Jesus came with angels heralding “Peace, peace on the people of earth”. How we have twisted the gift of the Father to the world that He so loved. God forgive us we know not what we do. Carla
"Preach the Gospel always. Use words when necessary." St. Francis of Assisi
In junior high and high school, we had a well-known bully. And he followed the script, carrying himself like the world revolved around him.
He did attend most of his classes, and when not in class, walked the hallways with an air of arrogance, a mixture of “Look at me, I’m important” and “Stay out of my way”. He was shadowed—depending on the year—by two or three minions who would flatter and fawn. And he spent much of the lunch hour in the parking lot sitting on the hood of his car.
We all knew not to get in his way, and we knew not to find any way to irritate him.
I had a girlfriend in my freshman year, and he wanted her to be his girlfriend. He would threaten to beat me up. And he enjoyed calling me names.
This story didn’t come to my mind for those occasions, but for another—for me, a very emotional memory. The memory of him openly berating, and intimidating, younger boys. There were times when I couldn’t miss it. And times, when I couldn’t turn away, and watched. Sometimes it was just the verbal intimidation and name calling. Sometimes it was physical threats. We all—everyone in the school—could see it. And we knew the pretext, “It’s just him being him. Let’s ignore it. And stay out of his way.”
I can tell you, that to this day, I carry the shame—and sorrow—from “ignoring”. And avoiding. “There’s nothing I can do,” I would say to myself back then.
And to this day, when I see pain from unkindness or meanness (including when we ignore the pain of the “least of these”), it goes straight to my core. And there is a part of my heart that wants to pretend it isn’t so. And I close my spirit down. In a world where bullying—meanness and violence—exists, it can be too easy to close our eyes. As a go-to response. Easier to avoid the involvement emotional roller coaster we tell ourselves.
And no, this was not the Sabbath Moment I had set out to write today.
So. Why the bully story?
I just read the news. And I don’t have the words.
They were gathering for a celebration at the beginning of Hanukkah, in Sydney, Australia. And shooters—a father and son—targeted a Jewish gathering on the beach and killed at least 15 people, and wounded 40 more, officials said. At least one gunman (the father) is dead, and the son, is in custody. The authorities called it a terrorist attack.
And here’s the deal. Even with the news—national or international—the voices inside sound familiar. “But what can I do?” “Cruelty and violence are real. Crazy people do crazy things.” “It happened so far away.” Yes, the temptations of cynicism, and despair, and shutting down, are very real.
I remember one conversation in one of my BBC TV shows, Grantchester, about one of their dear friends going downhill, “I noticed, but I didn’t say anything,” said Kathy. “We all noticed, but we didn’t say anything,” said Mrs. C.
And I am reminded of a Pope Leo XIV recent summons, “Religion… cannot be limited to the private sphere, as if believers had no business making their voice heard with regard to problems affecting civil society and issues of concern to its members.”
I put my pen down. And took a writing pause.
And put on some music. And sat, and listened to Peter, Paul and Mary signing, “Light One Candle.”
“Light one candle for the terrible sacrifice
Justice and freedom demand
But light one candle for the wisdom to know
When the peacemaker's time is at hand
Don't let the light go out
It's lasted for so many years
Don't let the light go out
Let it shine through our love and our tears
Light one candle for the strength that we need
To never become our own foe
And light one candle for those who are suffering
Pain we learned so long ago
Light one candle for all we believe in
Let anger not tear us apart
And light one candle to bind us together
With peace as the song in our heart”
(“Light One Candle” is an affirmation and confirmation of the healing power in Hanukkah.)
Now, back to the bully story. Here’s the deal: we do have a choice.
We—every single one of us—can “light one candle”.
We can say No, to the “darkness” of bullying, and cruelty, and unkindness, and Yes, to lighting a candle for mercy, and compassion, and healing, and hope.
When we light this candle, let us listen to—and hear—the words of Micah (a Hebrew prophet from the 8th century BC), “What doth God require of thee, but to do justice, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God?”
Oh my. To love mercy.
Mercy is real, my friends. And mercy makes a difference. And I’m so grateful for the people in my life and world that show mercy, and spill mercy around them. Thank you.
I read this today from Sean McDowell, “Jesus modeled this in his interactions with lepers. In first-century Palestine, lepers were considered cursed by God. They were required to live outside of cities, have no contact with anyone, and cry out ‘Unclean! Unclean!’ if anyone approached (Lev. 13:45-46). Because of their loathsome skin disease, lepers were truly societal outcasts.
Yet one leper risked everything by approaching Jesus. Would Jesus possibly consider him worthy of being healed? Rather than turning away, ignoring him, or mocking him, Jesus was ‘filled with compassion’ and did the unthinkable: he touched him and made him well (Mark 1:40-45).
Rather than taking advantage of the weak and vulnerable, Jesus humbled himself and cared for them.
How would Jesus respond to bullying? Jesus touched the untouchable. He loved the unlovable. He cared for the disregarded, weak, and vulnerable. Even those who were excluded by society could be included in his love. If Jesus were physically present today, he would stand up to bullies, have compassion on those who are bullied, and never be a bystander.
Will we do the same?”
Today in our Christian churches, we light the third Advent candle of Joy.
And during this season of “lists” and intense pace, please be gentle with yourself.
And let’s use the words for Light One Candle, as our prayer this week. Thank you for your concerns about the serious flooding that occurred in Washington State this past week. We were fortunate, but other areas were seriously damaged.
Happy Hanukkah to our Jewish brothers and sisters.
And let us be on the lookout for those around us who need the light of kindness and mercy. Sabbath Moments
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