Last night, we read this passage:
He came to Nazareth where he had been reared. As he always did on the Sabbath, he went to the meeting place. When he stood up to read, he was handed the scroll of the prophet Isaiah. Unrolling the scroll, he found the place where it was written,
God’s Spirit is on me;
he’s chosen me to preach the Message of good news to
the poor,
Sent me to announce pardon to prisoners and
recovery of sight to the blind,
To set the burdened and battered free,
to announce, “This is God’s year to act!”
He rolled up the scroll, handed it back to the assistant, and sat down. Every eye in the place was on him, intent. Then he started in, “You’ve just heard Scripture make history. It came true just now in this place.” Luke 4.16-21 (The Message)
We pondered on what this means in San Diego, a city in which recent local news continues to report on rising hate crimes and one of the lowest food stamp participations in large cities across the country. Not only is San Diego not feeding the poor, they are brutalizing them. How can the Church in San Diego embody this Good News in this city? Lord, show us.