Eastertide
May 18, 2023
Scripture Reading:
1 Peter 4:12-14; 5:6-11
Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal that is taking place among you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you. But rejoice in so far as you are sharing Christ’s sufferings, so that you may also be glad and shout for joy when his glory is revealed. If you are reviled for the name of Christ, you are blessed, because the spirit of glory, which is the Spirit of God, is resting on you. –1 Peter 4:12-14
When we read of Christ’s sufferings, what instantly comes to mind is Jesus hanging on the cross or being beaten. I am often driven to the picture of Jesus sitting on the hill over Jerusalem and saying, ‘Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to it! How often have I desired to gather your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you were not willing! (Matthew 23:37) I envision him still overlooking his children, whether in Jerusalem or Washington DC or Oklahoma City wanting to make us one under his wings, and we are not willing.
Jerusalem remains caught in the crossfires of division, but our nation is not far behind. I cannot imagine Jesus withholding health care from any child because they did not meet humans’ cultural selfhood standards. Jesus did have the advantage of being present at creation and taking in the original knowledge that all people were created in the image of God, and thus all people were good. Indeed, Jesus established our providing healthcare as one of the criteria by which all nations will be judged. This will come as a shock to many of us who think the USA is better than any other nation. We, indeed, have by far the highest cost of healthcare in the world. The sad result is that the US health system ranks last in quality of care among High-Income Countries*. In the US, healthcare is a privilege, not a right, and we, the people, pay a heavy price for that.
Prayer: Lord, lead us to being one in you rather than living in a divide-and-conquer world. Amen.
*https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jama/article-abstract/2784346 All scriptures are quoted from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicized Edition, copyright 1989, 1995, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights are reserved