From The Pastor’s Heart OP-ED BY DR. ROBERT KENNEDY
A few days ago, as I was driving to fulfill an appointment, I began to flip through the channels to find a station with meditational music or socio-political discourse to which I might listen. I paused on one station on which I heard a discussion that blew my mind.
The panelists were discussing “Radical Revolutionary Resolution” as the alternative to the “Radical Right” and “Radical Left” (I am using the terms from the discussion) visions that are being tossed about today as ideals for the transformation of the society. The argument was that the storming of the U.S. Capitol on January 6th was built on flawed ideologies conspiracies.
For them, the Radical Left’s effort to correct the conspiracies is as flawed as the Radical Right’s. Besides, they purported that Radical Revolutionary Resolution is what is needed today. I tried to listen keenly to see if I could have gotten a clear definition or description of Radical Revolutionary Resolution, but it did not come through to me.
So, I started to think that for all I have read of the historical revolutions, whether they have resolved anything, I concluded that they only seem to set up cycles of power trading and violence that only lead to destruction, poverty, inequality and death. They seem very utopian but offer no systems of justice they were describing, but instead perpetuate the very evils against which they revolted in the first place.
I am not intending to disappoint anyone who is promoting revolution to transform our social systems. Indeed, the oppressive behavior of humanity, racism, classism, genderism, sexism, and all the other oppressive isms lead individuals to ideate that a revolution is the best method of transformation.
But the lessons of history recorded in such works as Simon Schama, Citizens: The French Revolution, Karl Marx, Das Capital, Bill O’Reilly, Killing England, Angela Davis, Freedom is a Constant Struggle, Doris Lessing, The Good Terrorist, Joseph Conrad, The Secret Agent, and multiple other historical recommendations and records, have all shown that humanity’s way of social revolution is the path to constant frustrations and destruction. The revolutions have not worked out as expected. In fact, I might also tell the ones now recommending Radical Revolutionary Resolution as the solution to our present social crisis that it is a path down a rabbit hole.
Frankly, I confess that the gun-carrying – gun-toting culture thinking that this is the way to bring transformation is also frightening to me. And it is the greatest of contradiction that some in the gun-carrying, gun-toting culture are naming themselves as Christians. In his effort to bring about social transformation, Jesus Christ never promoted guns, swords, and all of the war machinery that we are boasting about today. Jesus Christ was the author of peace.
When he was attacked in the Garden of Gethsemane, his disciple, Peter, reacted by pulling his sword and cutting off one of the arresting soldier’s ears; Jesus immediately reminded Peter to put up his sword because those who live by the sword will die by the sword. (Cf. Matthew 26:52)
Throughout his ministry, Jesus taught his disciples and all who would listen to him that the world will not be transformed by weaponry or the revolutionary methodologies that humanity has concocted throughout history. He taught that the world will only change by transforming human hearts, minds, souls, or spirit, if you will. This is why he called his representatives “The salt of the earth” and “the light of the world.” (Matthew 5:13-16)
They are change agents, but not with the revolutionary methodologies that are being offered in the world. Jesus proclaimed loving service and the new birth experiences as the way to new societies. I do not know that you want to call what Jesus did revolutionary or transformational, but what I know is that his methodology was different from what I hear being promoted as revolutions in the common culture or Radical Revolutionary Resolution by those who are now promoting this as an innovative idea.
If by any means you are a Christian and will listen, here is a warning to Christians offered by Ed Stetzer in his book Christians in the Age of Outrage:
“Christians spark outrage when we get caught wavering between the gospel and some worldly power. And the response is not to dig deeper into the well of humanity’s ingenuity, wisdom, or culture. If the disease is sin, the remedy is found at the Cross. Though the heart forges idols of politics, identity power, and more, the gospel both overcomes those temptations and addresses the underlying outrage we wrongly thought they’d solve. The fountain of living water, flowing and bubbling up with rest, refreshment, and joy, satisfies the ultimate longing of our forgetful hearts.”
Some of you who have read this reflection might be saying that the Jesus way of transformation that I seek to recommend does not work effectively in our messed-up world. But do I suggest that since the human revolution methods have made such a mess that we try the Jesus way – love one another and serve one another.
Be kind to one another. Make peace with one another. Do those things that come from a heart transformed by grace.
