Reflecting on Matthew 5:1–16, Dean of CAC faculty Brian McLaren explores Jesus’ call to live by the collective values of justice and solidarity, becoming salt and light for the world:
Jesus advocates an identity characterized by solidarity, sensitivity, and nonviolence. He celebrates those who long for justice, embody compassion, and manifest integrity and nonduplicity. He creates a new kind of hero: not warriors, corporate executives, or politicians, but brave and determined activists for preemptive peace, willing to suffer with him in the prophetic tradition of justice.
Our choice is clear from the start: If we want to be his disciples, we won’t be able to simply coast along and conform to the norms of our society. We must choose a different definition of well-being, a different model of success, a new identity with a new set of values….
If we seek the kind of unconventional blessedness he proposes, we will experience the true aliveness of God’s kingdom, the warmth of God’s comfort, the enjoyment of the gift of this Earth, the satisfaction at seeing God’s restorative justice come more fully, the joy of receiving mercy, the direct experience of God’s presence, the honor of association with God and of being in league with the prophets of old. That is the identity he invites us to seek.
That identity will give us a very important role in the world. As creative nonconformists, we will be difference makers, aliveness activists, catalysts for change. Like salt that brings out the best flavors in food, we will bring out the best in our community and society. Also like salt, we will have a preservative function—opposing corruption and decay…. Simply by being who we are—living boldly and freely in this new identity as salt and light—we will make a difference, as long as we don’t lose our “saltiness” or try to hide our light.
We’ll be tempted, no doubt, to let ourselves be tamed, toned down, shut up, and glossed over. But Jesus means for us to stand apart from the status quo, to stand up for what matters, and to stand out as part of the solution rather than part of the problem. He means for our lives to overcome the blandness and darkness of evil with the salt and light of good works. Instead of drawing attention to ourselves, those good works will point toward God. “Wow,” people will say, “when I see the goodness and kindness of your lives, I can believe there’s a good and kind God out there, too.”
The way Jesus phrases these memorable lines tells us something important about him. Like all great leaders, he isn’t preoccupied with himself. He puts others—us—in the spotlight when he says, “You are the salt of the Earth. You are the light of the world.” Yes, there’s a place and time for him to declare who he is, but he begins by declaring who we are.
Reference:
Brian D. McLaren, We Make the Road by Walking: A Year-Long Quest for Spiritual Formation, Reorientation, and Activation (Jericho Books, 2014), 128–129.
Image credit and inspiration: Joel Muniz, untitled (detail), 2020, photo, Unsplash. Click here to enlarge image. In a simple act of solidarity, this photo captures people delivering food to a food bank during the pandemic—a quiet reminder that real change happens when we show up for each other.
Story from Our Community:
I live in a remote area in the West of Ireland, where the population was decimated in a succession of famines in 1845–1849. Near my home is a small road known as the Famine Walk in memory of the starving people who died along it in one of the worst years of famine. I often feel a sadness hanging over the mountains and the wild, beautiful landscape. Yet, I sense the souls at peace and healed within the sacred earth. These souls who suffered are now safe and made new, and a spiritual energy flows up as soft light from the rocky fields. This is a place where I found my spiritual home and a caring community. In this place, my spirit has been renewed and resurrected in close communion with earth, sky, and sea.
—Barbara H.
