Called to be agents of transformation

May 10th, 2010 by Jasmine Obeyesekere Fernando

Evangelicals have always been zealous for the cause of the gospel. We have been enthusiastic in taking on the call of going into all the world to make disciples for Christ. We have also worked hard on not just bringing people to a saving knowledge of Jesus, but to also equip new believers to be lifelong followers of Christ, walking in deeper fellowship with Him. We have taken to heart to work out our callings to be fathers and mothers, husbands and wives, faithful workers at our jobs, be generous in our giving to God’s work at home and abroad, to be sensitive to God’s Spirit in the work of being transformed in our character, to heed to God’s call on our own lives and leave the known and familiar to serve in missionary service. Of course this is at the best of times, we know that as while we might be aware of these truths, that often we fall short, thereby relying on God’s grace to actually live life this way.

However even as we want more than a surface Christian life and are willing to go deeper in our faith journey, churches have lacked emphasis, even missed altogether the fact that God not only desires to go deep with Him but that God desires his people to learn and live the breadth of the Christian life. No, we don’t want to commit the hubris of thinking that we can figure out all there is to know of God in this life. We can’t. Yet it is sad that sections of the Christian community have sometimes ignored, glossed over, or been unaware of the range of God’s concerns in our world. How often have we asked God what His will is for our lives, often having a couple of options in our mind and trying to get a celestial green light in one direction. Do we instead ask God what His plans are for the World and what His will might be for us in light of His bigger plans for the world?

Some feel that lasting change occurs only as individuals come to Christ and allow Him to transform them. But it is tragic that we Christians have been content not to engage with the world and take on bigger challenges for the sake of Christ. This shyness to engage in social issues of the day that were immoral, evil or unjust did not always mark Christians. Instead throughout Christian history, we see evidence that Christians were known as those who cared for the vulnerable in their societies. In the ancient graeco-roman world Christians rescued unwanted babies that were exposed to the elements to die. Similarly, Christians cared for the sick when they were cast out to die alone. They may not have had the political clout to change the norms of society, but they addressed the evils in their communities.

Later on though, there were Christians who were able to influence public changes of evil practices. I have always been inspired by the story of William Wilberforce, who campaigned tirelessly in the English parliament for the abolition of slavery supported by his friends of the Clapham Sect. I am drawn to the story of William Wilberforce, because ultimately it’s a story about a “successful” attempt to bring about good change, a fight against a social evil born of spiritual conviction that all people are made in God’s image and therefore one man cannot buy, sell or own another.

I’m fascinated all the more because while it surely was the Biblical understanding of who people are before God that enabled a group of Christians to fight for the abolishing of slavery, the Bible does not have as its agenda, a battle plan to fight this evil. Instead we see Abraham and other patriarchs owning slaves, as did the cultures around them. We see rules though, of how slaves and servants were to be treated, for instance one reason no one was to work on the Sabbath was to give rest to those toiling in one’s household. In the New Testament masters and slaves both came to Christ and forge a new relationship as brothers, the Master being cautioned to treat the slave as his brother, and the slave being exhorted to work even better for his master/brother. With I believe just the one exception of 1st Corinthians where Paul encourages Christian slaves that if it were possible to win their freedom to do so, in most instances Paul does not advise them to attempt to change the status quo. Why was this? My personal perspective is that it was because of the Christian community ‘s lack of power in the wider socio-political communities they belonged to in the days of Paul’s writing. Also, the culture surrounding the Christians would not have had a framework to understand why the institution of slavery was morally evil. The Christians’ work in their context would have been to live and worship as the redeemed community and invite others to Christ.

I find it interesting that even though it makes us chaff sometimes at God’s seeming slowness to act, that He does act at the fullness of time. In the case of slavery, He caused sufficient numbers of His people to understand enough about himself and about people in general that they were convinced that slavery was evil. They prayed and worked and were able to convince lawmakers in a society that was at least nominally Christian to change the law. The “time” was right. There was a man of God in a position from which he could work for change. There was a group of believers behind him who had a firm conviction that what they were involved with was of God. And there was a measure of acceptance in the society in which they lived in that their cause was valid.

I feel that the apparent paradox of the glimpses of slavery in the Bible and how the Bible and Christian conviction itself were instrumental in fighting slavery a couple hundred years ago indicate a certain progressive revelation of God & his character that we sometimes understand over time. This is not to say that we are better able to know God than any other generation in the past. Nor is it to say that God’s character has shed anything or added anything on. Rather, sometimes because of the time and place we live in, certain facets of His character either stare in our face or don’t register all that much. For instance, in poor countries, Christians have had to grapple with how poverty affects people for many years. This has helped us to see more naturally I guess the many Biblical evidences of God’s concern for justice towards the vulnerable and powerless in society. Those from cultures that are more affluent and comfortable, where poverty happens on the fringes of society may not be as quick to notice biblical allusions on how worshippers of God are to protect the rights of those that do not have power in society to stand up for themselves and/or are exploited by society. As a university student, I remember hearing of an old Bible commentary published in the West that devoted many pages to expound on pottery and not even a full page to expound on poverty! Ironically one entry followed on the heels of the other. Recently, a friend who has been learning of God’s heart for Justice for the first time was astounded that she had grown up in American Christian circles all her life without ever really understanding how much issues of justice mattered to God. Thus an important aspect of God’s character became heightened in her consciousness.

When we look back at positive missionary contributions in the colonial era, the missionaries of that time built schools and hospitals among the people whom they hoped to reach for Christ. They recognized the important needs that needed to be met and addressed them as part of their witness. Its inspiring and personally challenging to realize that often these Christians whose footsteps we follow were the initiators of necessary social change of their times. We have a rich tradition of social engagement as part of our witness to Christ in the world we live in.

The Christian community’s commitment to the vulnerable is inherited not only from the traditions of our past, but also from the injunctions of the Scriptures itself. Time and time again in the Old Testament God’s people are warned not to exploit the ‘widow, orphan and alien’ i.e. those that depended on the kindness and goodwill of others in order to flourish in society. Prophets like Amos spoke of God’s anger with his people for exploiting the helpless and perverting justice and warned that they would be judged for the oppressive way they had treated the powerless in their community.

Where do we the inheritors of these traditions stand? Should not the Church universal today also be known as a community that identifies evil/unjust practices in the societies we live in and pray and work with like minded people of any persuasion to rid our societies of particular social sins? Too often we make our gospel too small, rejoicing only in individuals’ coming to salvation, but forgetting that Christ’s coming is good news in every way. Should not we, the Kingdom people find creative expression to our prayer ‘thy kingdom come’?

I admire the initiative of a friend from college days who now teaches at a women’s university in South Asia. This university includes Sri Lankan women from both the Sinhala and the Tamil communities with histories of mutual prejudice. The mutual aloofness each group demonstrated to the other caused concern among the university administrators so that they asked my friend (the school counselor, herself from Sri Lanka) if she could help them understand the students. My friend went one step further in offering to hold a workshop for the Sri Lankan students with the goal of starting a process of mutual understanding. At the end of the day, after listening to stories from both sides, asking honest & tough questions from their own community and the other, reflection, sharing food and music, there was the beginning of real difference in attitude & perspective in both communities towards the other. School administrators have noticed changes in actions too, that students now voluntarily attend each community’s special festivities. The students say that though there still exists differences of opinion , they are more able to share their real views on the ethnic conflict in class, without being excessively careful with their words as they had formerly been since both ethnic groups were represented in class. These students are now planning to demonstrate their commitment to reconciliation between the two communities by going back to Sri Lanka this summer to work on a peace-building project with affected communities from both sides of the conflict. All stemming from one faithful woman seizing the opportunity to be salt and light and going beyond the committment to her job.

Who are the ‘widow, orphan or alien’ in the social contexts of our Christian communities? We need to identify the powerless and marginalized that live among us and give practical expression to our faith in working to lift them up from the situations/conditions that they are in. After the Tsunami and for about five years now , a Sri Lankan Christian couple have been working with a community on the fringe of society. The parents are fisher labourers; they do not own boats or nets but hire their labour in the fishing trade. They also walk from door to door, selling small items. Of economic necessity both parents are out all day trying to earn a living. There has been no history of formal education in this community. The older children stay at home and look after the younger ones or also help their parents earn a living. This couple spent time with the community building relationships and gathered the children and taught them in their own environment, valuing their oral culture, teaching at times that were convenient to the community. This year, the first batch of students from their community sat for a major public exam and well wishers have helped the community own its first bit of property, a community center.

Once we recognize the conditions/situations that God calls us to address, let us remember that we are in it for the long haul and be faithful and persistent over the years it may take to see good come about, much as Wilberforce took on the cause of slavery early on in his career as a politician, but had to wait almost until the end of his life to see the result of his prayers and work.

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