Faithful Disobedience
Exodus 1.8-2:10
Romans 12.1-8
Civil disobedience has always been a divisive topic in Western society. In recent times the media has been arguing both in favour and against recent refugee and racism protests in light of the safety concerns during the current pandemic[1]. While safety during Covid-19 is a specific issue, there has always been disagreement about the place of civil disobedience in society. The same is true in the Church, some will argue that texts such as Romans 13.1-7 give a clear teaching that we are to follow civil authorities as they are placed as such by God, while others take a different view.
The Story of the oppression of the Hebrews in Exodus begins with a paranoid and fearful King. He was worried about the numerical growth of the Hebrew people and sought to put a stop to this, initially by ordering them into corvée. This is not quite chattel slavery but compulsory unpaid labour, a common way to mobilise labour for state projects in the ancient Near East[2]. This tactic is not effective enough so the king turns to selected infanticide and commands all of the Hebrew baby boys be killed upon birth. We are told that the midwives feared God and so did not follow this order but spared the Hebrew boys. So it is by an act of civil disobedience that baby Moses was saved by heroic Hebrew woman and became the one that would lead the Hebrews out of captivity.
Like any issue facing society, faith communities debate whether it is right to partake in acts of civil disobedience. The story from Exodus is a clear example of disobedience against an oppressive and unjust civil leadership but what of our reading from Romans, a letter often used to argue against civil action? In the set text for this Sunday (Rom 12.1-8) Paul talks about not being “conformed to this word” and to “discern what is the will of God – what is good, acceptable, and perfect”. The Hebrew woman acted on how they discerned the will of God and did what was good by refusing infanticide. These two texts support civil disobedience against regimes that are unjust, especially if such civil authorities seek to deal unjustly with a minority group. If we consider closely Romans 13 we can see that even this text does not support full submission to authority if said authority us unjust. In Romans 13 Paul talks about the state working as Gods servant for your good[3]. There are certainly times when the state does not work for the good of the people, during these times it is important that we remember not to be conformed to such a world and choose to act otherwise.
How and when we choose to disobey will depend on what is required at a particular time. It is not uncommon to see church groups moved to protest with others on the streets due to the unfair treatment of Asylum seekers or the degradation of the earth due to unfair distribution of its bounty. It is easy to see the injustice in treating a misplaced people with apathy and disrespect, or in the harmful use of the earth’s resources. The only “good” thing to do in these circumstances is to disobey. Much harm has been done historically by the inaction of people of faith when living under an unjust regime. It is part of our spiritual calling to be active in the world, bringing life through praxis. Gustavo Gutierrez states: “It is in this sense that St. Paul tells us that faith works through charity: love is the nourishment and the fullness of faith, the gift of one’s self to the Other, and invariably to others. This is the foundation of the praxis of Christians, of their active presence in history”[4]. The ideology which drives such as those mentioned above is insidious and can easily permeate societies with an “us” and “Them” mentality. Romans reminds us that we cannot partake in such an understanding. This dehumanisation is the tool used to make something unjust seem like something worth giving obedience to. This tactic has been used theologically in history to justify inhumane acts such as those used in colonialism a many different cultures[5].
We are called to be an active example of love and inclusion to those who are often understood as “them”. This compassion and inclusion is in itself an act of civil disobedience when authorities work to spread a divisive rhetoric. This is a part of our daily spiritual discipline as Christian people. We do not need to start a revolution but we do need to invite the “Others” and allow them to affect our every day lives.
There are times that we must exercise our faith through disobedience. This is a reminder of our need to be active peacemakers. May we always be willing to disobey when we are expected to act in ways that deny our faithful calling to life, love, and peace.
Rev’d Claye
[1] https://www.9news.com.au/national/brisbane-protests-refugee-rally-to-disrupt-morning-peak-coronavirus-health-fears/ea2983aa-e2b8-4dd1-841b-0e5fb809ffde
https://theconversation.com/why-protesting-racism-during-a-pandemic-is-important-an-epidemiologist-explains-140824
(Coogan 2001)
[3] (Burridge 2007)
[4] (Gutierrez 1988)
[5] (ED. Naim Ateek 2012)
References
Burridge, Richard A. 2007. Imitating Jesus: An Inclusive Approach to New Testiment Ethics . Cambridge: Wm Eerdmans Publishing Co.
Coogan, Ed. Michael D. 2001. The New Oxford Annotated Bible. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
ED. Naim Ateek, Cedar Duaybis, Maurine Tobin. 2012. Challenging Empire: God, Faithfulness, and Resistance . Jerusalem : Sabeel Ecumenical Liberation Theology Center .
Gutierrez, Gustavo. 1988. A Theology of Liberation . Maryknoll, New York : Orbis Books.