Personal Thoughts on the Current National Crisis and What to Do About It

by Jerry Brunet

There is no question but that the United States is currently going through a huge crisis. This crisis is simultaneously economic, social, political and spiritual. While not minimizing the economic, social and political aspects of it, I want to hone in on the spiritual aspects, because it is here that I believe we identify the root as well as the solution to the problem.

Ever since Cain blamed his brother Esau, and then killed him, there has been a system of blame and finger pointing in human society. The fact that, after killing Abel, Cain went on to found the very first city is no accident. That shows, even if only allegorically, that the very foundations of human society have been built on a system of blame and finger pointing. This system also goes by the name of scapegoating.

Systems of religion have been built on the concept of scapegoating and sacrifice, which is its conjoined twin. If I am feeling guilty, and need to appease the gods, then I can make myself feel better by accusing or blaming another, and thereby transferring my sins to them, and then throwing them under the bus. In some ancient cultures, this literally involved child sacrifice as children were burned on alters to Moloch. 

Politically, if tribe "A" is angry at tribe "B", and they are close to going to war over their differences, they can often defuse the crisis by finding someone else to blame, and after scapegoating that other individual, political party, tribe or nation, they find that their relations with one another have simmered down and improved. 

This whole religious and political system of scapegoating came to a climax in approximately 30 AD, when the political and religious institutions of that day blamed a totally innocent man for the impending crisis that was brewing, and crucified Him on a Roman cross. Up until His crucifixion, this man had traveled around the country teaching that God's way was for everyone to love their enemies and forgive those who offended them. He so threatened the contemporary religious and political order that he had to be destroyed. He was made a scapegoat, because, as the main religious leader of the region said at the time, "It is better that one man die than for the whole nation to be destroyed." And, on the surface, it seemed that in having him crucified, they had been successful in averting the crisis they were fearing. If the story had ended there, He would have remained obscure and unknown to history. 

However, this particular scapegoat ended up doing something that no one ever wants to happen to their scapegoat. He came back, by rising from the dead! It turns out that a higher, supreme court of heaven overturned the judgement of the religious and political systems of the day, and declared Him to be totally innocent and exonerated. This one event ended up being the center and focal point of all of human history! 

So how does this apply to the current crisis that we face today as a nation? 

The One Who had been totally exonerated by being raised from the dead had taught that God's way was for us to love our enemies and spread forgiveness around as abundantly as a farmer spreads fertilizer in his fields. And He also taught that this would end up totally upending all of the worlds political and religious systems.  

In contrast to that, the way most of us go about things, is that we see things that we don't like, such as rioting, looting, burning of buildings, etc., and we point the finger and start blaming. In other words, we revert back to the original system of scapegoating that has been at the heart of the world's systems from the very beginning. It is a religious stance that we take. "They" are wrong, and I am / we are right. The moral outrage that we express to one another at what others are doing somehow makes us feel better about ourselves, or so we think. And by expressing our moral outrage to one another, we believe that we are helping to alleviate the problem in some way - or so we think. Sadly, we are only exacerbating and prolonging the problem.

I have come to the conclusion that none of that works, and if we keep doing what we have been doing all along, nothing will change. It brings to mind that famous definition of insanity. Instead, I propose that we take seriously the teachings of the One who was vindicated by being raised from the dead. I suggest that when we read news stories of various riots, looting and burning,  rather than contacting a close friend and bringing it to his or her attention, saying, "Did you see what THEY did in...?", we instead make a conscious decision to privately love and forgive that particular person or group or political party, and sincerely pray for them. We can pray that they would be open to God's influence in their lives and otherwise pray for their well-being. You see, when we point fingers of blame at other persons, we make them less than human in our own eyes, and simultaneously we are attempting to elevate ourselves as being superior to them, and more worthy of God's approval.

This is not to say that they should not face consequences for their actions. It is possible to forgive someone in your heart, while still supporting the need for them to face the consequences of their actions. Forgiveness simply means that you stop wishing ill for them, and that you elevate them back up to the level of humanity in your thinking as you desire God's grace and good influence upon them. 

All of this may seem impossible. How can I, as one person, affect any change on society by pursuing this course of action? Humanly, I cannot answer that question. I do know, however, that the Kingdom of God is like a tiny mustard seed, or like a tiny pinch of yeast, that gradually grows to overcome the entire world's system. Jesus promised that it eventually would. All I can do is purpose in my heart to do this one thing of loving and forgiving my enemies. I will fall short many times, but must purpose to persist in this. And then, maybe, another person will purpose to do the same thing, and then another and another. And who knows where it all might lead?

(I wish to acknowledge a debt of gratitude to Brian Zahnd for the ideas that he has presented in his sermons and writings, which have contributed greatly to my thoughts on this subject.  I strongly recommend the following YouTube playlist of his sermon series on "The Crucified God" to further consider these ideas.   https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLsYXTnSrLttZrlkB3wDKpZjhyDtIJui12 )