PRAYING TO THE SAME GOD

When Abraham Lincoln made the observation in his Second Inaugural Address that people of both sides of the Civil War "read the same Bible and prayed to the same God," he then wondered at that, saying, "It may seem strange that any men should dare to ask a just God's assistance in wringing their bread from the sweat of other men's faces, but let us judge not, that we be not judged"

Lincoln saw the Civil War as God's just punishment against our nation for allowing the sin of slavery to exist, also saying, "Fondly do we hope, fervently do we pray, that this mighty scourge of war may speedily pass away. Yet, if God wills that it continue until all the wealth piled by the bondsman's two hundred and fifty years of unrequited toil shall be sunk, and until every drop of blood drawn with the lash shall be paid by another drawn with the sword, as was said three thousand years ago, so still it must be said 'the judgments of the Lord are true and righteous altogether.'"

Lincoln knew the Bible well, as is evident when we read his speeches and are reminded that it was the first book her ever read since his mother used it when she taught him to read as a child according to his own witness. And Lincoln was known to spend time on his knees in prayer and to seek the counsel of pastors and even bishops such as the Methodist bishop with whom he went to the church where I was a member during my earliest years in Washington. During one service, Lincoln heard about a missionary effort to African people that had been started by the women of the Methodist Church, and he donated $300 to that cause.

In addition, on a political level, Lincoln never thought of the states that had joined the Confederacy as an enemy states, but as people in states that still belonged to the Union as their forefathers had made commitments to join in good faith. His focus in answering the war that they started was to bring them back to the Union and to free the slaves that they wanted to keep in bondage.

As many people have pointed out, our nation has had to work against the evil of oppression and inequality and its rotten fruit time and again since the end of the Civil War and the reunification of our nation. The newly freed people and their descendants suffered because of white supremacist and hate groups bent on oppressing them and subjugating them from the time right after the Civil War with the founding of the KKK and then the institution of the Jim Crow laws and other demeaning circumstances that perpetuated the lack of opportunity, poverty; and misery and oppression they suffered for almost another hundred years until the Civil Rights Movement in the 1960's and beyond.

Yet, still . . . here we are again. The same spirits of hatred and evil have been embodied by a new generation of people who teach hate, instill fear and collect and carry assault rifles and other weapons that in no way could be considered necessary just to defend their homes and their families, but which were designed for use in battle in wars.

How can anyone defend them? Even though they have the rights of free speech and to assemble as well as to bear arms, none of those rights should be used to threaten or frighten or wound, torture and kill other people here on our soil who not only are guaranteed the same rights and freedoms, but who have suffered long because of the kind of people who now seek to take over or nation as if they are the only ones who belong to it.

Enough is enough.

There is no biblical justification to condone and allow hatred and evil to dominate people. Over and over the Bible narrative reports how God intervened for those who are oppressed against their oppressors. Jesu came to shoe God's power in overcoming slavery to sin and death, so how can people who call themselves Christian condone and encourage or allow the people who spew hatred and do evil?

There is a problem. People are again "reading the same Bible and praying to the same God," but we can be sure that our nation will again suffer from the choices we make if we condone and support these people of hate bent on doing evil and do nothing to stop them, as God is our judge.

It took me several days after I was inspired to write about this to be able to write it without sounding like I was judging or condemning anyone. Reading Lincoln's Second Inaugural Address helped. And writing what I believed God was leading me to say in some conversations with friends on FB helped, too.

We are all in this together, but too often our systemic racism has left those who suffer feeling like they are alone while at the same time whether or not someone who is white acts out in a racist way, everyone who is white is intrinsically safer and more secure than African Americans and other minorities on the hate lists of those bent on doing evil.

It is interesting that people have gotten more upset since the Neo-Nazis have joined the historical white supremacists recently. In some ways it is a good thing that they did because they struck a chord that has given more people the realization that we can't put up with the people who are mounting this new campaign of hatred and fear mongering and evil activity.

It's not a moment too soon, because we can't let them get away with it. And we can't condone or allow the president of the United States to be someone who condones and encourages the people who belong to nearly 1000 open hate groups and who knows how many more that are hidden away.

It's not just about politics and it's not just about religion. We have a crisis that will shake the core beliefs of both our nation and Christianity to the core. As ever, God will make the disposition of the outcome, but the consequences will be manifest both on Earth and in Heaven.

Lord have mercy. Christ have mercy. God have mercy.