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Adult Bible Study April 27, 2008 |
Lesson Text: Daniel 9:1-7; 17-19
By Ken Hawkley
E-mail: louise050@comcast.netWhat would you or I pray in public? Is it presumptuous to list the sins of others and ourselves publicly?
I remember demonstrating against the Gulf War. There were two opposing factions at the demonstration—those who supported the war and those who did not. The supporters outnumbered us, but the demonstration was peaceful—until we gathered for prayer. As one of the people prayed aloud for forgiveness, the other group became angry and surrounded our prayer cluster, threatening us with the poles on which they had attached flags of the USA. They seemed enraged by our public confessional prayer that included supporters and opponents.
We have recently observed the 40th anniversary of the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Forty years. We have made great strides and yet still have a long way to go. Racism is alive and, unfortunately, well. Racism has become perhaps more subtle but not less influential. I submit that all whites could pray publicly a confession of our racism and commit ourselves every day to become antiracist. Women still earn less than men in the workforce, one indication of the struggle in society to keep women “down.” I submit that men could pray publicly, confessing our own fear of letting women be fully themselves, as we commit to letting go of our power so we may become who God intended us to be. Are these prayers too presumptuous? Do these go too far?
I believe such prayers do not heap up the guilt. I believe such prayers, done publicly, could help heal ourselves and the relationships we have with others. These types of confessional prayers can be stepping-stones to growth, bridges to new perspectives, and signposts to ways we can become our best selves, as God intended.
As Mennonites we believe in Jesus’ stand against injustice, oppression, poverty, and cruelty. Public confession and repentance tells others where we stand—a potentially dangerous and vulnerable thing to do. But, as God’s creatures and as tender loved ones in God’s sight, how can we not declare ourselves and be public witnesses for God?