What happens when we advocate for other people? How and where are we involved in God’s promise work of liberation that is good news to the marginalized in our day? With the ongoing injustice, exclusion and oppression that is taking place in various parts of the world, is liberation theology still a prominent theological movement?
These questions came to mind when I was looking at the first reading for this morning. The prophet’s lamentation comes out in a period of despair and disbelief, one that does not expect God to change things. Silence normally accompanies such feelings, but the prophet sets an example for us. He declares:
“For Zion’s sake I will not keep silent, for Jerusalem’s sake I will not rest till her righteousness shines out …”
Prophet Isaiah writes in a time when some of the people of Judah were taken to exile, living as aliens in Babylon; and others such as the infirm and the destitute have been left on the land. Looking at that picture, one gets the impression that these two groups experienced exile differently. In our day, there is a similar difference between watching an event on the news and actually living in it. The event may be the same, but the two viewpoints are very different. This was the case with the Israelites who were exiled in Babylon and those who were left in Judah.
How do we recover from devastating and debilitating events in our lives? How can we advocate for others who may find themselves in such events? To follow the prophet’s example, we need to acknowledge the reality faced by those dealing with defeat and broken dreams before we move to words of hope and new beginnings.
In his talks, here at Volmoed, Dr Rowan Willams said: Prophecy is not about turning up the volume. Often when people say why can’t the church be more prophetic, essentially what they mean is why can’t we shout more. But true prophecy, he said, is discovering that what we have been given cannot be held in. It is discovering that something is given, some deep awareness of the alignment with the Holy, and deep awareness of what is possible for humanity. Prophecy is receiving something uncontainable, painful to utter and more painful not to utter.
A friend of mine from Uganda, by the name of Florence, was diagnosed with intellectual disability in her middle childhood. When the family learned of it, her mother ran away, leaving Florence with an abusive father. Thus, she grew up amid violence and neglect in a rural village in Uganda.
Florence used to sleep on the ground, and night after night she fought off insect-borne diseases and abuse from relatives who did not understand her disability. As a young girl, she could not look for help from others in Masaka village, even school officials called her “useless” and “unteachable” and “stupid”.
By the Grace of God, a certain family took pity on her and adopted Florence when she was in her early teenage years. They helped to get her back to school, even though she attended class with small children half her age. They also suggested she take part in Special Olympics, because she could run.
For the first time, Florence was able to do something other children could not do: run! She raced and grew strong and received compliments. People were smiling at her and congratulating her – an amazing new experience after a lifetime of scolding, mockery and abuse.
In her own words she was caught saying, “Growing up, I felt I could do nothing in life – I was thrown away like trash, ridiculed as ‘stupid’, and forced to quit school. But when I ran a race, I was somebody, and through running and Special Olympics I found my voice.” I can hear Florence saying: Finally, somebody knows how I feel.
Mother Teresa of Calcutta once said: “The greatest disease in the (World) today is not TB, leprosy, or HIV and AIDS; it is being unwanted, unloved, and uncared for. We can cure physical diseases with medicine, but the only cure for loneliness, despair and hopelessness is love.”
How many Florences are out there? That is the question that pierces my heart, and I do not know where it will lead me. But: I will not keep silent & I will not rest…
Yesterday I received a call from another friend of mine with intellectual disability, who is in Sebokeng. He asked me to translate something for him. Even though I am a bit far from him geographically, he still reaches out to me. How can I rest?
Somewhere in John’s gospel, Jesus says: “I have other sheep, too, that are not in this sheepfold. I must bring them also. They will listen to my voice, and there will be one flock…”[1]
Therefore, like the prophet I will not keep silent…
I will not rest, until (their) vindication shines out like the dawn…
The nations and kings shall see (their) vindication and glory
(My friends) shall be called by a new name
(They) shall be a crown of great beauty in the hand of the Lord
(They) shall be called (the Lord’s) delight
And God shall rejoice over (them).
How do once-called children of God and self-knowing people reclaim their identity? How do they rename themselves? Exile has beaten them into resigned submission. Silence gives testimony to their loss. Who speaks for the people whose light has been extinguished and whose glory has been dimmed? Is it enough to just speak about or for them? Does prophecy mean let’s make more noise?
[1] John 10:16
Thank you Bro Josias. Your heartfelt insight impact me deeply and stirs again what pierces my heart. The divine power of what you say feels very much from that special place where your greatest passion meets the greatest need of the world what a place!