I used to really love Michael Jackson. I mean, I had a full dance routine to Beat It, and I watched the music video for Man in the Mirror and Black or White so many times that the VHS tape wore out. Then when I was older, the media was full of stories of Michael abusing young boys. My childhood hero, completely ripped apart before my eyes. It was a long time before I could listen to his music again with the same joy I had as a bright-eyed child.
******
I was in 5th grade when I watched President Bill Clinton speaking from the oval office about his relationships with women.
******
Woody Allen. A legend in the film-making industry. Traditionally, Allen has created more powerful roles for women actors than most other directors and writers. He brings a fresh strength and empowerment to his female characters, and women literally are lining up to work with him for that reason. I remember the tabloids in the supermarket showing him with his adopted teenage daughter. I tried to justify in my mind that they weren't blood related, but I can't shake this inky black feeling that he is not who I thought he was. Although I still find a way to straddle the line of my ethics and my love for movies each time I pay to see his films, I can't help but feel dirty and uncomfortable afterward.
******
Paula Deen. I hate what she has said about my black brothers and sisters. But her Southern Cooking Bible is a staple in our home. And her biscuits are to die for.
******
You see, I grew up (and our youth are now growing up) in an age where nothing is sacred. No one in our society is capable of holding onto the porcelain images associated with Audrey Hepburn and Grace Kelly. In the 1950s, Jerry Lee Lewis married his cousin who was only 13 at the time (he was 22), and it completely annihilated his career. Today, I am convinced this would be a simple drop in the bucket, easy to overcome with time and good PR. After all, who hasn't had a scandal? Are you even a celebrity or a politician if you haven't had one? It's like the Bar Mitzvah of Hollywood: a rite of passage into fame.
And it seems as though the degradation and disgusting nature of the crimes is getting saltier and saltier. Now, the opposing political candidate is not just someone I disagree with on economics, social justice, or foreign policy; rather, the opposition represents evil incarnate, the ushering in of the apocalypse, and a complete ruination of our democracy. It is no longer that a political candidate said or did things that they now regret; rather, their actions are deemed by their opponent as criminal and worthy of prison time. In order to support a candidate or see a movie or listen to some musical artist, it seems that the world is demanding that I make concessions about my beliefs and my convictions. I somehow have to compartmentalize or justify the person and the art.
A great example: Nate Parker. Nate Parker is one of the artistic minds behind the telling of Nat Turner's biographical (or historical fiction) tale in The Birth of a Nation. Having seen the movie, I believe it has its place in the top films about racism and slavery in our country. It is deeply convicting, difficult to watch as a white person, and yet somehow empowering, giving the audience hope and encouragement to make changes in our racial discourse. Easily, this was the best movie I have seen this year (and I think I have seen upwards of 40 movies). Just before the release of the film, Nate Parker was destroyed by the media for rape charges filed against him in 1999. The social media world erupted, acting as judge and jury for not only Nate Parker and the incident in 1999, but for the movie as well. People who hadn't seen the movie blatantly refused to see it because it depicted sexual assault (that was not present in the historical biography of Nat Turner), and the social media world deemed that a person who was accused of the same crime could not possibly write or act in a movie that condemned actions he had taken in his own life.
Again, I am faced with this challenge: do I need to justify Nate Parker's actions in 1999 in order to appreciate and applaud the artistic genius of The Birth of a Nation? Am I required to proclaim someone sinless in order to appreciate their work? Do my actions in appreciating the work of a sinner convey the message that I condone the sin?
Sinners or Saints?
We brushed on this topic in both Middle School and High School Youth Group yesterday. Our Middle Schoolers were challenged to shed the feelings of resentment and irritability they have toward parents, peers, and self in order to really love someone, even if they don't agree or get along with them. Similarly, our High Schoolers were challenged to love those who we consider enemies, to pray for those who persecute us or others, to seek compassion and empathy for those with whom we do not agree. The idea of loving people who are difficult is not new to our generation, although it is taking a different form; scripture and history are littered with stories of humans trying to figure out how to get along with other humans.
You shall not take vengeance or bear a grudge against any of your people, but you shall love your neighbor as yourself: I am the Lord.
-Leviticus 19.18
Somehow over the years, it became necessary for us to be "all in" when it comes to a political candidate or a spouse or a particular cause. If we find ourselves disagreeing with someone, we either find ourselves changing our minds on certain matters or justifying our beliefs, OR we change our minds and nullify the ideas that seem to be tainted. How can I still listen to Michael Jackson's music when the world believes him to be a child molester? How can I believe that former President Bill Clinton did anything good for our country, since he had an affair with Monica Lewinsky? Or worse yet, how can I support his wife? In order to watch Woody Allen's movies, I have to some how justify that his relationship with his adoptive daughter was somehow consensual and they are super happy and devoted to each other. I will no longer cook Paula Deen's recipes because they are filled with butter and racism. No wait, I can't do that. Paula Deen is a wonderful person who has been crucified by the media, and I can still indulge in her high-caloric recipes without guilt.
I don't even think this is a conscious decision on our part. I think we naturally gravitate away from feeling uncomfortable or from seeing one another in a sinful light, and when faced with discomfort and sin head-on, we either soften the image with excuses or we divorce ourselves from the previous angelic image and distance ourselves from this character.
Yet...that's not what Jesus is calling us to do.
You have heard that it was said, 'You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.' But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be children of your Father in heaven; for he makes the sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous.
Matthew 5.43-45
...since all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God...
Romans 3.23
Somehow, God is commanding us to find love in our hearts for others. Not because they are innocent of their sins, not even because they are sorry, and not because they contain some righteousness that we cannot see. Rather, we are called by God to love all people simply because they are created and loved by God. As we said in High School Youth Group last night, sometimes the best response to your mind racing with insults about another person is to remember, "Jesus died for this person, as well as for me."
Some wisdom from Augustine
So a long time ago when the church was still pretty new, there was this very cool saint named St. Augustine of Hippo (yes, that's right of Hippo...the place, not the animal). There was this group of people called the Donatists who believed that the sacraments (namely baptism and the Lord's Supper) were considered null and void if they were administered by a sinner, by someone who was not completely and perfectly orthodox in their beliefs. If the priest didn't share their politics, if the priest was guilty of envying another priests fancy vestment, if the priest sometimes wished for steak instead of ground beef, if the priest occasionally blasted a parishioner for cutting him off in traffic (OK...so these are imaginary examples, but you get the picture)...then whatever they did in worship was considered null and void.
Augustine said this was ridiculous and against Christ. Augustine believed that the sacraments were outward signs of inward grace, physical manifestations of the work of God that has already been accomplished in the spiritual realm. A human being, according to Augustine, couldn't mess up the sacrament simply by being sinful or making an error in the service; rather God's Spirit and the divine actions taking place in the act of worship were what made the sacraments holy in the first place. In other words, we don't depend on humans being perfect in order to have a proper relationship or worship of the living God; we rely on God.
I think there's an application for this today. If some truth, work, or action is presented by a sinner, it doesn't necessarily make it any less true. Rather we believe that God works through sinful humans to do God's work in the world. This doesn't mean that we need to excuse sinful behavior, but it also doesn't mean that we need to vilify a person's whole life for their sinful actions.
What if this is how we thought about our political candidates or about the people who disagree with us in politics? Could we somehow appreciate that even as broken as some candidates appear to be that God might actually work through them in their presidency or time in office?
What if this is how we thought about celebrities, writers, and artists? Could we somehow appreciate works of art and truth in movies and music even if they were created by someone whose sins are well-known? Can we appreciate their good works, yet still condemn inappropriate actions?
What if this is how we thought about our neighbors?
What if this is how we thought about ourselves?
A Challenge Worth Accepting
As we come to the second half of October, with the presidential election just around the corner, we find ourselves sitting in an atmosphere of tension, anger, and mistrust. God is challenging us to be counter-cultural, which means not that we pick the candidate that goes against cultural norms, but that we ourselves go against the culture of hate, exaggeration, and verbal abuse.
As we learn about violence and racial prejudice on our streets, we find ourselves in an atmosphere of fear, confusion, and distortion. God is challenging us to be counter-cultural, which means not only that we take the side of the oppressed but that we ourselves find active ways to go against a culture of violence, prejudice, and hate.
As we go about our daily routine, it can be tempting to label some neighbors as "Trump/Clinton Supporters" or "odd-balls" or "bad examples." God is challenging us to love those people, even when we disagree with their actions, even when the easier route is to ignore or disown.
As we go about our day, sometimes one mistake can lead to another and suddenly our day is ruined. One error can make us think we are terrible at our job; one ill-placed jab can fuel a day filled with the mind telling us that we are terrible parents, friends, or lovers; one error in judgment can fill us with a sense of failure. God is challenging us to love ourselves, even when we don't fully live up to the people we know we can and are called to be, even when we disappoint ourselves or others.
This is our call as followers of Jesus Christ. I will be challenging myself to this over the next few months as the season becomes weighty with negativity and cynicism, and I encourage you to join me in this challenge.
No comments:
Post a Comment