Pastoral Letter on Political Violence

If you remove the yoke from among you,     the pointing of the finger, the speaking of evil,

¹⁰ if you offer your food to the hungry

and satisfy the needs of the afflicted,

then your light shall rise in the darkness

and your gloom be like the noonday

¹² Your ancient ruins shall be rebuilt;

you shall raise up the foundations of many generations;

you shall be called the repairer of the breach,    

the restorer of streets to live in.

                                                                    --Isaiah 58:9-10,12

As Christians, we follow the figure at the center of a religious and political storm that ended in violence. Jesus was killed by political authorities at the behest of religious authorities. The intersection of politics and religion is a dangerous crossroads.  Those who wield power have, during periods of history, used it to harm others in order to advance an agenda of temporal dominance. Their supporters have, in turn, taken up arms to harm those who stand in their way. Sadly, they often weaponize faith to serve their faithless ends.

Over the past few months, our country has experienced a dangerous trend toward political violence in service of positions across the political spectrum. It hearkens back to the Vietnam War era, when violence became a means of political problem-solving. 

This should not surprise us if we are paying attention to our nation and world.  According to the polling organization Gallup, eighty percent of U.S. adults believe that Americans are “greatly divided on the most important values.” This is the highest value recorded in over thirty years that Gallup has been asking the question.  Although we probably didn’t need Gallup to tell us about division in our country, as we have Facebook, the evening news, and our friends and neighbors.

Many of you probably know the story from Matthew, Chapter 20, of the mother of James and John (the famous Sons of Thunder) applying to Jesus for positions of prominence for her sons.  While the other ten disciples express consternation at the hubris of the family of Zebedee, Jesus uses it as a teaching moment: “You know that the rulers of the gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones are tyrants over them,” he declares. “It will not be so among you, but whoever wishes to be great among you must be your servant.” (Mt. 20:25b-26)

As Christians--Lutheran Christians--we must meet this moment of division and unrest with a servant heart. To paraphrase Martin Luther, God doesn’t need our peacemaking, but our neighbor does. We can no longer ignore the violent rhetoric around us, the nationalistic impulse that makes Christianity its servant, instead of serving the Lord’s purposes. We must demand true Christian greatness—peace and love for all neighbors—from each other and from our leaders. It is clear that this has become a life and death matter; let us follow Jesus in choosing life. Let us invite everyone we know to join in along the way of Jesus, the servant way. If we can live another way, a Christian way, we shall indeed be called the repairer of the breach, the restorer of streets to live in.