Daily Worship

Violence

Liz Crumlish August 05, 2015 0 0

Luke 20: 9-18

The Parable of the Tenants in the Vineyard

9 Then Jesus told the people this parable: “There was once a man who planted a vineyard, rented it out to tenants, and then left home for a long time. 10 When the time came to gather the grapes, he sent a slave to the tenants to receive from them his share of the harvest. But the tenants beat the slave and sent him back without a thing. 11 So he sent another slave; but the tenants beat him also, treated him shamefully, and sent him back without a thing. 12 Then he sent a third slave; the tenants wounded him, too, and threw him out. 13 Then the owner of the vineyard said, ‘What shall I do? I will send my own dear son; surely they will respect him!’ 14 But when the tenants saw him, they said to one another, ‘This is the owner's son. Let's kill him, and his property will be ours!’ 15 So they threw him out of the vineyard and killed him.

“What, then, will the owner of the vineyard do to the tenants?” Jesus asked. 16 “He will come and kill those men, and turn the vineyard over to other tenants.”

When the people heard this, they said, “Surely not!”

17 Jesus looked at them and asked, “What, then, does this scripture mean?

‘The stone which the builders rejected as worthless
    turned out to be the most important of all.’

18 Everyone who falls on that stone will be cut to pieces; and if that stone falls on someone, that person will be crushed to dust.”

What looks like a bunched up rag
contains what remains of an infant child
caught up in the adults' squabbles
as territory is disputed
and ghettos are assigned
And, long after the so-called peacekeepers have moved on,
the war lords' playgrounds continue to heal and maim
any who dare to venture into mine filled expanses
And the innocence of children
is forever ripped from their souls 
leaving in its place burning resentment
carefully concealed behind dead eyes that have witnessed 
what none should ever see
And so the cycle of violence keeps on turning
And nations, in response to war, declare war,
using violence and force as their defence against violence and force.
We focus our eyes, O God, on your role as judge and bringer of retribution
and turn away from Christ whom you sent as Prince of Peace,
Christ who gathers up the pieces of innocents torn apart by violence
and cradles them in his arms
and weeps
as lessons go unheeded
and as violence continues to spiral out of control.
God focus our eyes on the action of Christ whose compassion
brings hope and peace into every conflict
and whose love binds up wounds
and transforms scars into badges of wisdom.