WHY I AM A PROTESTANT

WHY I AM A PROTESTANT

I am a protestant because Jesus was.

Jesus’ life was one of protest – he protested about abuse of power (Matthew 5.38f), the corruption of money (Luke 12.33f) and the danger of pride (Luke 18.9f). He protested at the way the poor were treated, about the arrogance of the rich, and the voices of deceivers. He protested about the way many judge others without admitting their own faults (Matthew 7.1f), about religious hypocrites (Matthew 23.1f) and the dangers of being duped by Satan – the liar and teller of falsehoods (Matthew 16.23f). He protested about greed, jealousy, and envy (Mark 7.20f).  He protested that we need to love all, especially our enemies, and that we need to forgive others if we want to be forgiven.

Jesus protested on behalf of the oppressed, hurt, abused, downtrodden, abandoned, alienated, and victimized (Luke 7).  He also protested about those who are narrow in their outlook; he went to places and stayed with people he wasn’t supposed to and talked with those no good Jew was allowed to (John 4). 

The bible is a protestant book.  It protests about those who are neither hot nor cold (Revelation 13.15f), about those who are callous or passive in the face of evil (James 4.17).  It protests about the grip of sin and the need for nations to act righteously (Jeremiah 3.17).  It protests at the ways many are blind to the good in others, blind to what people different to us have to offer and deaf to wisdom that comes from those unlike us.

I am protestant because I protest at the way people can ignore the plain word of scripture; at the way what is offered in the bible for our formation as God’s creation is ignored.  For example, incense, the Book of Proverbs tells us, makes the ‘heart glad’ (Prov. 62.5) and was offered to Jesus at his birth; yet there are those who reject its benefits, deny the insights which come from other Christian traditions, and refuse to learn from the wisdom of the ages.

Yes, I am a protestant  ... but that doesn't mean I'm not a Catholic as well :-)