It’s the refrain of the Evangelical: “Thoughts and prayers.” Whenever something terrible happens, the first thing they want to do is offer their prayers. And when things seem far too out of control, their leaders call for a “day of prayer,” as the governor of South Dakota, Kristi Noem has done in the wake of the serious natural disasters in her state, brought about largely by Climate Change.
You see, despite her ideology, Jesus is NOT the answer.
When we view Jesus as a ‘great exception’ we miss the point of what his life represented—to us, and those who claimed to know him. Jesus wasn’t an exception, he was an example of what humanity could attain. Jesus tapped into something that astounded those around him, so much so that they were willing to leave everything, including the security of family, to follow him.
Jesus view of Yahweh, or Elohim, was unique according to his biographers. While God had been called a father in Jewish literature, Jesus took that a step further; he used an Aramaic term, “daddy.” Fathers in those times were heads of households, they made the decisions for their wives and their children; and they were not to be questioned. Any disrespect from children could result in stoning. Father was a term of respect. Yet Jesus saw beyond that. To Jesus, God was far more intimate—daddy.
There’s no question that the Jesus written about in the gospels was enlightened. The challenge is, those who wrote about him were not, and they set Jesus up in a position that would forever dis-empower humanity. They ceded our power to a concept that Jesus didn’t preach.
Jesus did not appear to be under any illusions that God was going to do his work for him. Even the Aramaic word that Jesus used for prayer suggests that Jesus fully intended to roll up his sleeves and get his hands dirty. Jesus’ overarching message: The “Kingdom of Heaven is at hand/within...” and, “WE are The Kingdom of Heaven…” all which suggested that when our prayers went out to the Kingdom of Heaven, it was the Kingdom of Heaven that listened and responded. In modern terms, we pray to us, and WE respond.
The word “prayer” in Aramaic meant, among other things, meant “to set a trap for God.” This isn’t so much a hunting term, but a ‘trapping’ term. Jesus knew that God was moving throughout the Kingdom and saw prayer as a way to capture that character. Jesus wanted to grasp God: Its ideas, Its thoughts, Its intentions. In other words, Jesus set up his life so that his very personage drew God to him, and then retained that presence once it had shown up. He set himself and his life so that wherever and whenever God was near, Jesus could “catch” him.
Yet God is big prey, and capturing It wasn’t going to be easy. So Jesus fasted, prayed, wrestled, and followed Jewish observances—all to keep the channel open so that his very being was ready to hold onto such an overwhelming potentiality. Using even the smallest of that force, Jesus would tap into the guidance and wisdom of this ‘detainee’ to accomplish whatever he saw that the Kingdom of Heaven wanted—or needed to accomplish. Jesus “caught” God, and God’s directions, to help humanity. He didn't try to get God to do the work for him. Make no mistake. Prayer wasn't Jesus' action—prayer was his preparation for action.
The purpose of prayer as Jesus taught, is to shut up and listen. God doesn't need to hear from us. We need to hear from It. We do not pray for “God's” sake, We pray for ours. We pray so that God will tell us how we can help with this particular piece of The Kingdom of Heaven. If we don’t want to do anything, then we don’t pray. That gives us plenty of time on the sidelines where we can post more cat memes and take more selfies sticking our tongue out at the camera.
As the Christian apologist, C.S. Lewis, famously said:
Prayer does not change God, it changes us.
Many, Kristi Noem included, are looking for the day when Jesus returns, and finally set us free. We long for that day when there will be “no more sighing neither sorrow nor death.” A day that Jesus himself didn’t appear to embrace. However, by waiting for that day, we’ve relinquished our power; and in so doing, have made ourselves victims. Life happens to us, rather than us expending our energy to make life happen. This wasn’t the case with Jesus. He called upon a God that worked through him, not around him—or despite him.
Jesus never asked God for anything. His prayers consisted of thanking the Father that answers had already been provided if he were willing to look. And it was his job to act on those insights. Even in that moment of complete despair, in the Garden of Gethsemane, where he prayed “let this cup pass from my lip,” he already knew the answer and that he was going to have to face it.
As James, the little brother of Jesus, put it most succinctly:
What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if someone claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save them? Suppose a brother or a sister is without clothes and daily food. If one of you says to them, “Go in peace; keep warm and well fed,” but does nothing about their physical needs, what good is it? In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead.
~ James 2:14-17
Jesus isn’t the answer, he’s an example. If we stop waiting for him to rescue us, and instead take on his approach to prayer, we may find that many of the things we were waiting for are already here. If Kristi Noem, a Climate Change denier, truly were to pray—in the framework in which Jesus prayed—she might discover that she’s not praying to God. She’s praying to her own dogma—her own ego. Unfortunately, her own ego can’t save her (or us) because it can’t see beyond her own ideology. In otherwise, she’s talking to herself, and that's insanity.