Then suddenly, in our church prayer concerns, one item said, "May we act in solidarity to combat Covid-19 instead of complaining and criticizing the government."
“Instead of . . .” that made me feel sad. Because it is not a choice between being in solidarity and being gagged in silence. They are not mutually exclusive. We need to do both. Governments draw wisdom from people's complaints and criticisms, especially during pandemic.
This feeling I could not put into words without hurting the author of the list.
Then on page 121 of the book I am reading, Philip Yancey’s What Good Is God?, the author wrote the words I could not express.
“I write honestly . . . even through it may cause others pain. I would hope that readers call me down on my own inconsistencies and exaggerations . . . I know of no more honest book than the Bible, which tells the ugly truth about its main protagonists [think of Moses, David, Peter, Paul] as well as the church to carry on the tradition.
“In contrast, the Pharisees and their kin exhibit one persistent flaw: an inability to take criticism.
“People and institutions naturally want to present themselves in the best light and thus we rationalize or cover up mistakes. When we do so we move away from authenticity toward the very dangers Jesus warned against, in the process sealing off grace.”
My personal belief: while Christians must follow government rules to the last drop during the Covid-19 quarantine, we should not stay silent.
Otherwise, the authorities will think everything they are doing is right. And we become accomplices to what is wrong, enemies of authenticity, which Jesus preached, and seal off His grace.
Let me end by quoting Dr. Rico Villanueva who wrote in Inquirer, "I find the fact that God allows His people to ask him 'why?' empowering, especially during this time when some of our leaders do not allow any form of complaint. If God can be questioned, why can’t we do the same with our leaders? Are they higher than God? (Doc Rico finished his Ph.D. in the Old Testament from the UK and teaches Sacred Scripture at the Ateneo and the Asia Graduate School of Theology.)
4 comments:
Thanks, Grace, for verbalizing it for us.
Thanks, too, for the vote of confidence. One of the blessings of this lockdown is we have all the time to participate in national fora and make our voices heard.
Thank you for your blog. I am a new follower and your book, What, Me Retire?, is making me see my current situation of being retired and evaluating my options.
Regarding this article, my question would be, just when do you think should one voice out ones thoughts, in this age of fake news, personality bashing, and grand standing. Sometimes I find myself emotionally stressed if and when I try to answer?
Then the next question is, do you have a writing class? You had a seminar early on writing to encourage the would be writers. I am beginning to rethink what I should really be doing and have prayed that the Lord will show me.
Thank you for your book.
Hello, Tere!
Thank you for visiting my blog and for taking time to read my book on the grace of retirement.
To your first question, I do a lot of research first (find out the source) and if true and it violates values that I hold dear as found in Scripture, I speak my mind. I first ask for guidance, though, through prayer so my post does not hurt personalities but is focused on the issue.
I do not have a regular writing class, but sometimes my publishers schedule one for me to facilitate. I have done creative writing workshops for both adults and children.
If you love writing, now is the perfect time to do it. While on lockdown, we are not time bound. We have all the hours we want. Retirement gives us even more time, so please go for it. I like to encourage would-be authors that now is the time to start--not tomorrow when we're less busy or after we have done this and that. Write now, right now!
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