Today’s Word from Pastor Jim…
Martin Luther taught that Christians are “Simul Iustus et Peccator,” that is, simultaneously saint and sinner at the same time.
“Show me a hero and I will write you a tragedy.” F. Scott Fitzgerald
Biblical history is littered with good, God fearing, faithful people who were deeply flawed. King Saul and King David, Noah, Abraham, Rebekah, Jacob, Simon Peter, Paul, and Judas. The Bible presents heroes realistically, showing that they were very human and far from perfect. Martin Luther himself had great stains upon his legacy. It is impossible to understand or evaluate historical figures without a clear understanding of their context.
The American Revolution
“Do not look for gilded statues of marble men. They were not that and neither are we and neither is anybody at all.”
This quote by historian Jane Kamensky is taken from “The American Revolution” documentary by Ken Burns which aired this past Fall on PBS. In this fascinating documentary George Washington and other Founding Fathers are revealed more accurately as they were. They were not fictional superheroes; they were products of their time. They were complex individuals, visionary men with significant flaws. The context in which they were formed would be unrecognizable to us.
In “The American Revolution,” Ken Burns refers to George Washington as the “indispensable man.” He was one of the richest men in North America and yet he gave up the comfort of his Mount Vernon plantation to live in a tent for six and a half years, leading an unfunded rag tag army in a seemingly impossible struggle against the world’s greatest superpower. When the war was over George Washington was the hero of the fight for independence. He was the most powerful man in the fledgling disjointed nation. The challenges and the opportunities for this new republic were endless. Then on December 23rd, 1783 at Annapolis, Maryland, George Washinton surrendered his command of the Continental Army with these words, “Having now finished the work assigned me, I retire from the great theater of action, and bidding farewell to the august body under whom I have long acted, I offer my commission and take leave of all the employment of public life.”
When the nemesis of the American Patriots, King George III of England heard that Washington had ceded all his power, he found it difficult to believe. George III responded that if this were in fact true, then George Washinton “will become the greatest man in the world.” It is doubtful, even improbable that the United States as we know it would exist without the leadership of George Washington.
Thomas Jefferson was the author of the Declaration of Independence. Jefferson cast a revolutionary vision of a new republic with these words: “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.”
The colonies would loosely unite around the cause of liberty. At the expense of blood and treasure the patriots would win their freedom from Great Britian. But “men” as defined by Jefferson in the Declaration of Independence would exclude women, and the enslaved people of this new nation. Despite their desire to abolish slavery, Washington and Jefferson were unable to do so. Despite their desire to have the Declaration’s “unalienable rights” extended to the Native Americans, they were unable to stop the massive waves of immigrants from ceasing land, and disregarding the treaties negotiated in good faith by Washington, Jefferson and Henry Knox.
Washington and Jefferson, like many of the founding fathers, would continue to own slaves for the rest of their lives. Jefferson would die deeply in debt, his slaves and possessions would be sold at auction. Jefferson in a letter to his more progressive granddaughter would write that slavery “was the fatal stain, that deforms what Nature has bestowed on us of her fairest gifts.” Washington would do in death what he could not do in life, his will provided education, care and freedom for the 123 slaves owned by him at Mount Vernon. The life, liberty and pursuit of happiness granted to his slaves would have to wait 17 more months until Martha’s death in the Spring of 1802.
“Show me a hero and I will write you a tragedy.” F. Scott Fitzgerald
It is not easy being human. We are deeply influenced by the context in which we are raised. The prejudices, values, societal norms and cultural history shape our thoughts and actions. We are faithful, and we are hypocrites, we are sincere and we are frauds. I do not believe in canceling historical figures whose lives were stained by sin. After all we are “Simul Iustus et Peccator.” So let us be students of history, allowing that history to inform our behavior; giving us the opportunity to celebrate the rich accomplishments of those who have gone before us, as we work for justice and peace in the world.
One beggar telling another beggar where to find bread,
I am your,
Pastor Jim
