Rebuke tidy and tiny theology

Today I want to quote an archbishop, honor a bishop, pray with a rabbi, and rebuke a pathetic president, no matter how powerful he thinks he is, to bring attention to the most baffling and perhaps important teaching that we get from the biblical book of Job - one of the most complex and compelling poems in our literary canon.

Welcome back to Below the Bible Belt - we are three years into the three and a half years long journey of reading the Hebrew bible, chapter by daily chapter and here we are in the middle of the Wisdom section - hanging out with Job - the man who lost it all, tries to make sense of suffering, and refuses to give up on the notion that God is good and not a vindictive and cruel creator.

What’s all that to do with politics and our unfolding political reality?

Apparently, a lot.

Earlier this week the new president of the United States claimed divine protection, perhaps even evoking the divine right of kings - claiming that the bullet that grazed his ear was God’s way of making sure he assumed this role and serve God’s will.

It’s the same man that took the public oath of office with two bibles standing by - one leather bound volume belonging to Abraham Lincon, the president who introduced “So help me God’ into our civic rituals, and the second bible - a gift that the president’s late mother gave him as a child , now held by the dutiful wife of this devoted and loyal husband, held in her hands for him to place his hand on -- who ignored the holy books and went on to utter the words that have just become meaningless.

Maybe it’s best he did not touch the books that so many of us consider sacred.

At least it’s honest. Even if it hurts.

No real reference to the legacy of love and justice that the pages of the bible hold, as well as so much toxic content, no faking it - there’s no religious passion here, just greed: Exactly what the Bible has warned the people Israel who once wanted a king.

So here we are in a country whose leader believes he is protected and sanctioned by God to create suffering for millions and more, defend hateful, petty politics and abuse human rights wherever possible.

Who knows why and how he survived that bullet. If God IS everywhere and everything that he is right and it’s divine will, and I’ll take it.

Nothing is ever black or white - and I’m willing to admit that she works in mysterious ways. But Where does justice live? How does evil triumph as so many good people who really do live virtuous lives and work for the greater good get trampled and dismissed?

That IS what the Book of Job is about, and it is teaching us, again and again, to look at life closer, to ask big questions, to find a finer response than kindergarten theology to the baffling questions of suffering and redemption in our world.

Rowan Williams, former Archbishop of Canterbury once wrote that

"Job stands as a rebuke to a tidy theology of reward and punishment. His confrontation with God reveals a faith that embraces the mystery of divine love without denying the reality of human suffering.”

Rebuke the tidy and tiny theology of reward and punishment.

Rebuke the theology that no longer serves our humanity that is trying to outgrow thousands of years of toxic masculinity and patriarchal patterns of persecution.

That’s exactly what we need at an age when rabbis claim that Oct. 7 happened because Israel embrace gay rights or evangelical faithfuls prefer some vague notion of family values that erases the beauty and boldness of nonbinary gender choices because of so called biblical values and Muslim terrorists murder in the so called name of a merciful God. who has no patience for nuance and still lives by blood revenge politics.

Throughout the Book of Job he screams for mercy, to be seen by the god that he still holds on to despite losing his children, his fortune, his health and his friends.

Mercy is the one that’s on our mind this week, thanks to the courage of Bishop Mariann Edgar Budde who spoke truth to power, looking the president in the eye and calling on him to walk the talk of the god he claims saved him.

Here is a faith leader who does know her Bible and remembers that a prophet’s job is to rebuke the leaders when its time to do so, to ruffle feathers, to defend the ones among us who are in divine image like everybody else and deserve every bit of dignity, respect, justice, life - and peace.

A plea for peace is what feels right to end this rant with - with words that showed up in Job this past week, spoken by one of his pious friends, words that have become famous and known everywhere Jews gather to recite prayers for consolation, and for peace.

Here’s the updated version created by Rabbi Arthur Waskow - another brave faith leader who knows what it’s like to talk truth to power, to walk his talk and put his life on the life again and again in defense of the greater good. Rabbi Arthur chose to translate the word Shalom not as Peace as is often the case but as ‘harmony’ - so sought after in our cacophony of confusing mixed messages and barrage on the senses.

Rabbi Arthur’s prayer echoes today as we enter Shabbat, with hopes for the second phase of the ceasefire, for more homecomings, for more release and relief, for more faith in the power of peace over war, with gratitude for all who help make peace and harmony possible above and below - including this presiding president who helped make this deal possible, gotta be honest -- and with fervent prayers for the courage to show up and make peace possible in every dimension of our lives, within and beyond, for all of us, again and again:

עוֹשֶׂה שָׁלוֹם בִּמְרוֹמָיו
הוּא יַעֲשֶׂה שָׁלוֹם עָלֵינוּ
וְעַל כָּל יִשְׂרָאֵל
וְעַל כָּל יִשְׁמָעאֵל
וְעַל כָּל יוֺשְׁבֵי תֵבֶל
וְאִמְרוּ אָמֵן.

You who make harmony

in the ultimate reaches of the universe,

teach us to make harmony

within ourselves, among ourselves —

and peace for all the children of Abraham,

through Hagar and through Sarah —

the children of Israel;

the children of Ishmael;

and for all who dwell upon this planet.

Amen.

Thank you for joining me below the bible belt.

Shabbat Shalom