The Unauthorized Homily

By Bill Dunn

A commentary on the Scripture readings from the Sunday Lectionary

(Scripture readings for Sunday, July 19th: Jeremiah 23:1-6; Ephesians 2:13-18; Mark 6:30-34)

WOE TO SHEPHERDS WHO CALL EVIL GOOD

The first sentence of the first reading this week says, “Woe to the shepherds who mislead and scatter the flock of my pasture, says the Lord.”

The prophet Jeremiah, speaking on behalf of God, denounced the religious leaders of his day, accusing them of misleading the people into sinful behavior. These leaders were given a special honor as spiritual shepherds of the people. But that honor came with a very important responsibility: they were required to be bold and truthful. Unfortunately, they fell far short. They failed to proclaim the truth of God. Why? Because that message was unpopular. They instead chose to tell the people what they wanted to hear.

Sometimes doing the right thing is kind of hard. Sometimes it’s much easier to follow our sinful human nature and do the convenient and ethically suspect action rather than to do the difficult but proper thing. (“Sometimes”?! What am I saying? This is the case ALL the time!)

When we would rather take the easy way out, the last thing we want to hear is some religious professional reminding us of God’s will, telling us we really should take the moral and virtuous path. In Jeremiah’s day, the religious leaders refused to be bold and honest. They condoned the people’s sinful deeds, and as a result, two things happened: first, the people’s lives became a mess. God gives us His commands, not to take away our fun, but to protect us from the destructive effects of sin. The second thing that happened was God (through Jeremiah) denounced those spineless spiritual leaders and vowed to punish them for failing to do their duty.

Nowadays not much has changed. When notorious late-term abortionist George Tiller was murdered on May 31st of this year, I immediately knew secular people would use the horrific crime to demonize the Pro-Life movement. I was right. All of the usual suspects—the New York Times, MSNBC, ACLU, NOW, NARAL, the Democratic Party, etc.—made a direct connection between prayerful, peaceful protesters at abortion clinics and the nut case who shot Tiller.

I wasn’t surprised the secular pundits and activists would try to capitalize on Tiller’s death. After all, their worldview is so far different than the Judeo-Christian worldview, and their view of abortion-on-demand as being practically a sacrament, meant it was only natural they would consider Tiller a brave and moral man while viewing anti-abortion protesters as evil incarnate. That’s just the way they see the world.

But I must admit I was shocked and somewhat horrified to read the statements of so-called religious professionals, that is, people who have been ordained to be spiritual shepherds.

The Very Rev. Katherine Ragsdale, the president of Episcopal Divinity School in Cambridge, MA, said this about the death of Tiller: “This is about the loss of a man who was a saint and a martyr. He was a prayerful man who put his life at risk to protect others and died for it.”

In a speech a couple of years ago, Rev. Ragsdale called abortion “a blessing.”

Rabbi Arthur Waskow, from the Shalom Center in Philadelphia, said Dr. Tiller “joins the list of martyrs for ethical decency and human rights, killed for healing with compassion.” The rabbi continued, saying Tiller was “a religious martyr in the fullest classical sense…killed for acting in accord with his religious commitments and his moral and ethical choices.”

The Rev. Rebecca Turner, an ordained minister with the  Disciples of Christ and the executive director of a group called Faith Aloud, said Tiller “was a hero to many abortion clinic workers, who were aware of his incredible courage and bravery.”

All I can say is: OH…MY…GOD!

Please tell me these quotes are a joke. Please tell me there really are not ordained religious professionals standing in pulpits inside churches and synagogues, buildings dedicated to the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, who actually believe these words. Please tell me it’s all a bad dream.

Unfortunately, it’s real. Unfortunately, there are people who have accepted the solemn responsibility of being spiritual leaders, shepherds to the laypeople in their communities, who have embraced the gospel of Satan rather than the gospel of God. Heaven help us. And Heaven help them, because God’s word is true, yesterday, today, and forever. When God, through Jeremiah, vowed to punish the shepherds who misled the people, it is just as binding today as it was then.

Let’s recap what we know: 1. Thousands of childless couples in America are desperate to adopt a baby. 2. George Tiller made millions of dollars routinely dismembering late-term, viable babies in the womb and then tossing the little human body parts in the garbage. (He even admitted to performing abortions on some babies’ actual due dates!) 3. Ordained ministers call Tiller “a saint and a martyr” who “heal[ed] with compassion” and “put his life at risk to protect others.”

All I can say is: OH…MY…GOD!

The prophet Jeremiah, speaking for God, declared “woe” on the religious shepherds who failed in their mission. If you know anything about Scripture, you know that “woe” is ultra bad news. Jesus declared “woe” many times on the hypocritical Pharisees, and it was a very harsh condemnation.

Another Old Testament prophet, Isaiah, also declared woe. In chapter five, speaking for God, Isaiah said this: “Woe to those who call evil good, and good evil; who change darkness into light, and light into darkness….Woe to those who are wise in their own sight.”

I hate to be judgmental, but Revs. Ragsdale and Turner, and Rabbi Waskow, fit Isaiah’s description to a “T”. They are calling evil good, and good evil. They are calling darkness light, and light darkness. They are so wise in their own sight they have completely lost sight of true wisdom: the truth of God.

This situation is extremely sad. A man was murdered before he had a chance to repent, so we must pray for Tiller’s soul. We must pray for these wayward shepherds who teach people that Tiller’s grisly work somehow should be viewed as noble and good. And we certainly must pray for our nation.

All I can say is: OH…MY…GOD!

©2009