped their God and kept their heads down when trouble appeared.
Jesus spoke openly of the Kingdom of God. He claimed to be a Son of David with authority to rule. He invited and challenged them to expect something new, unforeseen, unpredictable and unmanageable. He himself was unmanageable. They had no authority to stop him but they knew the Herodians could -- and would.
When the consequences of his intransigence fell on him they went home and shut the doors.
The twentieth and twenty-first centuries tell us many stories of men and women who fled to their homes to avoid trouble. They didn't want to get involved in controversial issues of justice or mercy. They felt they had more important things to do than challenge the government or church with their moral scruples.
But recent history also tells us how these innocuous citizens were hunted down and exterminated. Ever since Sherman marched through the Confederate states, innocent bystanders have become fair game. The Communists and Nazis in particular searched for citizens who were less than enthusiastic supporters and destroyed them. Citizens in a democracy must be terrified into accepting tyranny. It's not hard to engineer. Public relations specialists can be hired to create slogans. When the price is right lobbyists are eager to persuade anyone to do anything. Laws can be flouted; constitutions can be changed. If necessary, thugs can be employed to chase dissenters back into their rabbit holes. Minorities can be demonized.
During this month of November, as we ponder death and the meaning of life, we pray to be given the Courage of Eleazar and Jesus.
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I love to write. This blog helps me to meditate on the Word of God, and I hope to make some contribution to our contemplations of God's Mighty Works.
Ordinarily, I write these reflections two or three weeks in advance of their publication. I do not intend to comment on current events.
I understand many people prefer gender-neutral references to "God." I don't disagree with them but find that language impersonal, unappealing and tasteless. When I refer to "God" I think of the One whom Jesus called "Abba" and "Father", and I would not attempt to improve on Jesus' language.
You're welcome to add a thought or raise a question.