Listen

From the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven has suffered violence, and the violent take it by force.

Matthew 11:12 (NRSV)

Think

Violence is all around us. We live in a culture of violence. There have been at least 45 mass shootings in the U.S. over the last month, and that reality alone should outrage us. Nothing should be normal about that, and yet it is our sad “norm.” We know what it is like to “suffer violence” – to feel the incredible injury and horrendous harm of this perpetual and unending violence. We suffer from it, like an epidemic, and it takes us by force.

Jesus described the time he lived in as one that “suffered violence.” And we know that the violent took him by force. But we also know that he neither accepted nor condoned violence. Instead, he resisted it, intervening and interrupting it with creativity, and – except for that time in the temple with the money changers – nonviolence. He de-escalated situations, turning condemnation into mercy. He disarmed the powerful, outwitted oppressors, and convinced people to put down weapons. He brought and taught peace.

They say that peace isn’t the absence of conflict or violence but the presence of justice. We may not be able to eliminate violence, but like Jesus, we can stand up to it. We can use our God-given, non-violent creativity to interrupt violence, work for justice, promote peace, and love our neighbors – all of our neighbors – as ourselves.

Carl Horton

Pray

God, we grieve the violence all around us. Help me not to ignore or accept violence as a reality we are powerless to confront. Instead, help me to engage, interrupt, and transform it into opportunities for justice-seeking and peace-making. Amen.

Go

Take the first step toward justice. 

Take a step toward reconciliation. 

Take a step toward understanding someone different from you.

“You make the path by walking.” (Robert Bly)