Change.

Everything is alright until you try to change things.

It's O.K. while it's all academic.
It's O.K. while you do good works that don't challenge the status quo.
It's O.K. while we pat each other on the back and say, "You don't do it for the thanks of course but....."

You can be as good as you like within the prescribed bounds, i.e. band-aids only.

But try to change things, try to address the reasons for poverty, injustice, and war and see what happens then.....

You won't be allowed to.

This is why the sanitized and spiritualized varieties of Christianity developed - so that nothing here on earth had to change.
The rich are still rich, the powerful are still violent, the poor are still helpless, the infirm are still destitute, the marginalized are still demonized.....nothing changes.

This, of course, is what happened to Jesus.

He talked about the coming of the Kingdom of God on earth, i.e. things would change.
"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 let the oppressed go free, to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor."  Luke 4:18,19 (NRSV)

They crucified him for that.

And the world didn't change.
The status quo remained.
"Don't rock the boat."
"Play the game."

What now?

The motive is fear.
Fear of losing our privileges, our money, our possessions, our power.....

Pray for us to overcome our fears and allow things to change.


[Scripture quotations (marked NRSV) are taken from the New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright 1989 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the U.S.A., and are used by permission.  All rights reserved.]