Recently I read a news report of a minister who was forbidden from leading a prayer at a governmental lawmakers session because his prayer was going to be ended with the words, “In Jesus name. Amen!” The reason given was that some people there would not be Christians and might be offended by this traditional Christian ending. I think we can take comfort in the fact that this is not the first time someone’s mouth has been stopped because the message might be offensive to another. Today’s message is taken from the Old Testament and it is similar in some ways to the current event just cited.
Some background is in order. God established one nation, the nation of Israel. Because of the hard-headed attitude of one leader and the political aspirations of another, the nation of Israel split into two sub-nations after Solomon’s reign. In order to preserve his new found power as king of ten of the tribes, the King established idolatrous images at Dan (in the extreme north and Bethel in the extreme south). These substitute places of worship were intended to keep his subjects from returning to Jerusalem (located in one of the two remaining tribes of Israel) and becoming loyal to the previous system of worship and governance. As these two nations became entrenched in their separate cultures, the animosity grew between them. God sent Amos, a prophet from the southern two tribes, to speak against the sins of the northern ten tribes. It is with this background that the following reading should be approached.
“Then Amaziah the priest of Bethel sent to Jeroboam king of Israel [the northern ten tribes], saying, ‘Amos [a prophet from the south] has conspired against you in the midst of the house of Israel. The land is not able to bear all his words. For thus Amos has said: “Jeroboam shall die by the sword, And Israel shall surely be led away captive From their own land.”’ Then Amaziah said to Amos: ‘Go, you seer! Flee to the land of Judah. There eat bread, And there prophesy. But never again prophesy at Bethel, For it is the king’s sanctuary, And it is the royal residence.’ Then Amos answered, and said to Amaziah: ‘I was no prophet, Nor was I a son of a prophet, But I was a sheepbreeder And a tender of sycamore fruit. Then the LORD took me as I followed the flock, And the LORD said to me, “Go, prophesy to My people Israel.” Now therefore, hear the word of the LORD: You say, “Do not prophesy against Israel, And do not spout against the house of Isaac.” Therefore thus says the LORD: “Your wife shall be a harlot in the city; Your sons and daughters shall fall by the sword; Your land shall be divided by survey line; You shall die in a defiled land; And Israel shall surely be led away captive From his own land.”’” (Amos 7.10-17).
Without ceremony or any apparent concern for truth, Amaziah simply told Amos to leave! The land, according to this false priest, was not able to bear all of Amos’ words; “But never again prophesy at Bethel!” What he really meant was that the words of Amos were not politically correct and they would incite the anger of the king. With this motive, it became a simple expedient to charge Amos never to speak again in the northern kingdom.
Political expedients have no place where absolute truths are involved. Right is right regardless of the party or place. When strings are attached such as the ones to Amos’ preaching or to the minster’s prayer noted in the beginning of this article, it needs to be made abundantly clear who is calling the shots. I would see nothing wrong with the man leading the prayer with a caveat at the beginning saying that he had been forbidden from verbalizing what he was actually doing, i.e. praying in Jesus name!
Questions:
1. Why would a Christian be invited to pray unless it was understood that he was praying in the “Christian tradition?” Otherwise, what is he – a naturalist, an atheist, etc., etc.?
2. Why did Amaziah forbid Amos from preaching in Bethel? What was his motive?
3. If religion must be silent because it might be offensive to someone, how often could it speak?
4. Does God demand that Christians utter the words “in Jesus name” in order for our prayers to be heard? Why or why not? How does this differ from what occurred with the minister?