How Dare We Speak of Mercy
what does the Lord require of you...
This week in the United States a segment of the church lost its mind. What caused outrage? A Bishop, standing in her pulpit, in her Cathedral, in her Diocese delivering a homily that included the themes of unity in diverse thought and a direct reminder to the President of the United States that part of claiming a call of God is living into mercy. For that truly benign homily, the Right Rev. Bishop Mariann Edgar Budde has been treated as if she spoke heresy from the pulpit. I think to understand why is to review the typical reception of the current president within religious spaces. Generally, the images we see are of religious leaders praising and almost genuflecting to political leaders whom they see as on their side. So even a mild reminder that Christ’s followers are to show mercy may be seen as a rebuke within that context. But anyone who preaches should understand that what we say runs through a myriad of filters within minds who hear. Preaching can be a thankless calling, especially when that call presents an opportunity to speak the prophetic truth of God to those who hold power.
Speaking of calling; I understand those who do not preach showing outrage and denigrating the call of a member of clergy. But for clergy to use phrases like “so called Bishop” or “so-called pastor” tells me we have clergy who do not remember who calls. Presidents, reporters, influencers, and the like have no bearing on the call to ministry. That call belongs to God. It is God who calls people to minister and be God’s shepherds in our world. I believe it to be a call that brings those of us called anxiety when we realize that the word God is pressing upon our hearts may be met with anger. People do not desire to hear those things which may convict them through the Holy Spirit. They love to hear conviction brought upon others, but when it is upon our own hearts, we get squeamish.
What was the sin of Bishop Budde? She asked the president to have mercy on people in the U.S. who are afraid because of his actions and promises. As Christians, we should be modeling mercy for all, even if we disagree with their choices. Mercy is a desire of God according to Jewish and Christian scripture. In fact, the scriptures tell us that God desires mercy, not sacrifice. (Hosea 6, Matt 9, and others). But mercy is seen by many American Christians as a scarce resource that only those deemed worthy should receive. My denomination makes a contrary claim even as some of my fellow clergy reject mercy for all.
“We affirm that acting justly involves the compassionate care for those in our immediate surroundings and also being able to name injustice, and denounce the powers that cause it. Acting justly and loving mercy have often brought the people of God in conflict with the ruling powers and principalities of the day. God’s justice calls us beyond equal treatment, beyond tolerance of one another’s differences, and beyond simply reversing the role of oppressed and oppressor. By Jesus’ example, we are called to a justice whereby we are willing to give ourselves up for the sake of another.” (Manual: Church of the Nazarene (2023) p 406 emphases mine)
What has happened that the Church has allowed politicians to define calls of mercy as rebuke? Why do clergy allow the call to be denigrated by those in power? Is it an innate desire to be close to and have that power as well? I really don’t know or understand it. How in the world has a call to remember that Christ’s followers are to display mercy become a political statement rather than a theological statement? Some of my peers are acting as if anyone who questions those in power is being disrespectful. Funny enough, they often use the language of jerks to say that. I grieve that the Church in this period of upheaval seems to desire a holding onto the past through the power of this world rather than being open to the moves of God.
We are seeing a general twist of traditional interpretation of scripture to fit the new unmerciful drive of power. Many evangelicals took to social media to claim that the parable of the Samaritan in chapter ten of Luke’s Gospel is about how we are so completely unable to love neighbor that we must love Jesus. The claim is the command of Jesus to go and love neighbor as self is not something we can do. Of course, they argue neighbor is the people who look like them rather than all human beings, as described in the parable. These are people who claim that empathy is sin, and that mercy is not to be given to all we encounter. This is antithetical to the Christian ethic, yet it is what so many are holding tightly rather than living as Christ has called us. I feel like we’ve gone to the Upside Down, which is the world’s version of right side up.
I pray that I always speak the truth of God rather than the powers. That I have the courage to speak against those powers when given the opportunity in as graceful a manner as Bishop Budde.
God have mercy on the Church…
Bishop Budde’s full homily:
TRUTH! Thank you for expressing it so beautifully!🧡🧡🧡
Thank you Brandon