Jesus’ parables, in addition to being enjoyable and thought provoking, are a means to speak truth to privilege. This Sunday’s parable is one example. It is a long parable that tells a story about invited guests who reject a meal and kill servant messengers. It is basically an account of the destructive history of the ruling privileged class. Jesus, acting from conscience, speaks the parable directly to members of the surrounding privileged class, the chief priests and elders. Their ensuing plan – to murder Jesus – confirms the risks one takes when speaking truth to privilege.
Human history is filled with an ever propagating ruling class exacting revenge on persons of conscience; truth tellers. Sometimes the truth tellers survive the revenge. Sometimes it is because they are noteworthy. The truth tellers may themselves be members of or adjutants to, the ruling class. Then, upon listening to their conscience they free themselves from that membership. Examples are Robert Ellsberg a truth teller about Vietnam war lies. Sibel Edmonds and Coleen Rowley are truth tellers about the FBI & the White House ignoring intelligence warnings predicting the 9-11 terror attack. Lt. Col. Karen Kwiatkowski is a truth teller about militarists fixing the intel to match the desired Iraq invasion. Sgt. Joe Darby is a truth teller about Abu Ghraib prison practices. Richard Bowen III is a truth teller about Citigroup’s fraudulent mortgages. John Kiriakou is a truth teller about CIA torture. Chelsea Manning is a truth teller about the military murdering civilians. in Iraq and Afghanistan. Edward Snowden is a truth teller about NSA spying. These are but a few of the many examples of persons acting from conscience and speaking truth to privilege. There are other persons who are neither born to privilege nor who aspire to it. They too live from conscience. They too speak truth to privilege. Lacking privilege, not being noteworthy may mean they will not survive their truth telling. For the privileged will plan their murder as they planned Jesus’. We who are born to the commons can speak our truth from there and invite others to join us. From our grassroots connections we can nourish communities able to transform all ruling classes.
In 1919 when Max Weber wrote in Politics as a Vocation that “the modern state is a compulsory association which organizes domination. It has been successful in seeking to monopolize the legitimate use of physical force (violence) as a means of domination within a territory,” he was confirming a truth known to Jesus and all whistle blowers.
P.S. Cheers to the Golden, CO high school students standing up to their school board censoring the truth about American History.
Prayer: Spirit of Truth, strengthen our dedication to truth and those who give witness to it.
Question: How difficult is it for me to hear the truth, especially the truth about the U.S. Empire and its history?
October 12, 2014 Gospel Matthew 22:1-14 Twenty Eighth Sunday in Ordinary Time