Pax Christi South

His Place Ministries Homeless Shelter

[The picture is from His Place Ministries in Melbourne, FL. As I went through this homeless shelter on the Ecumenical Good Friday Walk, it seemed to me that having to seek shelter here was like being outcast, abandoned and in a tomb—a fit image for Holy Saturday.]

It is morning. My head is groggy. The last few days have been a blur.

Last Sunday was so spectacular. Jesus mocked imperial Rome by riding into Jerusalem on the colt of an ass—not a war horse but a lowly donkey. I should have known that this was the final straw. When he ran the money changers out of the Temple, we cheered but the Romans and their High priest collaborators were furious. We thought things would cool down after Jesus raised his friend, Lazarus, from the dead. Fleeing to sanctuary in Ephraim seemed to have served its purpose. Continue Reading

Cite Soliel-Haiti

[Pictures--Icon from Palestine-Mary holds Jesus and a pomegranate--bittersweet. Cite Soleil- Haiti slum.]

There are so many things we can say about this day. Jesus, the nonviolent one, suffered at the hands of the priestly caste and the empire. Anselm’s atonement theory, which has been carried too far, would have us believe that Jesus suffered and died to forgive our sins in order to appease an angry “Father” God. When we just think about it logically, what God would have his son die in order to take away the wrath incurred by our sins? We should have abandoned that theory when God told Abraham not to sacrifice Isaac.

Who then is God and what is Good Friday all about? First of all, God had repeatedly told us that God does not want sacrifice. He wants mercy and justice and compassion. Jesus came to live and die so he could show us the face of a merciful, compassionate Abba God. This is a God who loves us in spite of our sins and failures. Second, Jesus has told us that God always welcomes back the prodigal with open arms. God has repeatedly told us that, while loving all people, God has a special preference for the poor and oppressed. Third, God always valued the widows, orphans, and immigrants throughout the Old Testament. Continue Reading

The Upper Room

The Passover (Ex 12:1-8, 11-14) was the signature event in Israel’s history. Yahweh delivered them from oppression and bondage. It makes us think of other events that liberated people. God cannot abide oppression and exploitation. The patriots liberated America. Sandinistas liberated Nicaragua. The stories of liberation course through history.

The lamb is the key symbol of the Passover. It was easy for the early Christians to see Jesus as the Lamb of God. He delivered us from the oppression of sin, death and structural violence. Like a lamb, He was nonviolent as he resisted the powers and principalities. Continue Reading

Dominus Flavit Gethsemane--Jesus Wept (Tear Drop Chruch)

The Suffering Servant (Is 50:4-9a) has been called to speak a word to the weary and to listen to the will of God. The Servant knows that God is with him and he sets his face like flint. He knows that in the end he will not be put to shame. They will beat him, revile him and spit upon him but he will not turn back. His suffering is the way up and the way out for him and for the people he serves. Though insulted and broken hearted, the Psalmist tells us that the Servant will continue to glorify God. Continue Reading

Jesus Meets Mary Jerusalem

The Servant hears the call (Is 49:1-6). It is a call to bring Jacob and Israel back to God but it also a call to bring the islands and distant peoples to God. The Servant gets it. God is the God of all peoples. The Servant will be a light to the nations. All will be invited and welcomed at the table of God. Continue Reading

Consider joining this party.

The Servant Song from Isaiah (42:1-7) describes the messiah as one who would bring justice to the nations. Justice and mercy (chesed) are the key biblical values. Justice denotes right order. The messiah will restore right order-the right order that was lost in the Garden. Chesed is the ever-abiding love and presence of God.

The last part of the song was on the scroll Jesus read in the synagogue. It was the core of his inaugural address. Jesus clearly identified, not with a kingly, military Davidic messiah, but rather with a Servant messiah—a messiah who would suffer, who would overcome sin and death through the cross. Continue Reading

Via Doloroso Station Jerusalem

It is Palm Sunday. We begin with triumph and end with utter tragedy. Jesus had spoken truth to power and the religious leaders and the Romans had had enough. The ideological battle between empire and the Kin-dom is entering its final stage.

Many times this week, in church and in other fora, we will hear, “Jesus, died for our sins.” Will we never move past atonement theory? A loving God does not demands the son’s death to appease anger over our sins. Jesus died for what he lived for—justice. He had the courage to speak truth to power. Jesus died because he posed a threat to empire and priestly domination. Jesus lived to show us how to live. Luke’s account of the passion includes a vignette on service leadership. Continue Reading

Ezekiel (37:21-28) preached in the 6^th century in Babylon where the Israelites were in captivity. They believed that they were in dire straits because they had abandoned God’s ways and God was punishing them. If we accept the fact that humankind cannot name or describe God, then we must admit this kind of thinking represents an early stage in the development of our concept of God.

Ezekiel says that God will set things up so that the people can return to their land. They will no longer worship idols and go astray. God will be in heaven and they will be on their land under one leader David. It is essential that tribal, patriarchal gods have the full fealty of the people. Laws, customs, rites and regulations will emerge to assure that God is not angered again. This is the stuff of religion. Religio = to bind. The people are bound to their narrow concept of God. We have to ask what God is doing with the rest of the world while God and the people of Israel are once again getting cozy in their relationship. Continue Reading

I hear the whisperings of many:
“Terror on every side!
Denounce! let us denounce him!”
All those who were my friends
are on the watch for any misstep of mine.
“Perhaps he will be trapped; then we can prevail,
and take our vengeance on him.” (Jeremiah 20:10-11)

This almost sounds like something coming out of Washington these days. Without drawing undue comparisons between Jeremiah and current political leaders, the words still point out what happens when human beings take seemingly unpopular stands. Trying to change the way people think and act is fraught with difficulties because people are resistant to change. One pundit said, “Only babies with wet diapers like to be changed.” Continue Reading