I have just watched a TV news item on the situation in Syria - and
it has been profoundly depressing. I heard about families trapped
in rebel held districts in Damascus in constant danger of attack from
the Government forces and rapidly running out of food and supplies. In
these areas children are beginning to show signs of real
malnutrition. As part of the report a young girl spoke of
desperation about her family's situation and of how it would almost be
better to die than go on suffering as they were. This is a truly
shocking situation, and what makes it even more awful is that it is
hard to see what we can do to help.
Although we can support appeals from organisations like Christian Aid
to bring aid to suffering people this won't really solve the underlying
situation which is the cause of their pain. Whilst the
international community has made progress in dealing with the chemical
weapons issue it has failed to influence the wider situation in
Syria. This is hardly surprising as it is not a simple case of
one side being 'evil' and the other 'good'. However bad we may
think the government of Syria is; some of the rebels are hardly
better. It all seems a pretty hopeless situation at the moment.
This month we enter the 'Kingdom Season' which reaches its climax on
the last Sunday of the Christian year with the Feast of Christ the
King. In this season we are invited to reflect on the meaning of
the Kingdom which Our Lord proclaimed in his ministry. When we proclaim
Christ as King of the Universe what do we mean? What is the
nature of his kingly rule? Indeed what indeed can we say about
Christ's Kingship in the light of a situation such as that in
Syria? How can we claim that Christ reigns as Lord and King when
such situations exist in our world and seem to have no solution?
The answer lies in the sort of Kingship we claim for Christ. In
his teachings Our Lord spoke of a kingdom with values such as love,
forgiveness and justice. He put his teachings into action by
dying on the cross wearing a crown of thorns. The only power he
had then was the power of love. Of course now he reigns as King
in glory and ultimately all things will be subject to his rule of
justice and peace. But for now men and women are allowed to go
their own way in a sinful world; to make their own choices; to do good
and ill, to treat others with justice or oppression. Because of
this human freedom to do good or to do ill, Christ in a sense remains
'powerless' to stop evil happening in our world.
What we can be sure of is that he suffers with those who suffer and
cries out for justice for the oppressed. And he calls on those
who would claim to be his followers to do all they can to follow Mary's
Magnificat and work to bring down the powerful and exalt the lowly, to
fill the hungry with good things and send the rich empty away.
Christ will one day rule openly as Lord and King and all that is evil
will be destroyed. But for now we proclaim a 'servant king' who
weeps over the sufferings in his world and especially those caused by
the sinfulness of human beings.And he calls on us to pray and to act in
accordance with the values of his Kingdom.
