April 13

I won’t normally write about comparison of political positions and religious tenets in this blog. However, I have been thinking about the positions that political leaders are taking these days and how these positions relate to what Christ taught his disciples and the people of Israel. I believe strongly that Jesus was a social reformer who asked each of us to share with anyone who had a need. Luke 3:11 “If you have two coats,” he replied, “give one to the poor. If you have extra food, give it away to those who are hungry.” So how do our political leaders stack up to this bit of Biblical reality? I see some of them arguing against our social safety nets by cutting social security and Medicare benefits for citizens. There are leaders who believe the people who have the most money should have even more. Remember what happened to the rich man who refused to help Lazarus, the beggar? (Luke 16:14-31) I do not want to judge anyone’s intentions, but this story points out the right attitude we should have when it comes to the needs of society and the desire for control, power, and money. Control, power, and money are not evil in and unto themselves. We can use control to enhance our society. We can use power to direct improvements to our society. We can use money to improve our society. But do we? Many of us use control to make others cow to our desires. We use power to build empires for ourselves. We use money to buy our control and power. During Lent, I want to understand how I can use control, power, and money to improve the society in which I live. Of course, I feel like a fool when I realize I have control over so little, power over only my own life, and limited money. But I always have faith in God’s love for me.