Mass Shootings and Absent Voices

So far, in 2022, there have been over 200 mass shootings. Lots of people are playing the old saw of “thoughts and prayers.” It seems to be code language for doing nothing. This isn’t only true of politicians, though it is hard to take their one-handed prayers seriously when their other hand is in the pocket of the NRA.

Around the country prayer vigils are bringing thousands of people together who are genuinely broken hearted about gun violence AND feel completely powerless to do anything about it. What is missing is a courageous, prophetic voice that speaks out and connects faith and action. What is lacking is a thoughtful, prayerful, biblically informed voice. Such a voice empowers people to push through hand wringing and inaction to passionate faith based proclamation. As Walter Brueggemann writes again and again, capturing the religious imagination of God’s people to envision a world where God’s realm is possible is what inspires us to faithfulness and cajoles us into action.

Here is my modest attempt to set a framework for prophetic witness that can empower us to act with courage and conviction. In our time the loudest voice dominates the airwaves. It is beyond time to take our collective place in giving that dominant voice a run for its money.

1. From Genesis to Revelation the overarching message of scripture is God’s eternal love affair with humanity and all creation. This love is unconditional; we can do nothing to earn it and we can do nothing to lose it.
2. Actions have consequences. God doesn’t change. God does, however, expect us to change. Such change is the lifetime journey of faithfulness and obedience that lies at the heart of discipleship and courageous witness.
3. The life of faithfulness is lived as a grateful response to the steadfast love, forgiveness, mercy and grace of God. We strive to do the will of God out of our love for God, not out of guilt, shame or any of the religious BS the church has dumped on people through the centuries.
4. God is just. This is enough to make all of us quiver in our boots. On the heels of this we also remember that God is merciful. Counting on God’s mercy to absolve us from action, however, doesn’t cut it.
5. The prophetic witness depends on us knowing enough about scripture, history and tradition to say something intelligent. Faithfulness is not a spectator sport. It expects something of us.
6. Genuine community (whether inside a church or not) is essential to a life of faithfulness. We need one another for encouragement, accountability and solidarity. Being a prophetic voice is a lonely task made less lonely through a genuine community.
7. Contrary to popular belief, prophets didn’t predict the future. They were not snake oil peddlers and soothsayers. They were ordinary people who heard a call to speak God’s truth to power.
8. The gospel is political. Get used to it. Sure, people will get mad. Some people may leave. Wish them well. Scripture bears witness to a preferential option for the poor and an overarching goal of justice, peace and equality. Jesus wasn’t crucified between two thieves for bouncing children on his knee. He was put to death because he dared to call out the collusion between the Roman occupation and the corrupt religious power of his day.
9. Religious institutions need to reclaim the practice of admonishment. This is not to be confused with shaming. It means to warn or reprimand firmly. These days the church is not so much in danger of being persecuted as it is of being ignored. The lack of courage and prophetic witness has put the church on the cutting edge of obsolescence. If the church can’t get its witness together to challenge the ills of our time, this is precisely where it belongs.

 There is a need to reclaim the prophetic tradition of our faith communities. Drowning out right wing religious voices that feed religious nationalism, obstruct gospel values and ramp back civil and human rights for marginalized populations depend on us finding our voice.

All of the Abrahamic traditions, Christianity, Judaism and Islam have peace at their core. At the very least every church, synagogue and mosque needs to have letters to legislators who take money from the NRA or obstructed common sense gun reform. Religious institutions need to take a stand. Our broken heartedness is in desperate need of a shot in the arm of prophetic urgency that speaks truth to power and takes the risk of being unpopular. We need to take our broken heartedness and feelings of powerlessness to the voting booth and participate in the democratic process (while we still have one). Being a person of faith asks something of us. It is high time we respond while there is still time.