"Austin, Don't Be Stupid"

My dad imparted some wisdom to his kids as we grew up. Some of those lessons I remember; some, not so much. However, one little nugget of wisdom that I hold on to is when dad told me, “Austin, don’t be stupid.”

Now, this was not some response to some dumb thing that I was doing at any particular time (there were plenty of those); rather, this was real advice. Dad was a judicious man. He had been a lawyer and later a judge, and he always carried a clear sense of justice and fairness. He could be very prudent and was open to learning the truth, rather than being swayed to one side or the other.

When dad told me not to be “stupid,” what he meant was to think when I was acting or considering a situation. He meant not to take one person’s version of a story as complete when there are others involved. He meant not to look for easy answers but to use my brain and my own judgment. Maybe “stupid” is a harsh word for us to hear. What dad certainly meant was “foolish.” We’ve all been foolish from time to time.

Today, in the Sermon on the Mount, we hear some very good advice from the Lord who is teaching.

"You have heard that it was said to your ancestors,You shall not kill; and whoever kills will be liable to judgment. But I say to you, whoever is angry with his brother will be liable to judgment; and whoever says to his brother, 'Raqa,' will be answerable to the Sanhedrin; and whoever says, 'You fool,' will be liable to fiery Gehenna.”

What Jesus does in this particular teaching is to take the Law as the Jews know it and to call them to a deeper understanding of it; and therefor, He is calling us to a more complete living of it. When Jesus says these things, He is saying that “Even though the letter of the Law says this, there is a fuller way of living it out – a way that the Father intends.”

That word that Jesus mentions – Raqa – is not a pretty word for His time. According to one biblical dictionary, “raqa” is

"a term of reproach derived from the Chaldee reka, worthless. (“Raqa” denotes a certain looseness of life and manners, while fool, in the same passage, means a downright wicked and reprobate person.")."

Another says this about the word:

Vain or worthless fellow; a term of contempt used by the Jews in the time of Christ. In the Bible, it occurs in Matthew 5:22 only, but John Lightfoot gives a number of instances of the use of the word by Jewish writers. [John] Chrysostom … says it was equivalent to the Greek su, "thou," used contemptuously instead of a man's name. Jerome rendered it inanis aut vacuus absque cerebro [empty or void without a brain]. It is generally explained as expressing contempt for a man's intellectual capacity (= "you simpleton”).

I share all that to show that this word, “raqa,” is unkind, and it expresses a judgement about someone that may or may not be true. Doing such a thing is lazy, since it does not take into consideration all the fact and doesn’t even want to, and it is uncharitable since it reduces a person to your judgment.  Jesus knew this.

When we reduce everything to the Law, to doing the bare minimum in our spiritual and moral life, then we are not being faithful to Christ’s call in this gospel.  Jesus knows that we are complex people. He knows what we are created for. He knows that none of us is as bad as our worst nor as good as our best; however, He loves us anyway. This teaching is meant to lift us above the oversimplification of black and white and invites us to the deeper life in the Spirit with Him.

We see examples of this oversimplification all the time. When a politician says, “I am opposed to abortion personally, but it’s the law of the land so I can’t do anything.” When others say, “I love the stranger but they broke the law, and therefore they are “illegal” and should be arrested and deported.” When I say, “I should forgive her, but she really hurt me, so…”

“Austin, don’t be stupid.”

These are my “raqa” moments. They are actually expressions of cowardice and laziness – allowing others to act and think for me. Think of the last time you share a post on social media because it affirmed your bias without checking it for truth. Think of the last time you stayed quiet when someone was suffering because everyone else thought a different way. Think of how easy it is to harbor bad thoughts about those we dislike.

Jesus knows how hard that is. However, He also knows that God has bless us with a brain, a mind, a conscience, and a soul; and He expects us to cultivate them and let them flourish. That cannot happen when the first words out of our mouths are “Deport them,” or “It’s not my choice,” or “An eye for an eye.” This is not the way of Christ. He never gives us permission to be unkind nor spiritually lazy.

I miss my father. On a day like today, I wonder what wisdom of his I might have missed. However, I also know that his perspective (imperfect as it was) was grounded in his own faith. That faith is mine and yours as well; and the Source of that Faith is here now, teaching us to love, welcome, forgive, and care.