Jeremiah is prophetically offering condemnation to
those who have oppressed their people and saying a time is coming when God will
send “a righteous branch” to execute justice and righteousness in the land. The branch that is coming is Jesus, a
leader who will be unlike any leader before because he will understand all
people, not just a few.
Therefore thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, concerning the shepherds who shepherd my people: It is you who have scattered my flock, and have driven them away, and you have not attended to them… The days are surely coming, says the Lord, when I will raise up for David a righteous Branch, and he shall reign as king and deal wisely, and shall execute justice and righteousness in the land. –Jeremiah 23:2, 5-6
Luke begins with Jesus being crucified at the hands
of the rulers, begging God to forgive them for their acts, and ends with him
beckoning a criminal into paradise with him.
Jesus dealing with what was happening to him and extending a hand of
grace to those who oppressed him.
Since the scriptures this week seem to point to God
always being on the side of the oppressed and God always seeking ways to offer
righteousness and justice, it seemed like a good time to discuss the super”she”roes
of our faith, women who have stood strong for their faith and for justice,
despite the deck stacked against them.
Joan of Arc was a young peasant girl in France who
claimed to hear the voices of saints charging her with a mission to save France
by helping to restore the French leader to power and driving out English rule.
She became a soldier and wore male clothing and although she inspired soldiers
to courageous and successful battles, she was accused of witchcraft, imprisoned
and convicted, and eventually burned at the stake. She was 19. Part of what
convicted her was her adamant belief in the voices she heard and her refusal to
give up wearing male clothing. St Joan
has the distinction of being both a saint of the church and someone who lived life
condemned by the church.
Georgia Harkness was one of the first high-profile
female theologians and was a strong supporter of the movement to gain ordination
for women in the Methodist church. She was the first woman to achieve full
professorship in a US seminary and was a leading figure in the ecumenical
church, believing all should know and understand the Christian faith. She had to stand up to plenty of angry men and
women in her fight for women’s ordination. But she stood strong. Her witness
paved the way for all of us who are ordained clergy in the Methodist church,
though she herself never became ordained.
There are countless women of the faith, both from
the biblical account… people like Mother Mary, Esther, Ruth, and all the way
through to modern day. But often, the history of the church gets told without
them. We remember the male disciples, but not the female ones. We remember
fathers in our faith like Bishops Coke and Asbury, and forget the witness of all
those women who led class meetings and kept the church doors open.
It is important to remember the very real
contributions of women to the faith and how we would not have made it to this
point without them. Sunday school teachers, our grandmas, and all the rest.
It is the end of the church year, this week. This is
the day we remember Jesus dying on the cross as a Crucified King, remembering
his message of love and inclusion that leads to his crucifixion. Let us also remember the witness of all those
women of the faith who also helped pave the path of our Way of the Cross and
are still paving it today.
What women in your faith journey have made an impact
on your life? Email me at peverhart@niwotumc.org or comment by clicking
the link below.
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