Theologian Dr. Obery Hendricks Jr. describes the Jesus he was introduced to in his church communities as a meek and gentle Savior:
I was raised on the bland Jesus of Sunday school and of my mother’s gentle retellings, the meek, mild Jesus who told us, in a nice, passive, sentimental way, to love our enemies, and who assured us that we need not worry about our troubles, just bring them to him. He was a gentle, serene, nonthreatening Jesus whose only concern was getting believers into heaven, and whose only “transgression” was to claim sonship with God.…
Yet for all my trust and love and fervor, something in the portrayals of Jesus and his message did not seem quite right; something just didn’t make sense. Was this meek, mild Jesus the same Jesus who defiantly called the Pharisees “a brood of vipers” and described them as “whitewashed tombs full of every unclean thing”?… And if he was so meek and mild, how could he get anyone’s interest in the first place…? And what did Jesus mean by sayings like “I have come not to bring peace, but a sword”? I tried my best to understand, although questions like these were frowned on by my parents and every believer I knew as evidence of weak faith or, worse, of the devil’s confusion.
Outside communal worship, Hendricks came to know a prophetic and revolutionary Jesus:
I have been blessed to experience the adoration and worship of Jesus in every aspect of his person and grandeur … except one: Jesus the political revolutionary, the Jesus who is as concerned about liberating us from the kingdoms of earth as about getting us into the kingdom of heaven. Yet the Gospels tell us that is who Jesus is, too. And what he was crucified for. This is the Jesus that called me back to the Church—the revolutionary Jesus.
Yes, Jesus of Nazareth was a political revolutionary. Now, to say that he was “political” doesn’t mean that he sought to start yet another protest party in Galilee. Nor does it mean that he was “involved in politics” in the sense that we know it today, with its bargaining and compromises and power plays and partisanship. And it certainly doesn’t mean that he wanted to wage war or overthrow the Roman Empire by force.
To say that Jesus was a political revolutionary is to say that the message he proclaimed not only called for change in individual hearts but also demanded sweeping and comprehensive change in the political, social, and economic structures in his setting in life: colonized Israel. It means that if Jesus had his way, the Roman Empire and the ruling elites among his own people either would no longer have held their positions of power, or if they did, would have had to conduct themselves very, very differently…. It means that Jesus had a clear and unambiguous vision of the healthy world that God intended and that he addressed any issue—social, economic, or political—that violated that vision.
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| Fred Rogers: The Television Preacher We Need |
 Fred Rogers didn’t fit the stereotype of a charismatic television preacher, but that is exactly what he was. His preaching was done with puppets, simple songs, and subtle storytelling rather than big hair, exciting sermons, or signs and wonders—but that doesn’t mean his ministry didn’t produce miraculous healing in both children and adults struggling with brokenness and anger. Deeply shaped by his faith in Christ, seminary educated, and ordained by the Presbyterian Church in 1963, Fred Rogers saw his PBS children’s program, Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood, as a ministry to a generation of wounded, frightened children and their families.The casual observer of Fred Rogers’ daily television show, which ran from 1968 until 2001, might not have noticed the profound theological depth informing every aspect of the program. I certainly did not as a child in the late 1970s, but as an adult, I was amazed to discover that Rogers designed the show around his doctrine. He often taught children about the value of different jobs, which flowed from his theology of vocation. He used the language of “neighbor” because of its deep biblical roots, particularly in Jesus’ teaching. Even the familiar show opening where Mr. Rogers enters, changes his shoes, and puts on his sweater was intended to be a formative liturgy to help children enter a different kind of sacred space.Fred Rogers was also unafraid to tackle some of the most difficult personal and controversial social issues in American culture like war, racism, death, mental illness, and divorce. As a result, he was more pastoral and more prophetic than many pulpits in America. He understood and sympathized with the fear children felt in turbulent times, and brought each child the assurance that your feelings mattered and that you are loved exactly as you are.In a recent biography by Shea Tuttle, I discovered another part of Fred Rogers’ ministry that went beyond his television show. In his daily times of Bible reading and prayer, Rogers would often feel what he called a “strong urge” to visit someone, and would then arrive unexpectedly at their door. In 1987, he traveled from his home in Pittsburgh to Baltimore to be with a girl he learned was having brain surgery. When Dr. King was assassinated in 1968, Rogers drove down to the home of Francois Clemmons, an African-American actor on his program. Race riots had erupted outside his building. “I was upstairs in my apartment, but I was scared to death,” Clemmons recalled. But then Fred suddenly appeared.Lisa Hamilton, who worked as a director on Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood, explained how Fred ministered to her young family during her 31-year-old husband’s battle with cancer. Hamilton thought her husband was recovering, but woke up one morning to discover he had died in their bed during the night. With a 4-year-old son at home, Hamilton was overwhelmed. “I was really panicky,” she said, “And then the doorbell rang.” It was Fred Rogers.“I was praying,” Fred explained, “and I felt you needed some help.” He didn’t know Hamilton’s husband had just died. He stayed with Hamilton and her son, wept with them over her husband’s body, and was the one to call the funeral home.Fred Rogers died in 2003, but the last few years have seen a resurgence in his popularity through biographies, documentaries, and a 2019 film starring Tom Hanks. Some think it’s the product of a generation raised with his television show reaching adulthood. I suspect there is something more than nostalgia at work. Fred Rogers was a powerfully gifted minister who brought the calming, healing presence of Jesus to both children and adults. In our own turbulent times marked by aggression, anger, and division I think we all sense a need for more ministers like Fred Rogers.DAILY SCRIPTURE ISAIAH 42:1-9 GALATIANS 5:16-23 MATTHEW 11:25-30 WEEKLY PRAYER from Desmond Tutu (adapted from an original prayer by Sir Francis Drake) Disturb us, O Lord when we are too well-pleased with ourselves when our dreams have come true because we dreamed too little, because we sailed too close to the shore. Disturb us, O Lord when with the abundance of things we possess, we have lost our thirst for the water of life when, having fallen in love with time, we have ceased to dream of eternity and in our efforts to build a new earth, we have allowed our vision of Heaven to grow dim. Stir us, O Lord to dare more boldly, to venture into wider seas where storms show your mastery, where losing sight of land, we shall find the stars. In the name of Him who pushed back the horizons of our hopes and invited the brave to follow. Amen. |
