Defending the “Truth” & Victimizing the Victim

AM Psalm 31 • PM Psalm 35 
Job 19:1-7,14-27 • Acts 13:13-25 • John 9:18-41

Job is innocent, yet he suffers terribly. Bildad and the others insist that God rewards the good and punishes the sinner, therefore Job must be a sinner. These friends of Job are just defending God. More precisely, they are defending their traditional Biblically based beliefs about God. (See Proverbs, Deuteronomy, Psalms.)

Job accuses God. Job says, I want to face God with this truth: The innocent suffer, and God's people only blame them for their suffering. That's wrong.

Jesus heals a man born blind. But Jesus does so on the Sabbath, in violation of tradition and scripture. The authorities cross-examine the healed man and write off his explanation—only God’s power could heal a man born blind.

No! God punishes sin, they say. And anyone born blind must himself be a punishment for sin. The authorities dismiss the blind man and his insight roughly. "You were born entirely in sins..." They throw him out of the community.

Too often we try to defend the systems we believe in and the teachings we've been taught, even when their failings, injustice and shortcomings are right in front of our eyes. Instead of practicing empathy, we rationalize. When our empathy fails, we will victimize the victims. And we will do so in the name of that which we most treasure—our nation and our religion.

Unless we let empathy, love, compassion and understanding reshape our reality, we are part of the problem.

I bought a t-shirt last week: “Love will have the final say.”

Written by Lowell Grisham

Lowell Grisham is helping St. Thomas, Springdale while they search for a new priest.