Where there is no vision, the people perish.
Proverbs 29:18
Nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more
Isaiah 2:4
Mary's song - the Magnificat
He has shown strength with his arm:
He has scattered the proud in the imaginations of their hearts
He has brought down the powerful from their thrones,
And lifted up the lowly:
He has filled the hungry with good things,
and sent the rich away emtpy.
For out of Zion shall go forth instruction, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem. he shall judge between many peoples, and shall arbitrate between nations far away; they shall beat their swords into plow shares, and their spears into pruning hooks; nation shall not lift up sword against nations, neither shall they learn war any more; but they shall all sit under thei own vines and under their own fig trees, and no one shall make them afraid.
Micah 4:3-4
Gospel: Matthew 25:31-46
Then the King will tell those on his right hand,'Come, blessed of my Father, inherit the Kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world; For when I was hungry, you gave me food; when I was thirsty, you gave me drink; when I was homeless, you gave me a welcome; I was naked, and you clothed me. I was sick, and you visited me. I was in prison, and you came to me. "'When, Lord,' the righteous will reply, 'did we see you hungry, and feed you; or thirsty, and give you drink? When did we see you homeless, and give you a welcome? or ill-clad, and clothe you? When did we see you sick, or in prison, and come to you?' And the King will answer them, "Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brethren, you did it to me."
What Bible is the dominionist right reading? Surely it's not the same one I'm reading.
Solomon, the prophets, and Jesus all are very clear about the politics of peace and justice; and of the poor and dispossessed. The only way you can miss it is if you read holy scripture with your mind on robot control. There is no ambiguity of purpose or meaning.
Prophesy is not fortune telling, it is reading the times and calling out the consequences. We refer, in Christianity, to prophetic voices. Martin Luther King, Abraham Heshal and Oscar Romero were prophetic voices in the past. Jim Wallis at Sojourners and Michael Lerner at Tikkun are such voices now. We Christians and Jews know what is expected of us. We need to read the times and call out the consequences. It is time for clarion voices.
I'm sure the cloud of witnesses that surround us, past and future, echoes the biblical call to go forward,
"be not afraid."
"Hate evil and love good, and establish justice in the gate. Let justice roll down like waters, and righteousness like an ever flowing stream." "...do justice, love kindness, and walk humbly with our God"
The world is watching and waiting.
Update:
Please read the Ohio For Jesus 2006 Diary. There's a place that needs action now.
http://www.dailykos.com/story/2005/5/3/202817/1241