Today's readings: Psalms 104, 149; Isaiah 43:1-13; Ephesians 3:14-21; Mark 2:23-3:6
Ideology is a sneaky devil. When we are born into one, we usually don't even think of it as an ideology, but simply as the way things are - or at least the way they should be. For example, free market capitalism is the dominant economic ideology of the western world. We talk about it as though it is an actual entity, but in truth it is a collective agreement to adhere to a set of principles. No one still living was party to the original "agreement," but centuries later we all (for the most part) continue to operate under its rules. As with any ideology, there has been a subtle but consistent shift of how we think about it: those who adopted the principles did so to serve society; today we treat them as part of our identity, and often act as though society exists to serve them.
In many Gospel stories, Jesus rejected the ideology of his culture in order to serve humanity. The pharisees started conspiring to destroy him after he plucked grain and healed a man on the sabbath, in violation of Hebrew ideology. His admonition that "the sabbath was made for humankind, and not humankind for the sabbath" (Mark 2:27) did not move them, but Jesus knew that their ideology had become idolatry: they placed the letter of the scripture above the intent of God.
What ideologies have we let turn into idolatries? The pharisees were quite sure of their rigid interpretation of scripture. Should we be as sure of our own? Have we ever found ourselves defending or attacking a political idea simply because the "other side" criticizes or promotes it? The worst examples may be when we let political, religious and ethnic ideologies blend into an unexamined hodgepodge that leave us ready to take offense at the slightest provocation - or worse, to use ideology as an excuse to neglect or abuse our fellow human beings.
When we are most sure of our ideologies, we are least able to consider them wisely. Wisdom tells us mercy trumps idolatrous laws. By example Christ teachs us to examine them and use them to serve, not to blindly bend to them. God trusts us to think. Let's trust God enough to do so.
Evening readings: Psalms 138, 98
Yes Joseph, I am worried everyday about our society. Our moral fabric is coming apart at an alarming rate. Possibly due to the ever increasing pace of daily life, there is not time for very much needed self-reflection. Instead those who fail to be self-aware, are misled by sources focused on greed. I am perplexed by those who treat their church like Las Vegas.
ReplyDelete