Justice and PeaceIcons

Issues of justice and peace have inspired people throughout history to act on behalf of those who are

most vulnerable...

Proverbs 31:8 says: “Speak up for those who

cannot speak for themselves,

   for the rights of all who are destitute.”

or in other words:"Speak up for the people who have no voice,    for the rights of all the down-and-outers.

Speak out for justice!    Stand up for the poor and destitute!"

So we look to the characters of history whose lives have been transformed and dedicated to helping those who “cannot

speak for themselves”

What is it

that inspired

them?What is it that

kept them going?

Why did they bother?Why did they keep pushing for justice?

And what is it that we can do today to continue the work that they began ?

What gifts and talents do we have to offer those who so desperately

need our help today?

“Take off your shoes, for the place where you are standing is holy ground…”

“…I have heard the groans of my people enslaved in Egypt. I am well aware of their sufferings ... I send you to Pharaoh to

bring the children of Israel out of their bondage.” (Exodus 3)

MosesMoses experienced two life changing moments that led him to become a servant of God, fighting for the freedom of the oppressed Israelites:

1) a burning bush that revealed God's presence and holiness in the world,2) an immediate commission to do something with that religious experience.

Moses became inspired to free those who had been enslaved into a life of hard work, long hours and punishment for stepping out of line. God was with Moses and gave him the strength to carry out his commission.

God equips the called, he does not call the equipped.

With an open heart, we can hear God’s message to us in our lives, and so be ready to stand up to injustice, as Moses did.

“Go back and report to John what you hear and see:

The blind receive sight, the lame walk,

those who have leprosy are cleansed, the deaf hear,

the dead are raised, and the good news is

proclaimed to the poor.”

(Matthew 11:4-5)

JesusJesus did two things in his ministry, he preached and he healed; but his healing of those who were suffering was considered rebellious by the religious authorities. Jesus’ beginning point was not sin, but suffering and its healing.

Jesus mission was to help those on the outskirts of society, those who

have been forgotten and who were considered unworthy. And Jesus came to heal them, and to

save them.

May we too remember those who are marginalised in our society, those people who are generally overlooked but who are most in need of our help. We don’t have to travel far to meet

these children of God.

"And a sword will pierce your heart, that the inner thoughts of many will be laid bare"

(Luke 2:35)The "white hand" was

the terrorist sign in El

Salvador in the early 1980's.

Mary, mother of JesusThis icon shows Mary, the Mother of Jesus, holding not her son, but only a crown of thorns. She is an image of every woman who has experienced pain, as Mary did as she stood in dignity at the foot of the cross.

Mary stands for all those who are marked for death because of their identification with truth and love. Her strong position of STANDING at the foot of the cross is forever an image of solidarity and dignity.

Mary shows to us that even in the face of pain, suffering and injustice, faith and trust in God will always prevail. Mary stands as a representative to all those

women who suffer in the world. She remained with her son until the end despite the pain it caused her.

May we also stand with those who face suffering and death, indentifying as Mary did

with truth and love.

…he chose a position of powerlessness instead of any position of formal power.

GandhiIt took a Hindu to teach Christianity about its own message. Mahatma Gandhi is the modern inspiration for the rediscovery of the teaching of Jesus on simplicity, fasting, and non-violence. He loved Jesus, but saw little reflection of him and his teaching in the Christian Church. He believed that Jesus was not calling people to a new religion, but to a new life, and a different way of living in this world.

Following a common pattern of prophets and larger than life people, he was

assassinated by one of his own in 1948.

Mohandas Gandhi is now recognized by most of the world as a truly "Great Soul",

who has redirected history from his chosen position of powerlessness instead

of any position of formal power.

Although a trained lawyer, he did not use the law or his role to benefit himself, but

only to liberate others.

“I rejoice that our church is persecuted precisely for its preferential option for the poor and for seeking to become incarnate in the interests of the poor...”

Oscar RomeroFew contemporary figures have so perfectly represented both the marriage and the conflict between politics and spirituality, as this courageous Archbishop of El Salvador, who was martyred at the altar in 1980.

"I rejoice", he said "that our church is persecuted precisely for its preferential option for the poor and for seeking to become incarnate in the interests of the poor... How sad it would be in a country where such horrible murders are being committed if there were no priests among the victims".

He has become El Salvador's much acclaimed martyr and patron, and illustrates the price that we might pay for uniting our politics with our spirituality.

He was a very fearful man, who overcame his fears, and ended up the most courageous of all.

…he confronted the racism and the deceitfulness of

American politics and practice,

always with the Scriptures as his justification and

rationale

Martin Luther KingIn Martin Luther King, America - and the world - discovered that the age of the Biblical prophets was not over.

He spoke like one, he acted like one, he suffered like one, and he died like one in 1968, changing the moral landscape of the United States.

Many times, Luther King confronted the racism and the deceitfulness of American politics and practice. Healways kept the biblical teachings as the reason behind why he did what he did. Martin Luther King insisted on looking the big picture, which Jesus called the Reign of God.

He was arrested and put in jail at least 85 times by the very government which later proclaimed a national holiday in his honour.

Her Catholic Worker houses have spread

all over North America,

and they insist on both hands-on service to and solidarity with

human suffering.

Dorothy DayDorothy Day, founded Houses of Hospitality and the Catholic Worker movement and newspaper in New York in the 1930's and 40's She had a radical view of the way society treated the marginalised and aimed to do all she could to alleviate the suffering of those most in need.

She is an icon of how our spirituality and beliefs should affect how we look at the world and what we should do to improve what we see.

Her Catholic Worker houses have spread all over North America, and they insist on both hands-on service to and solidarity with human suffering.

Her vision combined service, healing and education of people, along with criticism of institutions which failed to put into practice a concern for the social justice.

When people asked her if she was a saint, she said, "Don't try to dismiss me that easily"! The Archdiocese of New York has, nevertheless, appealed for her to be formally canonised as St. Dorothy Day of New York.

THE MIRROR image

And finally, we present a blank icon,

a mirror as it were.

We can each find our own unique face in that mirror.

What is our gift?

What is our precise way of putting together our

spirituality with our politics?

This presentation uses materials by Fr Richard Rohr OFM from the Center for Action and

Contemplation website