Empires Do Not Last
First, we pray with you – beloveds of God who are weary of oppression:
The Spirit intercedes on our behalf, even now, translating our litany of groans too deep for words.
Lest we lose our humanity, incline us with gentleness toward one another’s suffering. Lest we lose ourselves, o God, bind us to the example of our friend and brother, Jesus.
Soften the bed of nails on which we lie, for we are tired and the road ahead is unclear at best, and we could use the rest. Commit us to the care of one another in these days and years to come.
Steady us now, o Steadfast One. With the warmth of your arms, press us onward.
To the Church:
All eyes are on you now. Because we are in the same business, we know that every word you utter may be criticized. And yet, this moment calls for boldness. To abdicate our prophetic responsibility now would be treasonous to the kin-dom of God.
Trust that, in our boldness, we will not make everyone happy. We may be called to unexpected partnerships and unpopular stances. Hold fast to your values. Hold fast to one another, and work toward a shared vision of compassion and justice.
The results of this past week’s election have promised pain, dehumanization, and exile to queer and trans people, those with disabilities, people experiencing poverty, people of color, women, and those who are immigrants and refugees. They have also promised an increasingly destabilized geopolitical landscape and the abandonment of ecological responsibility.
We are past the point of entertaining mass suffering as a possibility. How will we now, in the words of Dietrich Bonhoeffer, drive a spoke into the wheels of injustice?
And to those of us who enjoy more power than we know how to wield in service of the kin-dom:
We follow the example of one whom the Empire tried to bury. Thousands of years later, and still his message has not dimmed. Trust us when we say that this love that discomforts – that upsets the mighty and wealthy and scorches the well-traveled road – will persist and undermine the machinery of Empire again and again.
Again, we say to those of us who live on the margins of this world:
Empires do not last. We belong to a God who does. When God took on a form like ours, God chose the company of the oppressed. You are no stranger to the God of love. And they have given us their Spirit and the gift of one another.
When your hope runs low, let us hope for you.
The work of the Reconciling movement could not be more important now, even though we serve in a Church that has lifted the requirement to discriminate against LGBTQ+ people.
If you’d like to make an investment in the safety and thriving of queer and trans people, please consider making a donation to Reconciling Ministries Network – thank you! You can do that here.
