Is there a place for Christians to be outraged? Is this ever a proper response to the sinfulness of the world or for the presentation of things contrary to the Christian worldview? Is this the way to respond to insult?
I saw in the headlines today that France, as part of the opening ceremony for the Olympics, did a parody of the “Last Supper” that featured drag queens as the participants.
PARIS, July 27 (Reuters) – “A parody of Leonardo Da Vinci’s famous fresco ‘The Last Supper’ featuring drag queens in the Olympic opening ceremony in Paris has sparked fury among the Catholic church and far-right politicians, while supporters praised its message of tolerance.
The unprecedented ceremony on the Seine River, which drew millions of viewers around the world, included a tableau celebrating the French capital’s vibrant nightlife and reputation as a place of tolerance, pleasure and subversiveness.”
It didn’t take long for the outrage to begin. Numerous posts showing disgust and anger at the mocking of this particular occurrence that in the years to come (after the original in Jesus’ time) became one of the 7 sacraments of the Roman Church and one of the two sacraments of most protestant Churches. That would be “Communion” or “The Lord’s Supper”.
It is always of interest to me how thin-skinned people (in this case Christians) can be over something that on a day-to-day basis is, for the most part, taken for granted as just another tradition that we practice. While this is certainly painting with a broad brush, I’m guessing that most who participate in this sacrament, don’t give it much thought, rather go through the motions and then move on.
That said, whether one takes it appropriately seriously, or goes through the motions, the question remains; Is there a place for Christians to be outraged?
Numerous Scriptures came to mind as I was considering this, but the one that had the greatest impact was regarding the Passion of Christ. Was there or has there been since then any greater mockery of God than the treatment His Son received on those last days of His life? Yet, what was the response of Jesus Himself at the behavior of His own people?
It would do us well to read the story again, with the current subject in mind as a refresher how we are to respond in similar situations. The particular parts of the Passion that stood out to me were two. First of all, the mocking of Christ (Matthew 27:27-31). The second was Jesus’ response to the whole of the crucifixion occurrence.
Jesus’ response to the mocking was silence. His response to the crucifixion itself was to ask His Father to forgive those who were putting Him to death.
I get the outrage. Certainly, in my younger years, I would have participated in it. But as I have become more familiar with the whole of the teachings of Scripture and am more able and willing to let those teachings dictate my actions and reactions, I see a different way.
It’s easy to see those who are hostile toward that which we hold dear to be “them”. They are the adversary. They are the enemy. They are the ones that we are to fight. Yet this is not what we find in Scripture. The teachings regarding how we are to view and respond to those who don’t follow God/Jesus/Christianity/The Gospel is quite clear.
I Peter 3:15 “but sanctify Christ as Lord in your hearts, always being ready to make a defense to everyone who asks you to give an account for the hope that is in you, but with gentleness and respect;”
Titus 3:1-2. “Remind them (the brethren/Christians) to be submissive to rulers and authorities, to be obedient, to be ready for every good work, to speak evil of no one, to avoid quarreling, to be gentle, and to show perfect courtesy toward all people.”
Which should be our main concern? That people don’t mock or insult us or what we believe. Or, that those who do this are lost. This sort of situation should cause us to weep for the lost ones not put up our guard to protect our thin skin.
Lastly, the only outrage our Lord showed was to the religious leaders of the day.
To be continued…