To Be Church Means To Be Christ

“Jesus called [the disciples] to him and said, ‘You know that those thought to be governing the Gentiles dominate them, and their great ones are tyrants over them. It will not be so among you; but whoever wishes to be great among you must be your servant (diákonos), and whoever wishes to be first among you must be your slave (doulos/doula); just as the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve (diakonēsai), and to give his life as a means of release for many.” [Mk. 10.42-45, my translation]

It is now apparent to most of us that these “United States” are presently in a crisis of:

• Identity: “we the people” (diverse in every way), or is this land only for ‘white crisjuns’?

• Government: of laws, public interests, and inalienable rights, or by the arbitrary will of individuals?

• Character: motivated by selfish greed and lust, or by generous giving and mutual respect?

• Faith: acting from mistrust, fear, and cruelty, or from trust in God that empowers courage to love our neighbor and even our ‘enemy’?

• Truth: as personal loyalty and bias, or facts, reason, and meaning that support the breath of life?

• Relationships: that steal from and dominate others, or that care and heal with love?

Jesus’ example of leading by serving the community, even to the point of suffering and death, pulled back the curtain that hid the inhumane wheels of faithless systems that exploited the many for the profit of a few. Their arrogance refuses accountability because its aim, its god, is domination. Service (diakonía), the kind of greatness that Jesus embodies, requires deep faith, courageous love, and humble attending to the needs of others–an example Jesus gives is a slave (doulos/doula). 

That New Testament Greek word, “doulos” or “doula” (‘female slave’), has come to mean one who serves and supports life through the critical, potentially fearful, processes of childbirth, abortion, or even death. The doula role is ancient and essential, especially for those who do not fully benefit from advanced medical services in the U.S., which has the highest rate of maternal mortality in the industrialized world, despite spending more on healthcare than any other country. In fact, the maternal pregnancy-related mortality in the U.S. has doubled between 1986 and 2014, and the maternal mortality rate of Black women is 3-4 times higher than that of white women. Structural racism compounded by sexism is a primary example of the inequities of the systems of domination that Jesus confronted and that directly caused his death. 

In case you wondered why the current president’s administration violates basic civil rights, defies the U.S. Constitution and the U.S. Supreme Court, and profits from insider trading on market volatility they generated, it is because their blatantly corrupt actions set their individual profits and power over due process, fairness, and the public interest. They are rapidly, illegally, and comprehensively targeting institutions that promote diversity, equity, and inclusion, such as Lutheran Social Services, because science, the public good, and faith-based values of compassion do not jive with their repression and greed. Thousands of people are targeted for firing from institutions that research, educate, advocate, serve, and work for systemic change, through libraries, universities, investigative journalism, judges, and service organizations. Even churches and schools are no longer ‘safe’ from raids and deportations. This means that none of us are safe from extrajudicial abduction to be disappeared without recourse or accountability.

All of this will only get unimaginably worse, unless faithful officials, judges, attorneys, and YOU AND I stand up and say, “No, we will not comply. We will not stand by as our neighbors and guests are illegally fired, abducted, deported, and/or imprisoned without due process. And yes, you will answer for this.”

“God’s foolishness is wiser than human wisdom, and God’s weakness is stronger than human strength. … God chose what is low and despised in the world, things that are not, to reduce to nothing things that are, so that no one might boast in the presence of God. … None of the rulers of this age understood this; for if they had, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory. … But we have the mind of Christ.” [1Cor. 1.25,27-28; 2.16b]