Look, the tears of the oppressed
Scripture
Ecclesiastes 4: 1-5: Again, I saw all the oppressions that are practiced under the sun. Look, the tears of the oppressed – with no one to comfort them! On the side of their oppressors there was power with no one to comfort them.
Matthew 5: 1-8: …Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted…
Meditation
A young woman looked and saw the tears of the oppressed. The video she shot on her phone of the murder of George Floyd in May 2020 was seen all around the world and unleashed a holy anger as people witnessed, and finally acknowledged, what African Americans have experienced for centuries: undue subjugation by oppressive systems in the midst of privileged blind bystanders.
The progression from simply looking to seeing and understanding gives encouragement for us as actors in this earthly reality: God can remove scales from our eyes to witness things in new and liberating ways. As those scales fall, the Holy Spirit provides insight, and also, conviction to respond in new and unfettered ways.
Prayer
God of justice and grace, remove the scales from our eyes so we can truly see the oppression around us.
We pray in the name of Jesus who saw the crowds and had compassion for them. Amen.