Where is the voice of the Church?

Public schools have been grounded to a halt. The public health system is in shambles to say the least. Every week unearths massive corruption scandals. News items are characterized by con-men and con-women taking advantage of the weak, the vulnerable in society.  The Church has not been left behind; we have scandals that shame the very principles that Christianity stands for. The gap between the rich and the poor continues to widen at an alarming rate. Tribalism continues to escalate, untamed, to say the least. 

In the midst of all these happenings, the Church is silent. The silence so deafening that it perturbs me. 

Perhaps I am missing something but as one who subscribes to the Christian faith I do expect the voice of the Church to be heard over the din of chaos that currently characterizes the state of the nation. Our beloved nation is reeling from one end of chaos to another and we as the Church continue to sit pretty.

I have been waiting for the men and women of the cloak, those who are the spiritual leaders of the various congregations to rise up and say something. Instead, we have continued to go on as if all is well. No. Our country is not okay at all. We are sick, and we are spiraling downwards, especially with all the looting of public funds that is going on. Everywhere we turn, there is not a county that has been scandal-free. This looting is finally catching up with us; it's been going on too long and now we have a wage bill that is at 52% and if we do not raise our voices and speak it may just go up. We are already heavily taxed as a nation and seems like we may be looking at increase in taxes. 

While most of us may argue that the Church's role is purely spiritual nourishment of our congregants, that is not the example that our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ set for us. He was as concerned about the physical, social and emotional well-being of those He ministered to as their spiritual well-being. The Bible is full of examples of men and women who refused to be complacent in the face of oppression and injustice. Stories of courage abound, among them Gideon, Deborah, Esther, Daniel, Shadrack, Meshack and Abednego. We have old time prophets like Jeremiah, Elijah and the new testament prophet John who called the people to righteousness while at the same time condemned the injustices in society. 

I want to see these men and women of the flock unashamedly stand up and condemn the ills that currently plague our nation. I want to see them provide the much-needed leadership in calling for justice to be meted out for those whom the system has continued to oppress. I want to see these men and women in whose hands we have entrusted our spiritual nourishment inspire us as a people to stand for the weak in society even as we hold our political leaders to accountability. Silence from the Church, or an occasional fragmented voice every so often will not solve the problems that plague our society. There must be concerted effort to speak with one voice, across the various denominations, because in diversity, therein lies our strength: the unity of the Body of Christ. This is the time to step up and look beyond the here-and-now and begin to think about the posterity of this nation. The future of this nation lies in our hands as the Church too; not in the hands of politicians who are merely interested in enriching themselves from public coffers as if there is no tomorrow. 

Every crisis in the nation touches on us as the Church and we cannot afford to be complacent. The Church is made up of men and women living in this society and silence means that the Church leadership does not see anything wrong with the ills bedeviling the society. A child who is denied his or her basic right to education will in future be unable to adequately compete for either college or job placement. A Kenyan who cannot access affordable and quality healthcare is at risk of death, way before his or her time. A society that perceives the giving and receiving of bribes as being the norm rather than an abomination is one that lacks any moral values and is at risk of degenerating into a careless, compassion-less and lawless society as each individual seeks to be the highest bidder in order to get ahead of another. 

What does this mean? That unless we rise up and speak up against the ills that plague our society, we are jeopardizing the future of the next generation. The younger generation must hear the voice of the Church over the din of confusion, anger, tribalism, theft, murders, rape, incest, and all the ills that threaten to break the thread of this society. This will not only inspire them to become better citizens but will also challenge them to rise above the all-time low we have sunk into. They will also draw strength from the fathers and mothers in the faith to stand up and speak against the wanton wickedness we are witnessing in our nation. 

Oh, that the Church leadership would rise up and do that which they know they ought to do. We do have it in us to steer the hearts and minds of men and women towards a collective thinking that stands up for both righteousness and justice. May the silence I hear never be held against the Church leadership by the generations that come after and most importantly, by God Himself. The Church leadership has a privileged position and yet with it, lies a responsibility that cannot be underestimated, especially in calling the nation to that place where we do things right, especially our political leaders. It does not matter what the world thinks about the Church now; we know we can still rise from the ashes and do that which we must do because our nation depends on us providing the much needed leadership.  

My prayer is that each Church leader will heed these words drawn from Jeremiah 1:17 "Get up and prepare for action. Go out and tell them everything I tell you to say. Do not be afraid of them, or I will make you look foolish in front of them." and be challenged to rise up. 

Let us not allow this nation go to the doldrums on our watch. God forbid.