I have a confession to make. I am not a huge fan of Al Sharpton. I do not know him personally, only his public persona as expressed on radio and TV interviews. So when I heard that he was going to speak in the aftermath of the Grand Jury decision, I thought to myself, somewhat cynically, “Oh, this is not going to be helpful.” My fear was that he would stir the flames even more. Yet, as much as I was not a fan, I knew I needed to listen to what he said – if for nothing else, then to know what was ‘out there’ in the discussions about our community. But deeper down, I also knew I need to listen because you never know where and how and by whom the truth will be given to you.
A while back, a student met one of my staff for an evaluation about a position at the center. During that meeting, the staff member said some rather challenging things to them, and was not quite sure how it was received. A few days later, that person came to me and recounted this about that conversation: “I have never felt so unconditionally loved and yet absolutely challenged at the same time in my life.” What a grace it was for her to be able to say that. And, how rare it is for anyone to be able to say that. Many people would have heard the conversation as a critique and tuned out or turned off. The person chose to TRULY LISTEN for the truth that was there…
Who helps you hear the truth about your life? Do you have someone who can speak to you, not just what you want to hear, what you are comfortable hearing about, what you look forward to hearing about, but also those truths that can be difficult to hear? And, do you train yourself to truly listen, to truly see yourself/the situation as the other sees it? That is the difficult work of our lives, isn’t it? And the difficult work left in our communities, post Ferguson. How do we listen for the truth?
You see, truth does not always come packaged easily. Today’s gospel finds it packaged in camel’s hair, wild locusts and honey; far from the city, in the middle of the hot, dusty wilderness. On external appearances, John would not have been one you would expect to hear the truth from. He did not fit the mold of a prophet or ‘professional holy man.’ Yet we are told that “all the inhabitants of Jerusalem were going out to him.” John must have had a way of letting people know that they were both unconditionally loved and absolutely challenged, all in the same breath. Even Herod, who eventually had him put to death, could not dismiss him lightly. There was something about John that called to everyone he met and both affirmed and challenged them. Thad that call, that invitation still floats down to us in our time. “Ready the way, make straight the paths!”
SOOO, how and through whom have YOU heard the call this Advent to ready the way? Even more basic to that: are you even expecting that invitation to come?
I wonder what it would be like for each of us to try a few things to ‘stretch us’ this advent. What if, when we were reading the paper, we forced ourselves to ‘not skip’ the stories whose headlines make us want to keep turning the page? What if we pledged to listen to the Colbert Report for those who struggle with the ‘left’ or the Rush Limbaugh show for those who struggle with the right? What if we had the courage to truly listen, as did that college student, when people said things that were challenging to us? Make a choice to get out of you comfort zone this Advent in the “input’ you bring to your head and heart this week.
And, on a deeper level, just as John called the people to look at the truth of their lives by how he lived his, what is the quality of your witness to the truth these days? Do people feel challenged by how YOU live as they felt challenged by John? You see, you and I may be the only people that some folk trust enough to know they are both loved unconditionally and challenged absolutely. Do they know more of the truth because of you?
I may not ever be a fan of Al Sharpton, but I am glad that I made myself listen that day, because I heard and understood a perspective that I never would have otherwise. This advent, may we all keep our ears open, for we never know through whom God will reveal his truth in our lives…