February 2, 2022
When reading about the soap opera of 10 Downing Street in London one might despair or yield to cynicism. Draconian (yet necessary) Covid laws mandated by the UK government were flouted by the very ones who imposed them. While everyday citizens were avoiding social contact, suffering the loss of loved ones whom they had not been allowed to visit in Covid wards, and dealing with the deteriorating impact of isolation, the prime minister’s office was partying. Little wonder there is a dim view of leadership in Britain. As I write the backlash and the flurry is unabated.
Perhaps we should not be surprised. We all have the potential to be self-absorbed protracted adolescents. Eat, drink, and be merry is the universal default for humankind. “Man is born to trouble as the sparks fly upwards” says scripture. We are sinners in need of repentance and renewal.
This, of course, is why Jesus came – “to seek and save the lost”. All of us are lost without his finding us. We need mercy, forgiveness, and hope of life beyond “this vale of tears”. The repentant tax collector spoke for us all when he prostrated himself in shame and cried,”God be merciful to me, a sinner”.
