What does it mean to “know God”? Who are the ones who know God?
A daily reflection by Richard Rohr this week captures something of the inter-faith spirit. In last week’s message, we explored, amongst other things, how we can define ‘religion’ too narrowly. ‘Religion’ is how we make sense of the world and since everyone needs to make sense of the world in some way, everyone has a ‘religion.’
We can easily get caught up in “My Religion is better than your religion!” games, but in this meditation Rohr brings us back to basics, quoting the prophet Jeremiah 22:13-17:-
Woe to him who builds his house by unrighteousness,
and his upper rooms by injustice;
who makes his neighbor serve him for nothing,
and does not give him his wages;
who says, “I will build myself a great house
with spacious upper rooms,”
and cuts out windows for it,
paneling it with cedar,
and painting it with vermilion.
Do you think you are a king
because you compete in cedar?
Did not your father eat and drink
and do justice and righteousness?
Then it was well with him.
He judged the cause of the poor and needy;
then it was well.
Is not this to know me?
says the Lord.
But you have eyes and heart
only for your dishonest gain,
for shedding innocent blood,
and for practicing oppression and violence.
Rohr says the following:
“I, Richard, would ask, if a “believer” does not practice some level of nonviolent justice and compassionate action, do they really know God?”
How well do we know God?
Who are we to claim that others not of the Christian faith who still “does justice” do not know God?