August 16, 2020
“Do the Right Thing”
Isaiah 56:1, 6-8
Romans 11:1-2a, 29-32
Matthew 15:10-20
In our Old Testament passage for today, God instructs the people, through the prophet Isaiah, to “maintain justice” and “do what is right.” When I read those words my mind immediately went to a movie my children and I recently watched.
Over the course of these past months of sheltering in place I have been very grateful to have my children with me. And we have watched a ton of movies. Some have been older movies – ones that are considered classics and/or were particularly meaningful for their time.
One such movie we recently watched was the film, “Do the Right Thing” – written, directed, and starring filmmaker Spike Lee.
It came out back in 1989, and if you have never seen it, the basic story revolves around a neighborhood in Brooklyn, New York, during the heat of summer. Interracial tensions within the ethnically diverse neighborhood start to build throughout the movie – and eventually those tensions spiral out of control, leading to violence, a fatal police chokehold, and by the end of the movie, a neighborhood going up in flames.
For a movie made 30 years ago, “Do the Right Thing” remains disturbingly relevant.
It is a stunning and powerful commentary on race relations, looked at through multiple lenses and differing points of view – and it ultimately leaves the viewer with the question, “what exactly does it mean to do the right thing?” It raises more questions than answers.
And now here we are, 30 years later, in a heartbreakingly divided nation. How, then, are we to ever hope to bridge that divide and “do the right thing” when we can’t even agree on what the “right” thing is?
OK, here is some good news. I do see many around me working hard to bridge that divide and facilitate understanding.
I particularly appreciate Barb Anderson’s efforts in recent months through the WORD group to provide ongoing virtual opportunities for learning – earlier in the summer we had an excellent series on race relations – and more recently, we had the opportunity to participate in a workshop on Zoom called “Active Bystander Training.”
The workshop was offered by St John’s Episcopal Church and was facilitated by a professional in the study of Race and Ethnicity. The underlying goal of the workshop was to empower the participants with strategies for speaking out and engaging tactfully and effectively when faced with challenging comments by others.
How do we respond to someone when we believe what they are saying is biased and/or just plain factually incorrect? Learning to constructively interact with one another is so basic and yet so vital.
Allow me to go back to the Isaiah passage for a moment. In the verses for today, the prophet is addressing those Israelites who are returning to their homeland after years of exile and are facing a world that looks much different then the world they previously knew.
There are foreigners and non-Jews now living among them, and there is tension and uncertainty and fear and mistrust. But in the midst of it all, what is God’s command to the people? The command is this: to “maintain justice” and “do what is right.” And doing what is right specifically includes welcoming all.
Do the right thing.
In our Gospel passage for today Jesus also talks, in so many words, about doing the right thing.
For Jesus and his followers, doing the right thing has little to do with maintaining traditional religious rituals and practices, and everything to do with living in relationship with one another.
We can hold different political and theological views, and still maintain compassion for one another, mercy for the brokenhearted, and care for the disenfranchised.
Jesus says in Matthew that what comes out of the mouth proceeds from the heart. My prayer is that we all find it in our hearts, despite our differences, to follow Isaiah’s advice – may we maintain justice, and do what is right.
AMEN