I’m not trying to turn (or return) GAC into a political blog, honest. There are already ten zillion sites devoted to same, and since I have yet to see anyone else blogging about the book or the music I love, or for that matter all that many blogs devoted to matters of faith along with society and culture when viewed through the eyes of faith, far better for me to spend my time talking about these subjects. That said, politics is a rather difficult subject to ignore these days. Especially when people insist on dragging Jesus’ name into the proceedings.
During Sarah Palin’s speech last week at the Republican National Convention, in the course of differentiating her views and work experience from Barack Obama she made the following comment:
Before I became governor of the great state of Alaska, I was mayor of my hometown.
And since our opponents in this presidential election seem to look down on that experience, let me explain to them what the job involves.
I guess a small-town mayor is sort of like a “community organizer,” except that you have actual responsibilities.
This slam against Obama’s touting of his days and experience as a community organizer in Chicago evoked immediate howls of protest from Obama’s supporters. One such person sent a note to Markos Alberto Moulitsas Zúniga, a/k/a Kos of the Daily Kos liberal political blog, with the following statement:
Jesus was a community organizer and Pontius Pilate was a governor.
Let me roll that around my brain for a minute.
Jesus was a community organizer.
Oh really?
Now correct me if I’m wrong, but isn’t the hallmark of a community organizer someone who… oh… organizes the community? Form a neighborhood watch group, set up meetings where neighbors can actually meet each other, maybe set up a system to put people who can help others in one fashion or another together with people who need help, be a public advocate? These things are what a community organizer does, right? Until someone offers evidence to the contrary I’ll go with this as a description of a community organizer’s duty.
Given the above, it is no stretch to assume part of a community organizer’s function is facilitating conflict avoidance and/or resolution. Neighborhood watch, things like that. Let’s see what Jesus has to say about this:
“Do not suppose that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I did not come to bring peace, but a sword. For I have come to turn ‘a man against his father, a daughter against her mother, a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law – a man’s enemies will be the members of his own household.’” (Matt.10:34-36)
Hmm. Not sounding real group-huggish there.
Okay, how about meet and greets? You know, where everyone is welcome?
“For John the Baptist came neither eating bread nor drinking wine, and you say, ‘He has a demon.’ The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and you say, ‘Here is a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and ‘sinners.’ ‘” (Lk. 7:33-34)
Hanging out with the wrong crowd to the alienation of upright, upstanding folk? Bit of a misguided strategy if you’re trying to bring people together. And when you do wrangle an invite to one of the beautiful people’s homes… spending your time insulting the host?
Now one of the Pharisees invited Jesus to have dinner with him, so he went to the Pharisee’s house and reclined at the table. When a woman who had lived a sinful life in that town learned that Jesus was eating at the Pharisee’s house, she brought an alabaster jar of perfume, and as she stood behind him at his feet weeping, she began to wet his feet with her tears. Then she wiped them with her hair, kissed them and poured perfume on them.
When the Pharisee who had invited him saw this, he said to himself, “If this man were a prophet, he would know who is touching him and what kind of woman she is — that she is a sinner.”
Jesus answered him, “Simon, I have something to tell you.”
“Tell me, teacher,” he said.
“Two men owed money to a certain moneylender. One owed him five hundred denarii, and the other fifty. Neither of them had the money to pay him back, so he canceled the debts of both. Now which of them will love him more?”
Simon replied, “I suppose the one who had the bigger debt canceled.”
“You have judged correctly,” Jesus said.
Then he turned toward the woman and said to Simon, “Do you see this woman? I came into your house. You did not give me any water for my feet, but she wet my feet with her tears and wiped them with her hair. You did not give me a kiss, but this woman, from the time I entered, has not stopped kissing my feet. You did not put oil on my head, but she has poured perfume on my feet. Therefore, I tell you, her many sins have been forgiven — for she loved much. But he who has been forgiven little loves little.”
Then Jesus said to her, “Your sins are forgiven.”
The other guests began to say among themselves, “Who is this who even forgives sins?”
Jesus said to the woman, “Your faith has saved you; go in peace.” (Lk. 7:36-50)
Now that’ll build community.
And shouldn’t a community organizer work toward people treating each other fairly, interceding on behalf of those denied equal opportunity?
Someone in the crowd said to him, “Teacher, tell my brother to divide the inheritance with me.”
Jesus replied, “Man, who appointed me a judge or an arbiter between you?” (Lk. 12:13-14)
“Yeah, but what about people helping others? Didn’t Jesus talk about that a lot?” hastily comes the comment. Yes, He did. But in the context of community, this being defined by a neighborhood or city or region or country? No. About the only unifying He did was in encouraging everyone to ask Him to leave… or leave with Him.
They went across the lake to the region of the Gerasenes. When Jesus got out of the boat, a man with an evil spirit came from the tombs to meet him. This man lived in the tombs, and no one could bind him any more, not even with a chain. For he had often been chained hand and foot, but he tore the chains apart and broke the irons on his feet. No one was strong enough to subdue him. Night and day among the tombs and in the hills he would cry out and cut himself with stones.
When he saw Jesus from a distance, he ran and fell on his knees in front of him. He shouted at the top of his voice, “What do you want with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? Swear to God that you won’t torture me!” For Jesus had said to him, “Come out of this man, you evil spirit!”
Then Jesus asked him, “What is your name?”
“My name is Legion,” he replied, “for we are many.” And he begged Jesus again and again not to send them out of the area.
A large herd of pigs was feeding on the nearby hillside. The demons begged Jesus, “Send us among the pigs; allow us to go into them.” He gave them permission, and the evil spirits came out and went into the pigs. The herd, about two thousand in number, rushed down the steep bank into the lake and were drowned.
Those tending the pigs ran off and reported this in the town and countryside, and the people went out to see what had happened. When they came to Jesus, they saw the man who had been possessed by the legion of demons, sitting there, dressed and in his right mind; and they were afraid. Those who had seen it told the people what had happened to the demon-possessed man — and told about the pigs as well. Then the people began to plead with Jesus to leave their region.
As Jesus was getting into the boat, the man who had been demon-possessed begged to go with him. Jesus did not let him, but said, “Go home to your family and tell them how much the Lord has done for you, and how he has had mercy on you.” So the man went away and began to tell in the Decapolis how much Jesus had done for him. And all the people were amazed. (Mk. 5:1-20)
If Jesus could in any way be labeled a community organizer, it must be said He was atrocious at the job. Consider what happened when He went to Jerusalem:
As they approached Jerusalem and came to Bethphage on the Mount of Olives, Jesus sent two disciples, saying to them, “Go to the village ahead of you, and at once you will find a donkey tied there, with her colt by her. Untie them and bring them to me. If anyone says anything to you, tell him that the Lord needs them, and he will send them right away.”
This took place to fulfill what was spoken through the prophet: “Say to the Daughter of Zion, ‘See, your king comes to you, gentle and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey.’ ”
The disciples went and did as Jesus had instructed them. They brought the donkey and the colt, placed their cloaks on them, and Jesus sat on them. A very large crowd spread their cloaks on the road, while others cut branches from the trees and spread them on the road. The crowds that went ahead of him and those that followed shouted, “Hosanna to the Son of David!”
“Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!”
“Hosanna in the highest!”
When Jesus entered Jerusalem, the whole city was stirred and asked, “Who is this?”
The crowds answered, “This is Jesus, the prophet from Nazareth in Galilee.” (Matt 21: 1-11)
Same people a few days later:
Now it was the governor’s custom at the Feast to release a prisoner chosen by the crowd. At that time they had a notorious prisoner, called Barabbas. So when the crowd had gathered, Pilate asked them, “Which one do you want me to release to you: Barabbas, or Jesus who is called Christ?” For he knew it was out of envy that they had handed Jesus over to him.
While Pilate was sitting on the judge’s seat, his wife sent him this message: “Don’t have anything to do with that innocent man, for I have suffered a great deal today in a dream because of him.”
But the chief priests and the elders persuaded the crowd to ask for Barabbas and to have Jesus executed.
“Which of the two do you want me to release to you?” asked the governor.
“Barabbas,” they answered.
“What shall I do, then, with Jesus who is called Christ?” Pilate asked.
They all answered, “Crucify him!”
“Why? What crime has he committed?” asked Pilate.
But they shouted all the louder, “Crucify him!”
When Pilate saw that he was getting nowhere, but that instead an uproar was starting, he took water and washed his hands in front of the crowd. “I am innocent of this man’s blood,” he said. “It is your responsibility!” (Matt. 27:15-24)
What kind of community organizer worth their salt inspires such extreme mood swings?
No, Jesus wasn’t a community organizer. Not even close.
So what was He?
“I am the way and the truth and the life.” (Jn. 14:6)
Oh.
