Abuse of Power

"I want you to give me at once the head of John the Baptist on a platter." The king was deeply grieved; yet out of regard for his oaths and for the guests, he did not want to refuse her. Immediately the king sent a soldier of the guard with orders to bring John's head.           Mark 6: 25-26                                                             

Frieze - Amiens Cathedral 

This week's Gospel relates the story of the debacle of the death of John the Baptist. He did not die because he had done anything wrong; he died because a woman was furious with him and wanted revenge. A silly reason. An unjust reason. A miscarriage of justice.

As Christians, we are called to be prophets; yet this is a hard ministry for most of us. The text for Sunday tells us that King Herod "was deeply grieved" about ordering John's beheading, but he gave the order anyway because to refuse the girl would have caused him embarrassment. He valued saving face more than human life.  

This Gospel passages forces us to look at our own hearts and our own actions. In fact, when preparing our hearts for repentance and confession, we must ask ourselves uncomfortable questions.

• Have our actions ever resulted in us becoming the Oppressors?

• Does "being right" matter more to us than "doing the right thing?"

• Who, by our silence or inaction, has experienced a miscarriage of justice?

God calls us to be prophets.  How do you use your prophetic voice?