Dear Church,
Yours is the loudest silence
And the one that hurts the most
For I call you brother and sister
And my call returns a ghost
You do not answer
And I am hard-pressed to find you
In this, my dark-skinned hour
“Let us pray” you might say
And “Only the gospel can save”
But surely Our Father asks more
Has he not asked us to speak for the poor?
And stand for the weak?
To care for the widow,
And defend those who cannot speak?
I have watched you weep for the child with cancer
And speak for her mother who is crying for answers
So why are you silent while I face this violence?
And why won't your heart break when my life is at stake?
Are you so convinced that all we can do is wait?
Wait.
Wait for the right time,
For the end of elections, after voters have made their selections
Lest anyone say that you swayed political predilections
Wait.
Wait for the best time,
When more universal troubles have been resolved
And less puzzling puzzles have been solved
Or by some Kumbaya magic, we organically evolve
Wait.
Wait for the End of Time,
When the Lord returns and He builds new earth,
And my bruises and burns will no longer hurt
I have waited, Church
I have waited and I have been hurt
I have waited for more than prayers and empty words
I have prayed
And I have prayed
And
I
Have
Prayed
I am convinced that the Lord's answer was more than
“Wait” or even “just pray”
I am sure I heard Him say
Confess
Repent
Learn
Seek
Do good
Correct
Defend
Speak
And yet...
You remain silent
Your silence says to me that you do not care enough to hear my cry
Or weep with me, or stand for me and do something
Your silence says to me that you are either in denial,
Or quite alright with the way things are
That maybe it’s okay if my back and spirit break,
If that means that you can stay in the comfort of your place
Your silence says to me that you are unwilling to love me, your neighbor as yourself
And when this going gets tough and I cry out for your help
Your Bible is no more than a book on your shelf
How else can you ignore these cries and justify yourself
Your silence says to me that if I am here today and gone tomorrow
You will think nothing of it, and waste not your sorrow
Tell me church, is this what you intended?
Is your silence meant to convey this message?
If so, your faith seems disavowed
If not, then I would ask what now?
Not without hope,
Moriah
Speak up for those who cannot speak for themselves, for the rights of all who are destitute. Speak up and judge fairly; defend the rights of the poor and needy.
-Proverbs 31:8-9Learn to do good, seek justice, correct oppression, bring peace to the fatherless
-Isaiah 1:17