Hi! As you may have noticed,
I’ve moved much of my work over to Patreon.
This is part of my effort to make 2019 a #yearofwritingsustainably
So thanks for reading and subscribing.
You can find archived litanies here, and purchase my book here.

I don’t always take the Bible literally. But when I do, it’s Isaiah 58.

This passage of scripture, when set alongside the life and priorities demonstrated by Christ in the gospels, shows us a detailed picture of a just and thriving society. A society in which corporate avarice and greed, and the priorities of for-profit special interest groups are not the driving force of government or political policy. Instead mercy is. Instead love is. Care for the poor and the removal of unjust “yokes” (think, unjustly imprisoning black and brown folks for minor crimes. Think, lack of access to decent food and education for children. Think, losing your entire life savings because you got sick.) are the hallmarks of this society.

I think there are a lot of ways we can start moving toward this God-imagined ideal. We mostly haven’t tried any of them. If I have ever advocated for “Biblical values” (which I don’t usually because I mostly think that term is misused), these are them. Read em for yourself. I didn’t come up with this. This isn’t “liberal” or “conservative.” This is old-testament Judeo-Christian Orthodoxy validated by the new-testament Christ-man. We’ve just been ignoring it all this time.

Here’s a place to start praying:

Oh God, we live in a society in deep need of reform,
And days of violence and avarice.

Rescue us, O God, from becoming the hand of the wicked,
From being the unjust and cruel (Psalm 71:4).
Rescue us, O God, from our own selfishness,
From our own ego obsessions…

get the full litany

Edit: Saturday morning 7/9/16: This litany was written on Thursday before the shooting in Dallas Thursday night. I was feeling angry and grieved when I wrote it. More bad things have happened since then. I still feel angry and grieved and confused and baffled and sad, and more aware than ever of ways that I AM THE PERSON I'M REBUKING. I am complicit. I can change in ways I haven't yet perceived are necessary for me to change. By simple apathy and laziness, I have been an enemy of peace. I need rebuke and correction. I need a fresh dose of perspective and compassion and grace and love. I am still mad at those cops who killed Alton Sterling and Philandro Castile and all the others who have been unjustly put to death. I am still mad at the shooter who killed 5 police officers in Dallas. I'm mad and I want things to change and I want to change. So I pray the traditional orthodox Jesus Prayer:

Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner.

You who are enemies of peace;
We rebuke you.
You who are wolves in sheep's clothing;
We rebuke you.
You who govern masses and only consider the interests of a few;
We rebuke you.
You who pay lip service to justice but do evil;
We rebuke you.
You who kill without thinking and have no regard for human life;
We rebuke you.
You who are enslaved to fear of a certain type of person;
We rebuke you.
You who allow evil and corruption and ignore what is right;
We rebuke you.
You who have no language but violence;
We rebuke you.
You who worship money and power over others;
We rebuke you.
You who perpetuate injustice;
We rebuke you.
You who have decided that the white, the straight, the affluent; are more deserving of life than the black, the gay, the poor;
We rebuke you.
You who shed innocent blood;
We rebuke you.
You who choose to remain enemies even while we offer peace;
We rebuke you.

We are all brought to shame by your actions.
We are all brought to grief by your violence.
We are all brought to rage by your power over our society.
We are all brought to repentance by your misdeeds.

We refuse to swallow your lies.
We refuse to bend to your way of violence and power-hunger.
We refuse to be blinded by your distorted version of prosperity.
We refuse to allow violence and fear to found false peace.

We offer you forgiveness and reconciliation.
We offer you a place at our table, generosity instead of greed.
We offer you one cheek, then another.
We offer you our cloaks, and shelter from the storm.
We offer you loaves and fishes, though you’ve given us a snake.
We offer you the Way of Love, an antidote to hatred.
We offer you the Way of Peace, an antidote to violence.
We offer you the body and blood of Christ, who is able to heal your disease.

Come now, Christ, in your mercy and in your peace, in the dazzling beauty of your love, in the creativity of your re-imagining this world, in the justice of your Kingdom.
Amen