Lent 2014 – Devotion 21

The Central African Republic, a small country in the middle of northern Africa, has been wracked by violence. Just about a year ago, the Seleka, a rebel Muslim group, organized a coup and installed the first Muslim president in a country where the vast majority of the people are Christian. This Muslim take over involved terrorizing and killing Christian men, women, and children.

What is the Christian response in such a situation? Jesus was attacked and he did not respond with violence. His followers were targeted and they did not respond with violence. They did not defend themselves or fight back. They were followers of Jesus. So, they emulated his example. They did not seek vengeance. They did not seek retribution. Their goal was forgiveness because that is what they saw in Jesus and he was their teacher. The early followers of Jesus sought non-violent reconciliation when they were attacked and put to death.

This is hardly the case in the Central African Republic. Most of the Christians are filled with hatred for the Muslims and are viciously seeking vengeance. Christian militia groups are killing men, women, and children. The children are not being caught in the cross fire but specifically targeted. Thousands of Muslims are desperately trying to flee the country. Evidently, the Christian militia groups would rather see the Muslims dead than gone. What kind of expression of Christianity is that?

Here we see the question which eternally rubs Christians: Are we to believe in Jesus or to follow him? The answer could be both. But more often than not, I think Christians today are more concerned with believing in Jesus than living like Jesus. Believing in Jesus involves accepting a set of propositions about Jesus. For some, these may include: That Jesus is the divine son of God. That Jesus physically rose from the dead. That Jesus reigns over the earth with God. And, perhaps, most importantly, that believing these things makes you square with God so that you will spend eternity in the presence of the Divine. In this conception of believing in Jesus, the stress is on what you think about Jesus. The emphasis is not on following his example and living by his teachings. It could be that the members of the Christian militias in the Central African Republic believe all of these things about Jesus and it in no way interferes with their killing spree.

Sadly, I think that most Christians are content with a faith of theological tenets rather than a faith of theological tenets inextricably linked with ethical demands. I believe that true Christianity must involve a theological commitment and an ethical commitment. Our faith requires both. And if our faith is truly grounded in Jesus then we cannot condone or accept violence as a method of working for justice in the world. The means do not justify the ends. When we look at the life of Jesus, we see complete consistency between the means and the ends. That is the only way to live as a Christian with integrity and honesty. We may fall short of our intentions, but we still have the intention. It can be easier to change your mind or your thinking than your behavior. It can be easier to say and sing something about Jesus in church on Sunday that give up your job developing guidance systems for drones.

This Lenten season is a time to examine our faith commitment. What do we believe about Jesus? How are we following him? In what ways can we bring those two commitments closer together?

Prayer: We offer our prayers for the people of the Central African Republic. In the spirit of Jesus, we pray for the Muslims and for the Christians. Surely there is pain in the heart of God over all the killing that has taken place. We pray that the Christians find a path to forgiveness, the heart of the Christian life. We pray that they find true freedom in non-violence. We struggle as well with our desire for retribution and the use of violence to resolve differences. We pray that we, too, may find the path to forgiveness. We pray that we may find true freedom in non-violence. May we believe in Jesus enough to truly follow him. May we follow Jesus enough to truly believe. Amen.