Light is an important theme in the readings for the day—shedding light in one way or another on what is good and what is evil. In a time where it can be easy to live as though the truth were not true, given the very real ways our society and media can shape perspectives, shedding light on what is the truth and what are lies is an important part of the work for social justice.

In his book Reimagining the Human: Theological Anthropology in Response to Systemic Evil, Filipino theologian and UCC pastor Eleazar Fernandez sheds light on the understanding of how this question of good and evil has become more complex in today’s world. In the face of those who may say, for example, that, “Perception is real, the truth is not,” Fernandez uncovers how social structures might obscure the truth with perceptions that only seem to be good. Fernandez rightly points this out in the way sin is framed as rebellion against God alone—when sin is framed as just rebellion against God, it makes the victims of sin invisible; when injustice is framed as only the individual’s actions, it hides the systems and structures at work that also amplify the moral harm of a person’s actions and reinforce oppression. 

Fernandez talks especially about racism, sexism, classism, and naturism, four interlocking oppressive systems that can hide injustices people face by making it seem as though such injustice is due to only a few “bad” individuals whose actions are not connected. Rather than compartmentalizing these acts and people, Fernandez shows the connections between them, and brings to light how the systems and structures encourage certain behavior from people, forming part of underlying cultures that people emulate consciously or unconsciously. Racism, sexism, classism, and naturism provide the ideological foundations that violate people and nature, rather than creating a society with care for the well-being of creation.

In his book, Toward a Theology of Struggle, Fernandez tells us that our response should be to protest against such systems, including challenging these ideological foundations. Fernandez does so by inviting us to reimagine what it means to be a human being in right relation with each other and with creation—an alternative way of being that will encourage the flourishing of creation, human beings and non-human beings alike. Struggle and protest are key parts of doing theology and of challenging these oppressive systems.

Fernandez’ work reminds us of a story that Edward Feinstein recounts in Capturing the Moon: Classic and Modern Jewish Tales. A Jewish rabbi asked of his students:

A rabbi once asked his students, “How do we know when the night has ended and the day has begun?” 

The brightest of the students offered an answer: “Rabbi, when I look out at the fields and I can distinguish between my field and the field of my neighbor, that’s when the night has ended and the day has begun.” 

A second student offered his answer: “Rabbi, when I look from the fields and I see a house and I can tell that it’s my house and not the house of my neighbor, that’s when the night has ended and the day has begun.”

A third student offered an answer: “Rabbi, when I see an animal in the distance and I can tell what kind of animal it is, whether a cow or a horse or a sheep, that’s when the night has ended and the day has begun.” 

Each answer brought a sadder, more severe frown to the rabbi’s face until finally he shouted, “No! Not one of you understands! You only divide! You divide your house from the house of your neighbor, your field from your neighbor’s field; you distinguish one kind of animal from another; you separate one color from the others. Is that all we can do—divide, separate, split the world into pieces? Isn’t the world broken enough? Isn’t the world split into enough fragments? Is that what Torah is for? No, my dear students, it’s not that way, not that way at all!”

The shocked students looked into the sad face of their rabbi. One of them ventured, “Then Rabbi, tell us: How do we know the night has ended and the day has begun?”

The rabbi stared back into the faces of his students, and with a voice suddenly gentle and imploring, he responded: “When you look into the face of the person who is beside you and you can see that the person is your brother or your sister, then finally the night has ended and the day has begun.”

For more information see:

•  Eleazar Fernandez, Reimagining the Human: Theological Anthropology in Response to Systemic Evil, St. Louis, Missouri: Chalice Press, 2004. 
• The Kingmaker, directed by Lauren Greenfield (Evergreen Pictures, 2019), https://vimeo.com/358556466?fbclid=IwAR2z12g-M70kXTsVT235Papw6hwKRh_g7K__GxUST_AxrPOFyccc51LZ0d0.
• Eleazar Fernandez, Toward a Theology of Struggle, Eugene, Oregon: Wipf and Stock, 2008, 164-186.

Consider the following: How do we shed light on the signs of our times and challenge the powers that be? How do we use our time, our talent, and our physical bodies to point out systemic injustice and surface the evil that needs to be rejected, and the good that needs to be lifted up and emulated?

In Philippine history, the Catholic Church and its leadership have, at certain points, lent their voices to protest against unjust systems and structures, shedding light on human rights abuses and corruption in the Philippine government. A person who embodies our lessons from today is Jaime Cardinal Sin, former archbishop of Manila. When he was alive, Cardinal Sin was a key player in beginning the People Power revolution, a movement that toppled Ferdinand Marcos Sr. from his dictatorship and embodies our principles of just protest. In February 1986, Cardinal Sin called on the Filipino people through the Catholic Church’s radio station Radyo Veritas to go protect senior officials who had defected from the dictatorship. Over a million people gathered in this effort, with many religious sisters also at the forefront, and civilians holding religious icons and figures in the face of tanks and rifles. The People Power revolution would always be known as the peaceful and bloodless revolution that forced a dictator out of office and into exile, restoring democracy, and installing the first female president in the Philippines—Corazon Aquino.

The photos below of the People Power revolution invite us to think about how we resist and protest. Consider the following: How do we shed light on the signs of our times and challenge the powers that be? How do we use our time, our talent, and our physical bodies to point out systemic injustice and surface the evil that needs to be rejected, and the good that needs to be lifted up and emulated?

Image description: In a black and white photo, two Filipina sisters stand in front of a large crowd of people. One sister holds a rosary, her mouth open in protest. The other holds her hand to her mouth, considering what is ahead.

Image description: In a black and white photo with a building in the background, people gather around a barricade with soldiers bearing machine guns inside. The people have their hands raised in the air, and someone holds a statue of Mary in the air toward the soldiers.