Matthew 6:23b says, If then the
light in you is darkness, how great is the darkness.
The context suggests the meaning
of this. Just look at the passages surrounding this verse. Those who purport to
follow Jesus but put more value on “treasures of earth” rather than “treasures
of heaven” are in great darkness. Those who seek to continue to waver between
two “masters” are in great darkness. Those who unduly worry about peripheral
matters (rather than striving first for the kingdom of God) are in great darkness.
Those who judge others (without a proper consideration of their own state) are
in great darkness. If we fix our eyes on the wrong things and thus allow our
vision to become unhealthy we finish up in darkness.
Looking at this another way, and
reflecting on the “eye” and the functioning of the “eye” as part of our
perceptions … “the view we take of [other] people depends on the kind of eye we
have” (Barclay). There are certain things that can distort our vision, blind
our eyes, and thus make us live in darkness, e.g. prejudice or hate, conceit or
self-centredness, and jealousy or greed. What is then neglected is compassion,
generosity and truth. There is a devaluing of other people to the extent that
they can either be ignored, or worse, become commodities to be used for one’s
own ends. This is the path toward darkness, where there is less and less light
to show the way back to Jesus!
Now this all seems an overly harsh
assessment; or is it? Consider some of the deeds done by those who were
supposedly servants of the living God. Should not they have thought more about
these passages. Did they take their propensity to sin far too easily? Did
others fail in not pointing out their wrongdoing or not taking enough action to
protect the innocent?? Have some been caught in the great hypocrisy of
preaching moral standards while personally ignoring them. Patrick Parkinson has
said, “… if people preach moral standards and they don’t live by them, they are
the worst of sinners in my personal view”.
There is probably an even more
clear statement about the seriousness of these matters contained in Matthew
18:1-9. Verses 6-7 read as follows. If any of you put a stumbling block before one of
these little ones who believe in me, it would be better for you if a great millstone
were fastened around your neck and you were drowned in the depth of the sea. 7 Woe to the world because of
stumbling blocks! Occasions for stumbling are bound to come, but woe to the one
by whom the stumbling block comes!
The world, and many of its
citizens, are deeply affected by the abuse inflicted by those who have allowed
darkness to reign in the lives. When such abuse has occurred through the hand
of those who are part of the church, no wonder the church faces criticism and
condemnation, and comes to bear shame. So how do we rally from this? How do we
bring glory to God and lift up the name of Jesus in the midst of a somewhat
sorry situation?
Having watched the episode on
“church abuse” from the Towards Belief DVD series, we should think about
the following questions and points:
(1)
What is the
appropriate response of churches who know that abuse has occurred in their
midst? To the victims? To the offenders?
In many instances the church has
failed to support victims, and has not had appropriate measures in place to
receive and deal with complaints. In the past there was a reluctance to report
matters to the proper authorities, and, in some cases, a sense of trying to
protect the institution, rather than trying to provide help for victims. The church
must adopt a zero tolerance to abuse within its number. Telling the truth and
seeking justice for victims is vital. This is the path toward regaining the
community’s trust.
Regarding offenders – while
Christians believe that God’s grace reaches out to even the most flawed people,
forgiveness relies on true repentance i.e. honestly facing up to wrongdoing,
telling the truth, making changes, and efforts toward making reparation.
(2)
When someone says to
you, “I could never accept Christianity because of the cases of abuse in the
church”, how can you respond?
Ghandi once said, “I like your
Christ. I do not like your Christians; they are so unlike your Christ”.
(3)
One sufferer of abuse
interviewed said that the abuse he suffered at the hands of a leading pastor
has not changed his view of God, his view of Jesus, or his sense of his need
for God. How can we explain that?
He said the following: “What I can
say is, I never equated that pastor’s actions with Jesus Christ and I never
equated it with the church. And so, while I can understand why people would be
angry at the church and angry at God for these things that happened to me or to
anybody else, this was not what God wanted. This was an abomination. It’s never
changed my understanding of the fact that I need God, that this world needs
God.”
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