FROM WHISPERS TO DEEDS

FROM WHISPERS TO DEEDS

Aditya Chakrabority has reminded us recently that those “inside” Communism in the former Soviet Union, the politicians and civil servants, knew for decades that the system wasn’t working. They whispered among themselves but they did nothing. They were afraid. He says something similar is happening in the “neo-liberal” world we now live in which is dominated by “western” capitalist values. Those employed in the system may whisper among themselves that it is not bringing growth and development to people but they do nothing about it.

This week, in Zimbabwe, there have been protests pointing to much the same conclusion. Those in the system have known for years that the present policies are not delivering justice to the people. But they are benefitting from the system and they do nothing. Besides, they are afraid.

The story of the Good Samaritan, in Luke’s gospel, is about a man who sees a situation and is moved with compassion to do something about it. He overcomes his fear of becoming involved in a roadside robbery which has left a stranger half dead. He calls an ambulance and gets the guy to hospital. The Samaritans were heretics to the Jews: they were outside the law. And yet here is a Samaritan acting on the basis of a law “written on human hearts” (Deut 30:14).

Once you are “inside” a system it is hard to think outside it. It is much easier to disappear into the crowd and do what everyone else does. Yet history is full of individuals who step out of the crowd and do something. Pope Francis must be the only world leader who tells young people, “create a disturbance! Make a noise!” He is not calling for anarchy. He is just calling on them to take a stand. Don’t just be part of the system!

We can think of many people who have done this. It is not just the well known names – Mandela, Martin Luther King, Lincoln, Ghandi – but many ordinary people we have come across in our lives who have stood for something and been prepared to take risks.

Courage is available to all of us in one way or another. The underlying message of the bible is that we live in a world coming to birth; a world struggling to become what it is designed to be. God’s plan is that “all things be reconciled through his Son” (Col. 1:19). And each of us has the capacity to make our contribution so that this happens.

The Wimbledon finals, which are contests between individuals, may not have the same appeal as the World Cup which is a contest between teams. But in tennis everything gets narrowed down to the skill, courage and stamina of a single person. That single person can, in my imagination, be me.  Can he or she do it? It can be an epic battle and it can mirror the struggle I face. That is why we love sport: we see on the field a contest which most of us never come close to being involved in. The contestants do it for us. And we cheer them on and hope we too can touch the hem of their gament. Yet we are uneasy. They struggle. We watch. How about my getting involved? What about my moving from whispers to deeds?                                                                                               10 July 2016       Sunday 15 C        Deuteronomy 30:10-14    Colossians 1:15-20           Luke 10:25-37