We Are the Savior

Matthew 24:23 – “Then if anyone says to you, ‘Look, here is the Christ’ or ‘there he is,’ do not believe it.”

Humans have a tendency to look for a savior, someone to magically fix things for us. It partially explains the popularity of superheroes. Yet, one of the lessons of Jesus’ leaving earth is that we are able to do much of the work ourselves. Else, how would it get done? President Obama tried to teach us that – many of us couldn’t or wouldn’t hear it. Donald got elected by portraying himself as a savior – along with some old-fashioned voter suppression.

We really are the people we’ve been waiting for. I’m a student at Iliff School of Theology doing a thesis on Wonder Woman’s theology and ethics. One of the things I’ve come to understand more deeply in the past year is that power gets created in the process of our coming together and working for change. We all have some power; however small it may be. When we combine our power with that others, we create power. And when we base that power and the actions that arise from it on love of God and our neighbor, we become even stronger.

I’m no fan of Marianne Williamson, but she spoke a truth at that first debate that some people missed; we cannot defeat Donald and the Republicans with our current tools. It won’t happen. We need to use our tools AND invent better tools. Surprise them. That was part of the strategy in Greensboro, NC. When the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) planned their sit-ins, they had several waves of students waiting to take the place of those arrested. The police would arrest the first wave only to turn around and see more sitters. They were overwhelmed and, more importantly, they were surprised. Such tactics are easy to ignore now; they’ve been prepared for. We need a new way to surprise our opponents.

We also need to use the tools we have. One tool that is not getting enough traction is resisting the Republican narrative. We need to start calling a spade a spade. The House recently censured Donald’s racist comments. I’d like to see them censure his concentration camps. But, there are many areas in which we need to take back the narrative. The people that Donald is detaining are refugees, not immigrants. As such, they have protections that are being ignored. Underage women are girls. Sex with girls is rape. What Jeffrey Epstein is accused of is sex-trafficking. Words mean things and we must use the correct words. Do not let others spin the narrative to make themselves look good.

No, there will be no savior. It will take more than Mueller or Pelosi or the Attorney General of New York or a Democratic president to save the country and our values. It will take all of us doing everything we can. Of course, I recognize that not everyone can do something and some can only do a little, which makes it all the more important for those of us who can act to act. We are Christ’s hands, feet, ears, and mouths. We are the saviors we are looking for.

Lament. Take time to feel the sadness, the sorrow, the horror. Then, work to end the illegal and immoral detention of so many innocent people. It’s what Jesus would do.

B