Hypocritical Oath for Pastors
Part 6
Who’s Jacob?
“Why do you keep doing it, Mark? Most of your own people don’t believe half of what you preach. At least they don’t show it in their lives.”
“Don’t you think I know that, Ethan. They don’t believe all of it, but they want to believe it. In a way, they and we are like Jacob.”
“Jacob? Jacob who? What are you talking about?”
“Jacob in the Bible,” Mark said. “Don’t you remember, he was the conartist of conartists?”
The crowd below, in their eagerness to see what was happening, had slowly gathered behind the police cars parked in the quad.. Ethan turned to gaze at them. “You see how crazy this faith of yours is?” Ethan shouted to the people below. “I’m holding a rifle five stories up getting ready to shoot people or jump, and this luny-tune preacher wants to talk about some obscure character in the Bible.”
Is it progress that he is now mad at me rather than God? “All right, Ethan. Here’s the choice. You can jump and end it now, or we can wrestle with the truth and see if we can find a reason to live.”
Ethan stared at Mark for several seconds. “OK, I’ll play your game. Jacob, wasn’t he that fool that wrestled with God or something like that?”
“That’s the one. When I’m feeling most hypocritical, he’s my hero.”
“The crowds getting restless, professor. You have five minutes to convince me, or I’m going to finish this off.”
Mark began to talk more rapidly “Like I said, Jacob was a schemer who was willing to take advantage of family and neighbor to get ahead. He was like your worst church member and your most hypocritical pastor bundled together. In him you could see why the evils of the world prosper.”
“That just proves my point. Religion has been a congame from the beginning.”
“Think about the reason behind all religions.” Mark said
“They are all just a bunch of lies to keep the masses pacified,” responded Ethan.
Refusing to take the bait, Mark continued. “All religions seek to answer the question of whether the universe and our lives are just a bunch of accidents or whether there is purpose and meaning to what is happening.”
“Shit happens,” said Ethan. “There is no truth or purpose.”
“Unless God is real and cares for a purpose.”
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Part 7 will be published on Monday, March 25
During these final days of Lent, take a moment to note one dark aspect of your journey of faith as a pastor and pray for some resurrection light. Lent and Easter is for you as well.
