I Will Get Involved, Because It Does Concern Me

Then Mor′decai told them to return answer to Esther, “Think not that in the king’s palace you will escape any more than all the other Jews. For if you keep silence at such a time as this, relief and deliverance will rise for the Jews from another quarter, but you and your father’s house will perish. And who knows whether you have not come to the kingdom for such a time as this?”

Esther 4:13-14

“I don’t want to get involved.”

“That doesn’t concern me.”

How often have we heard such things said?

How often have we said such things?

How often have we chosen to walk away from a troubling situation rather than taking action—any action? How often have we seen some wrong being done, some injustice taking place, and said nothing?

I suspect the answer is somewhere in the vicinity of “quite often.” As a general rule, I have observed people can be quite reluctant to get involved in someone else’s challenging situation. I have witnessed people’s reluctance to speak out against some injustice, either in the workplace, or in a restaurant, or just in passing on the street.

We are reluctant to be made a witness to something. We do not want to step into another person’s problem.

We see wrong things happening, and look the other way, trusting someone else will deal with it.

Or perhaps we see a wrong thing happening and turn away, not caring if someone else will deal with it.

It’s not hard to wonder why: getting involved can be dangerous. We might be risking our jobs, or we might be risking our physical safety.

Getting involved is difficult, and challenging.

Speaking out can be difficult and unnerving.

Avoiding either is nearly always the path of least resistance. Remaining silent rather than speaking out nearly always appears to be the safe choice, and thus the prudent choice.

But is it the right choice?

The civil rights leader John Lewis once asked, “If not us, then who? If not now, then when?”

We can take Lewis’ rhetorical question a step further, and ponder “if not us now, who will stand for us later?” If we turn away from the hardships of the world, if we shrink from taking chances now, where will we turn for help when hardship comes into our lives—as it surely will?

If we claim to believe that God bends the arc of the universe towards justice, then it is certain that someone will at some point stand for that justice, and challenge the wrongs we see around us today. If that someone is not us, what will become of us?

That was the challenge Mordecai posed to Esther. Even in exile, Mordecai knew God would not abandon His people Israel. But if Esther stayed on the sidelines, what assurance would she have that she would number among those God chose to preserve?

The answer, of course, is that Esther had no such assurance.

Esther had no such assurance, because in reality doing nothing is rarely the safe choice. It is merely the easiest choice.

We know even from history that God does bend the arc of the universe towards justice. Where there is injustice, someone will rise against that injustice. Where there is oppression, someone will oppose the oppressors.

We know also from the Gospels that we are not meant to stand idly by and do nothing. We know from both the parables of the Good Samaritan and the Sheep and the Goats that we are called to take an active role in confronting the injustices which abound in this world. We are called to comfort the sick, clothe the naked, and welcome the stranger.

Wherever there is a problem, we are called to be part of the solution.

Silence is an option, but it is never a good option.

Inaction is a choice, but it is never a good choice.

Speaking out is often the more challenging option, but it is generally the better option.

Taking action is often the more difficult choice, but it is generally the wiser choice.

Certainly I would much rather not have to speak out. I would greatly prefer to not take action. It is not the better choice, or the wiser choice, but it is always the easier choice. It is always the simpler choice—and that choice is seductive in its simplicity.

We are called to speak out. We are called to take action. Mordecai’s warning to Esther teaches us this. The Gospels teach us this. Throughout the Old and New Testament we are taught this.

My prayer on every day is that I will find the courage to speak out, and the resolve to take action. My prayer on every day is that I will confront the problems I see in the world, and look for ways to be part of their solution. My prayer on every day is that I will be part of the means by which God bends the arc of the universe towards justice.

My prayer for you is that you also will find the courage to speak out, and the resolve to take action. My prayer for you is that you will confront the problems you see in the world, and look for ways to be part of their solution. My prayer for you is that you will be a part of the means by which God bends the arc of the universe towards justice.

I might not want to get involved—but I pray that I will. Because ultimately it does concern me.