Lenten blog | February 23, 2024

What's to be learned from such unpleasant people?

Throughout the year, the Southern New England Conference of the United Church of Christ reproduces the Daily Lectionary for use by churches.  These are the suggested readings for February 23rd:  Genesis 16:1-6; Psalm 22:23-31; and Romans 4:1-12.  I would encourage you to read these short selections as part of your Lenten practice.

I appreciate the honesty of today’s Genesis passage, but I find it hard to be inspired by it.  Of course, there is always the message that God is able to work for good no matter the situation, but oh my gosh the humans in this story are unpleasant. 
Today is a Lenten Friday.  These are times when Good Friday’s cross is at the center of our field of vision.  Jesus endured the cross’ scandalous execution for all people.  When Jesus asks God to forgive His torturers (Luke 23:34), we see that the cross is unconditional love.  Jesus loves us all, even the unpleasant.

More information is being shared about the mass shooting at the Super Bowl Victory Parade in Kansas City.  According to the County Prosecutor, the mass shooting began when Lyndell Mays got into an argument with a stranger.  As the argument escalated, Mays drew his gun.  Mays did not know the other person from Adam, but because of words exchanged over but a few moments, Mays felt justified to gun down the other person, to intentionally harm or kill this complete stranger because of words shared over a few moments. 

Missouri has extremely lax gun laws.  Guns are prevalent.  When Mays drew his gun, others in the celebratory crowd drew theirs.  One was Dominic Miller who is accused of killing an innocent bystander.  Both Mays and Miller are juveniles.  Others are going to be charged as well. 

Has the Super Bowl shooting already passed from your attention?  Has this sort of gun violence become normal for us in America?  Has the idea of two teenagers, strangers to one another, who have so little respect for life that they are willing to shoot and murder someone because of words exchanged, become typical?  What about the fact of spraying the bullets randomly so that tens of people are shot without care or concern?  How do children turn into this and how does a society allow for this? 

Maybe the unpleasant characters in Genesis hit too close to home. 

And yet, Jesus cares for us all, saint and sinner alike and everyone in between, and loves us so unreservedly that the cross is endured for all people, even the most unpleasant.  If you turn in your Bibles to Luke 23:34, you may see “‘Father, forgive them; for they do not know what they are doing’” within double brackets.  The brackets indicate that biblical scholars are uncertain as to the authenticity of this verse.  It is included in the biblical text, but scholars acknowledge that it is absent from some ancient sources. 

I believe that it is authentic, but that it was so disturbing a sentiment that some scribes could not copy it.  It is difficult to believe in Jesus’ unconditional love because it’s hard to apply to unpleasant people, so how could Jesus forgive the ones who literally nailed Him to the cross?  This is one of Lent’s greatest challenges, to see in the cross God’s love for everyone.  This is not a logical love.  It is not one that is deserved or earned.  It is given freely because God loves by nature not by condition.  And this is Jesus’ love, and that makes all the difference.
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If you’d like, here is the link to the Southern New England Conference’s daily reading schedule:  www.sneucc.org/lectionary.