Dec 29 2018 John 7:37-52

The morning prayer readings for this morning are aligned with the commemoration of Thomas a Becket, who was martyred by fellow Christians because of well-intentioned disagreements, clearly with life or death consequences.

The reading from the Gospel of John occurs when the authorities are building their case against Jesus. Good old Nicodemus comes to his defense, reminding them that the law doesn't judge without first giving them a hearing. Their response is to scoff at him and his adherence to those pesky rules.

This reminds me of the situation we're in today. From our government laws and standards:
All men are created equal. Except when I think they aren't.
Innocent until proven guilty. Except when they've been guilty in the past.

And from our faith:
Seek and serve Christ in all people. Except if I disagree with their political views.
Respect the dignity of every human being. Except if they don't deserve it based on their actions.
Strive for justice and peace on the earth. Except if justice means I get less or have to give up what I worked for.

I don't think this is easy. And I don't do it myself all the time. But I believe these truths to be true. Always. And I believe that unless you start from a place of absolute belief, it's impossible to be true.

As soon as we are able to provide our own version of "except...", we're off the hook. As soon as we can make these commitments while crossing our fingers and counting the exceptions, we've lost.

Start with believing it's just plain true. Let the disonence be between your beliefs and your actions, not between your public words and private beliefs.