Faith Leaders in Ferguson

Religious leaders have joined the peaceful protests in Ferguson.  (Photo: Mike Angell)

The events in Ferguson, Missouri, have been painful to watch over the last few days.  Tensions erupted in the St. Louis suburb on Saturday after a confrontation between a young man, Mike Brown, and a police officer ended with the officer shooting and killing Brown.  Brown was unarmed at the time.

I'm not here to discuss the merits of the case or any of the particulars.  I share the same concerns that many of us do about violence in our society, use of deadly force by police, and some of the racial elements that seem to be in play here.  However, I've had enough of that over the last few days on social media, where feelings run high, emotions are unchecked, and speculation becomes fact.  After realizing that I was descending into these attitudes myself, I decided to pull away rather than become part of the problem.

However, as I was browsing Brian McLaren's site this morning, I came across this article from Think Progress which talks about how religious leaders in Ferguson, black and white, have organized to take part in peaceful, nonviolent protests.  These folks are uniting with other protesters and helping channel the energy of the community toward something positive in the wake of this tragedy.

To me this is part of exactly what Christians and Christian clergy should be doing.  It's one thing to sit in your pew every Sunday and pray for others, it's another to leave the sanctuary and get out amongst the people and get your hands dirty.  According to the article above, on previous nights one pastor was shot in the abdomen with a rubber bullet and at least two clergy members were arrested.  Last night, as the Missouri State Police took over and more clergy hit the street, things were different.  Not only were faith leaders out with the protesters, but they carried bags of food and supplies to people who lived in apartment buildings that have been blocked off by police during the protests.  Sounds an awful lot like something Jesus would do.  Michael Kinman, Dean of Christ Church Episcopal Cathedral in St. Louis, mentions in the article:

“I think the role of the faith community is always reconciliation.  Reconciliation is at the heart of our call … Whenever an event like this happens, we have to ask ourselves: who would Jesus be standing with?”

That's a question that Christians should be asking themselves about Ferguson, but we shouldn't stop there.  We should take the Christlike example of these folks and apply it to our own lives and our own circumstances every day.  How about we exercise less judgment and more understanding?  How about instead of venting unchecked emotion via social media, we strive to be a voice for peace and reconciliation?  How about instead of a Day of Rage, we have a Day of Peace and Service?

Think about it.