“You’re too idealistic”
“Mr. Randolph, that sounds an awful lot like socialism….are you a socialist?”
“Do you even support our troops, cause you sound unpatriotic”
“Ever hear of “just-war” theory Mr. Randolph….huh, huh?” (imagine the ever so slight puffing up of the chest)
I’ve come across each of these statements, and many more (at least the ones people are willing to express while in my presence) and more often than not it is when discussing Jesus’ sermon on the mount….that radical, counterintuitive, counter cultural discourse recorded in the Gospel according to Matthew. Even the fact that I refer to the sermon as radical might give you some insight into which lens I use by which to understand those powerful words!
Yes, I am idealistic, I am a follower of Jesus! I’m crazy enough to believe, like many of you reading this, that the creator of the universe stepped into our reality, wearing flesh like us, and that he offered us another way to live and interact with the world around us. I’m crazy enough to believe that the beautiful system of Shalom, as presented in the opening poem of Genesis, paints a picture of whole and complete relationships between humans and God, humans and other humans, humans and the earth and each individual human with herself/himself. I’m idealistic enough to believe, although humanity has contributed to the destruction of Shalom, that the way of Jesus offers us the path towards the restoration of all things! I’m idealistic enough to believe Jesus when he teaches us to pray that what goes on in the Kingdom of God would also manifest here on earth all around us! I’m crazy enough to believe that each individual has a role to play in the restoration process…..I’m not a socialist, I’m a broken, hypocritical, cynical but also idealistic to a fault, dreamer, and follower of the way of weakness, the way of Jesus.
My brother-in-law is in the U.S. Navy… Continue reading “The Way of Peace”