Narrative Lectionary Key Verse for Today
“Nevertheless many, even of the authorities, believed in him. But because of the Pharisees they did not confess it, for fear that they would be put out of the synagogue; for they loved human glory more than the glory that comes from God.”
NL Daily Devotion for Monday, March 14, 2022
by R. M. Fergus, Clergy Stuff
Peer pressure is a dangerous thing. We talk about it like it’s solely reserved for teenagers who are tempted to drink, smoke, and have sex. But it’s far more prevalent and insidious among us adults. We’re so indoctrinated to maintain a certain acceptable reputation that we are driven to great lengths to protect it, some even to outright murder (or maybe I’ve been watching too much BritBox). Most of us, thankfully, don’t go quite that far…or do we? Those of us who, like me, are white, straight, cisgender, middle-class, and Christian are inherently complicit in the white supremacy that undergirds U.S. society—a system which does result in the outright murder of, for example, unarmed Black men by police officers. I might not be pulling the trigger, but I am liable, especially if I refuse to speak up.
That’s what Jesus was dealing with in Jerusalem. Lots of folks believed in him—even many of those in the Jewish authorities. But they were afraid to say anything, lest their reputations and the lifestyles to which they had become accustomed by threatened. They stood by, silent, while Jesus was murdered by the state. Peer pressure at its most horrific. Let us not forget this as we face the urgent issues of civil and human rights in the U.S.
When does my worry about my reputation keep me from speaking up?
