Psalm 112:1-10

1 Hallelujah! Happy are they who fear the Lord and have great delight in his commandments!

2 Their descendants will be mighty in the land; the generation of the upright will be blessed.

3 Wealth and riches will be in their house, and their righteousness will last for ever.

4 Light shines in the darkness for the upright; the righteous are merciful and full of compassion.

5 It is good for them to be generous in lending and to manage their affairs with justice.

6 For they will never be shaken; the righteous will be kept in everlasting remembrance.

7 They will not be afraid of any evil rumors; their heart is right; they put their trust in the Lord.

8 Their heart is established and will not shrink, until they see their desire upon their enemies.

9 They have given freely to the poor, and their righteousness stands fast for ever;

they will hold up their head with honor.

10 The wicked will see it and be angry; they will gnash their teeth and pine away; the desires of the wicked will perish.

(This year, Monday Matters will focus on wisdom conveyed in the treasures of the book of Psalms. We'll look at the psalms read in church before Monday Matters comes to your screen. Please note that these days in the church, there are two tracks of readings in the lectionary, offering a choice of psalms. Your church may or may not have read the psalm included in this email.)

For some time, surveys have indicated that many folks outside the church have less than positive associations with the word “Christian.” Words that come to mind when asked for their view of Christians: judgmental, hypocritical, exclusive, captive to a particular political agenda. In the spirit of holding the Bible in one hand and the newspaper in another, we may have gotten insight into how those impressions came to be, courtesy of the National Prayer Breakfast held last week.

Mr. Trump spoke at that gathering. He claimed that one could identify Christians by the political party they identified with. He said that a Christian could not possibly vote for Democrats. (In fairness, I’ve heard folks of progressive persuasion say that a Christian could not possibly vote for a conservative candidate.) 

It was strangely heartening, and not entirely surprising to hear in the same speech that one of his most ardent supporters, a pastor of a large evangelical church, had concluded that Mr. Trump had never actually read the Bible. That rings true. If any time had been spent in scripture, the president might not have been led to say: We will know Christians by my political party. Rather, he might say: We will know Christians by their compassion.

Continuing with the nexus of politics and religion, last week the Speaker of the House, a self proclaimed Bible believing Christian felt called to correct the Pope’s interpretation of scripture. Without specific biblical citation, and with a stunning dose of moxie, Mr. Johnson claimed that scripture would support immigration policies (including detaining and deporting children, using them for bait, arresting and shooting protesters) being carried out by the current administration, policies directly criticized by the Pope. 

The Pope’s references to Matthew 25, which says that Christ will be known in service to those in greatest need, including the stranger, seemed to trigger Mr. Johnson. Thanks be to God, I’m not betting that the Holy Father will change his point of view based on criticism from the Speaker or others, criticism which did not seem to embrace the idea that we will know Christians by their compassion. Thanks be to God, we need not rely on current political leaders to tell us what it means to be Christian (especially leaders depraved enough to post the kind of reprehensible racist memes we saw over the weekend, at the beginning of Black History Month, of all things.)

The psalm selected for yesterday’s liturgies includes this observation: The righteous are merciful and full of compassion (v.4). The righteous, those who live in right relationship with the God of creation, will be known for their compassion (literally “suffering with.”) They will be known by their love.

That call to compassion can be found throughout scripture. It’s vividly portrayed in the life and ministry of Jesus. One of my favorite verses in the gospels comes in the story of the feeding of five thousand. Jesus looks out on thousands of people who have followed him into the wilderness. The gospels say that Jesus looked on the crowd with compassion, because they were harassed and helpless like sheep without a shepherd. There’s a timeless quality to that verse. I imagine Jesus looking at all of us right now in that compassionate way, harassed and helpless as we may be, in dire need of compassion. On the night before he died, Jesus told his disciples this: By this will all people know that you are my disciples, if you have love one for another. In short order, the gospels take us to the cross where arms of love stretch out in that ultimate act of compassion. 

Later in the New Testament, as the exponential growth of the early church shook the Roman empire, we read that people outside the church looked at what was going on inside the church (care for widows and orphans, sharing possessions, feeding the hungry) and said: See how they love one another. I imagine those outsiders saying: "I want to be part of that."

I’m wondering if today, people outside the church look at what’s going on inside the church and say: See how they love one another. They might not have gotten that impression from the National Prayer Breakfast, a gathering that underscored divisions that mark the times in which we live. Karen Armstrong, great scholar of the world’s religions, has said that compassion is the common theme among the world’s great faith traditions. So this Monday morning, the call to compassion comes to each one of us. It can shape our political leanings for sure, the ways we vote, pray, donate, address our representatives. 

Closer to home, I’m wondering what small steps we might take to make compassion our way of life, in our homes, our workplaces, our communities, our churches. Our identity need not be determined by those captivated by the love of power. Rather, we can find freedom as we identify with those who know the power of love.

I once heard a sermon where the preacher asked the congregation: If you were arrested for being a Christian, would there be enough evidence to convict you? (At that time it seemed hypothetical. Maybe not so hypothetical these icy days.) This week, may we be given grace so that with our lips and with our lives, we fill in the blank: They will know we are Christians by our love. By our compassion.

 -Jay Sidebotham