There is a growing movement in America that simply cannot countenance people who disagree with them. Students at Stanford Law School in March shouted down Fifth Circuit Judge Kyle Duncan during an event at which he had been invited to speak, and even the school’s “associate dean for diversity, equity, and inclusion” reprimanded Duncan for his judicial opinions. “Is the juice worth the squeeze? Is this worth it?” the sanctimonious dean demanded of Duncan when he tried to respond to her (bizarrely) prepared remarks.
It was a question that did not really seek an answer because the questioner did not care about the person’s response. She had already made up her mind. Like Washington Post columnist Monica Hesse recently asking, “Is J.K. Rowling transphobic?” Or CNN commentator Bakari Sellers asking, “Is DeSantis Using Racism to Win the Presidency?” In such cases, the question is the argument, or the attempt at one, anyway.
This week, Christians across the world celebrate Holy Week, also called Passion Week, honoring Jesus’ last week in Jerusalem before His crucifixion on Good Friday and resurrection on Easter Sunday. Jesus, too, suffered the indignity of being ridiculed by those who didn’t really care what He thought, or how He might answer their mocking questions. But through a consideration of how the various Jewish and Roman authorities treated Jesus, we can see what happens when politics is prioritized over faith. In Jesus’ response to that treatment, we can learn how we, too, can become whole in our increasingly
