Voice of the Voiceless

Friends,


A key element of any prophetic tradition is to serve as a moral voice on behalf the voiceless.* Those of us who have enjoyed the privilege of having our voices heard, as individuals or as a community, may never experience the powerlessness and silencing of those experiencing poverty and marginalization.** The majority of the people of the world, however, live in silenced desperation and voiceless solitude. The role of the prophet, claiming a capacity to speak from a transcendent voice - the voice of God or a voice beyond the established, secular order - offers a perspective that is both judgmental of the neglect of the poor and ultimately a voice of compassion and mercy for the weaknesses of humankind. 

I am especially aware of the critical historical and humane contribution of those called to be a prophet. As we welcome a new pope, we continue to value the prophetic voice of Pope Francis, who spoke passionately on behalf of the poor - those disproportionately and devastatingly affected by war, environmental degradation, immigration, racism, and marginalization.and marginalization. He did so not as a politician or social critic, but from the ageless prophetic tradition of the Hebrew prophets and the Christian teaching. His courageous prophetic voice on behalf of the poor challenges and criticizes the status quo and the privileges of power and wealth. To counter the historic privileges of past popes, Pope Francis chose to live more humbly and with the integrity of a consistent personal witness of attempting to engage with the poor, to respect the environment, and to demonstrate a powerful testimony to the God-given reverence and love for all of humanity and creation. And we sincerely hope the new pope will now choose to emulate Pope Francis prophetic ministry. 

I again laud a prophetic witness and teaching to remind us of the powerful truth it conveys: there is a transcendent power, whether within nature itself, or a God of righteous history, that can not be indefinitely ignored. The message comes not just from the ancient prophets, but from the contemporary prophets such as Pope Francis. The age old challenge however, is that as true and forceful the prophetic message may be, it is extremely difficult for a people to make the required changes. The hold of the status quo and privilege clings to us. So the understandable tendency is to try to ignore it or fend off judgement and change until the situation becomes catastrophic. For this we must also trust that we, too, can be shown mercy for our faults and failures. 

Given the difficulty of following a discussion related to the stark warnings of the prophetic tradition, I am not able to conclude with my usual effort to offer a vein of hope and assurance about our current plight. What I can say is what Pope Francis was trying to show the world: with consistent and humble intent we can stand up to the temptations of privilege and power as he did by his clear and courageous teaching and by embracing practices consistent with his message. And we can do the same. We, too, can learn to walk humbly and persistently into a future ultimately emanating from the love and mercy which is also part of the prophetic tradition. I am grateful for this prophetic tradition, and I pray that it will somehow continue to challenge us and inspire us to follow it.

Peace,

Tom
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* The Dalai Lama just released his latest book entitle A Voice for the Voiceless as he speaks primarily for the Tibetan people but ultimately on behalf of us all. I mention this because the Dalai Lama represents a transcendent prophetic voice from his Tibetan tradition.

**A central hallmark authoritarianism is to control the democratic voice of the people, and Americans are currently experiencing the first throes of loosing our freedom of speech.