Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen: to loose the chains of injustice and untie the cords of the yoke, to set the oppressed free and break every yoke? – Isaiah 58:6

 Today's Scripture Reading (September 7, 2020): Isaiah 58

Brazilian novelist Paulo Coelho, in "Brida," says that "A prayer couched in the words of the soul, is far more powerful than any ritual." Unfortunately, it seems that prayer couched in the words of the soul is sometimes hard to come by. Often, we seem more comforted by the ritual prompted by our spirituality. The effort and pain that is required to reach our souls seems beyond either our ability or our energy.

And yet, the ritual in our spiritual lives is often dangerous because, while we think we are doing something, in reality, we are just going through the motions. Any spiritual act that does not reach the depth of our being is wasted because it did nothing to prompt a change in how we interact with our world. It would be like wearing a "Black Lives Matter" t-shirt, but still doing racist things. Unless the slogan reaches the depths of our actions, the t-shirt is just a t-shirt.

Isaiah argues that the returning exiles have not learned the lesson of their deportation. They were going through the motions, acting out the ritual, but none of it had reached the depth of their beings. Specifically, Isaiah argues that they are fasting and fulfilling the ritual, but there is no self-examination involved in the fast. Injustice still reigns all around them, and those who fast are doing nothing to change it. And because of their lack of action to eliminate injustice, God is not honored by the fast.

A fast is essentially giving up something to spend time in self-examination so that we can get ourselves right with God. The year 2020 saw two significant pauses to pro sports. One was because of the COVID-19 pandemic, and the second was in support of racial equality, and a plea for the cessation of the senseless shooting of unarmed African Americans in the United States. If nothing changes, they were both just pauses in the daily routine of these athletes. But if our actions change. If we become more aware of the racial injustice that exists in our society, and if we begin to take action on injustice. If we can set the oppressed free, then maybe we could consider the second pause a fast, because, as a direct result of the break, we spoke with the words of our souls and our nation began to reflect what it is that God wants for us. But if we continue as we always have, if we continue to be complacent and injustice continues, and we remain silent, then the pause was a couple of days off enjoyed by professional athletes. It can mean nothing more.

Tomorrow's Scripture Reading: Isaiah 59