Something we can do . . .

I suppose I’m a bit of an oddity; because I’ve never seen it as a problem for Christians to upset people who are opposed to the will of God, providing that what upsets them is our determination not to offend God, and not anything personal to us . . . and Lo and Behold ! - in the Office of Readings a day or so ago, S. Clement not only said that I was not sinning by this attitude, but actually commended it :

Let us offend foolish and thoughtless men, men who puff themselves up and boast in the pride of their words, rather than offending God.

In other words, we’re not meant to try and upset them; but we are allowed to do so by adhering to God’s will . . . and particularly if what we’re doing is offending against their pride and arrogance by complying with what God wants of us.

I mention this not because I’m trying to cause problems; but because I am conscious that increasingly nowadays there are people out there – people like Professor Dawkins, for instance – who do display an arrogance and a pride in their rejection of God : and I am aware that there are those who feel that resisting them forcefully, and contesting them clearly, is a type of arrogance and pride on the part of those who do it.

Well, I may be wrong, but I don’t think that’s the case; because people who do that are risking opprobrium, even hatred, in the interest of serving God; and are almost certainly reducing their status in the eyes of many people by standing up for the God in Whom they believe . . . in other words, they’re not puffing themselves up, but rather God; not boasting in themselves, but rather in Him Who created them, and will (they pray) in due course save them . . . which is not quite the same thing.

What they do do is set up a good example for God’s followers : and one which we should always be willing to follow, whenever His interest needs us to. Let us pray that we can do so.