It breaks my heart, on this Good Friday
the day when Jesus—innocent yet punished—in our country
Because all spiritual formation is a formation within political realities.
It breaks my heart, on this Good Friday, how so many professed Christians (who should feel shame…), on the day when Jesus—innocent yet punished, tortured, and killed through the conjoined work of mob sentiments, calculating religious leaders, and callous government officials—can be so cold-hearted about the break down of the rule of law, due process, and reliance on evidence in relation to fellow humans being in our communities.
These cornerstones of a free society—hard won over a 1000+ years against kings, lords, and tyrants, and directly overflowing from the Christian conviction that each person is made in God’s image and NOT to be dealt with according to the dictates of the powerful, but afforded dignity in all things, as witnessed by Jesus, the Son of God, who makes us all “fellow citizens”—these truths are now being casually cast aside by Christians more concerned about the citizenship status within an earthly kingdom, who think they are siding with the rule of law while at the same time undermining the very procedures that make freedom possible. This is part of such a great deception.
Tragically, it has never been easier to confess, on Good Friday, that…
“We are the mob who cried 'Crucify him.'”
“We are the religious who cried 'Crucify him.'”
“We are the authorities and leaders who cried 'Crucify him.'”
As followers of Jesus, we each must cultivate a critical eye toward our “own” parties. We must stay alert, recognizing that earthly rulers are prone to manipulation, power plays (Matt. 20:25), and ungodly acts of injustice (Ecc. 5:8–9).
Again, that doesn’t mean being soft on immigration. It doesn’t mean turning a blind eye to crime or accepting disorder at the border.
It’s possible to pair strong border policy with compassion and justice. It’s not possible to pair compassion and justice with indifference to human suffering (Luke 10:25–37).”
"It’s possible to pair strong border policy with compassion and justice."
I agree. Yet, many Christians advocate compassion for migrants in a way that displays indifference to the real suffering caused by neglecting border security. I support empathy for *any* human suffering, and it's fine if we feel called to emphasize different kinds of suffering...but people shouldn't ever be vilified for trying to protect victims.