For Christian Activists: "Faith in the Face of Empire"

Mitri Raheb, Faith in the Face of Empire:
The Bible Through Palestinian Eyes

During Lent 2020, as I am looking for ways to understand what the way of Jesus might tell us about how to save the planet, I have returned to Mitri Raheb's book, Faith in the Face of Empire: The Bible Through Palestinian Eyes. I've previously written about Mitri's book -- see: How Shall We Live in the Face of Empire? (Reading Mitri Raheb). I am reminded once more what a vital resource it is for Christian activists.

I've boiled down six takeaways from the book:

(1) The lure of Empire: Faith in the Face of Empire is a wake-up call that today -- as in the days of Jesus -- it is practically a full-time job to keep from getting sucked in to a life defined in terms of the world's empires of power. Some of the ways that happens is through collaboration and accommodation, but it can also happen when we think we are meaningfully resisting or rebelling.

(2) Community: Note to self! Pay attention to the distinction between getting wrapped up in politics and contributing to a new, better way of doing community (polis).

(3) The margins: What might happen if, instead of devoting my time and attention to people with the most power, I devoted my time and attention to people who are sometimes considered "marginal"?

(4) Diversity: Renew my commitment to seeing diversity as a source of strength. (Beware of the temptation to think being strong comes from presenting a monolithic front!)

(5) Live in tension: Can I respond to the call to live in the tension between "the world as it is" and "the world as it should be"?

(6) What's the job? Mitri suggests that the real job for me (and for all of us) is to be an "ambassador of the kingdom" -- i.e. what Jesus was talking about when he said, "The Kingdom of God is at hand."

All six takeaways directly contradict mainstream habits prevalent in US society today. Notably, a common thread in many of these is the importance of not getting seduced by the appeal of force. In certain ways, these takeaways can also feel counter-intuitive to people who consider themselves "activists," and who are struggling for effectiveness and success in struggles for in social justice, liberation, and change.

Maybe these six takeaways could be the basis for generative discussion about, for example, how the faith community might participate in the "Back From the Brink" campaign.

More: See Want to "Save the Planet"? What Might We Learn from the Way of Jesus?


(Here's a link to posts about the time I spent at Mitri's center in Bethlehem in 2015: Faith in the Face of Empire: A journey in search of hope in the land of conflicting narratives. There is a good bio of Mitri Raheb on Wikipedia.)