The first chapters of the Acts of the Apostles recount the early experiences of Jesus’s followers. In today’s passage they ran afoul of the civil authority, they were jailed for preaching in Jesus’s name, released, and then brought before those same authorities again on the same charges. They must have understood the dire consequences for going against the Sanhedrin, but they did it anyway, prepared to suffer the consequences of their decisions. My mind jumps to moments when the easier path is to find comfort in the structures that authority provides. Blindly accepting authority, it is easy to excuse ourselves from discerning God’s plan but the results can be tragic.
We know, also in our own time, that the manipulation and corruption of authority can lead to great evil. Just think of Nazi Germany and those horrific events, or world poverty and the refugee and immigration problem, or racial discrimination, yes, even in our own country: we see that authority can become corrupt and undermine God’s plan for us. The apostles give us an inspiring model of steadfast confidence in speaking truth to power.
Looking at past corruption of authority, it is easy to say I would have stood on the side of truth. So, what about the happenings in our world today? It’s not that simple, is it? Things get foggy. Let’s take some time to consider the social issues of our day– whether it is the racial discord and injustice that is still so prevalent in today’s culture; or the world immigration crisis; or the way some people are marginalized or ostracized by society; the imbalances we experience (economic, gender-based or biased, the colour barrier, etc.)
Do we stand with the marginalized, the poor, the powerless, or do we stand in the shadows in silence? Like the apostles long ago, we need to summon courage to speak the same truth to the powerful, challenging system of oppression that divide us. This may mean taking whatever privilege we may have to lift up those who are on the margins. In the Gospel today we see the true source of authority. “The one who comes from heaven is above all.” Let’s pray that today’s scripture may inspire us to courage, strong in our convictions, summoning the strength to challenge authority when it is appropriate, instead of standing idly by when our voice is needed most.