Day Twenty-One

Tumult. John 3:36

ὁ πιστεύων εἰς τὸν υἱὸν ἔχει ζωὴν αἰώνιον· ὁ δὲ ἀπειθῶν τῷ υἱῷ οὐκ ὄψεται ζωήν, ἀλλ᾽ ἡ ὀργὴ τοῦ θεοῦ μένει ἐπ᾽ αὐτόν. The one believing in the Son is having life eternal; but the one refusing to believe the Son will not be seeing life, but the indignation of God is remaining on them. John 3:36

“Is having” — ἔχει — a present tense–active verb. Currently, and continuously having, Life Eternal.

These words seem shallow and empty these days. Life. Eternal.

400,000 people have already died in Aleppo. Say that out loud if you will: Four-Hundred-Thousand human lives taken in five years of war and turmoil. So, excuse me if I’m not able to comprehend what abundant life John wants us to embody. I want to. I want to be excited about this good news, but not today — not for awhile.

Because—Aleppo is on my mind.

I don’t know why it’s not on ALL of our minds. If it is, when do we start tearing our clothes, weeping aloud with great tumult in these streets until this injustice — senseless deaths of the innocent — ends? When does that happen?

Because right now — Aleppo is on my mind.

“The one who is believing”

During Advent, we wait in anticipation for the coming of the Son. The one to whom we are believing in. But if we are believing in the Son, what does that mean? Does that mean we sit idle, quietly waiting just for ourselves to have this life eternal? Or does it mean we remain with those who show us that life is fleeting? Ones who know first hand that life can be so fragile if the right people come along and decide that your life is not worth more than the land you inhabit.

I know these are a lot of questions, but — Aleppo is on my mind.

“Will not be seeing life”

I get that sometimes sitting in the quiet, patiently waiting for something important to come can be therapeutic for many. And I’m not saying everybody has to do it my way. But when we hear the boom of bombs hitting concrete and shouts of anguish and despair of those running intently for refuge, shouldn’t we start yelling with them — “Somebody FUCKING do something! Anybody!”

I get that the language might offend you, but — Aleppo is on my mind.

“indignation of God”

And this shouting. This great sound of tumult — chaotic, clashing of cries and sorrow. This anguish should shake us. It should bare some weight on our souls. It is, indeed, a cry of indignation. It should not be pleasant to our ears. We might wish to try and silence it, but dammit don’t! Don’t silence it. Be offended. Be very very offended. Be upset — angry even. Shout out for it to fucking STOP! Because life should be eternal for all. Because life should have a beautiful ring of abundance for all. Because we should not be silent when those who need help need the world to scream at the top of their lungs.

So let’s. If you’re willing, SHOUT, because it does matter. And this is not a metaphor. I don’t mean theoretically. I mean fa’real — in real life — we don’t shut up until every single refugee is safe. We put the pressure on our leaders to do something. We give what we can to aid in support. We do something!

And, until the war is over, and life eternal is a present active reality for all— Aleppo will continue to be on my mind. Is it on yours?