Truth to power

Speaking truth to power has become a cliché because people use it to make cheap, politically-motivated claims. To confront those in authority on moral grounds is costly. First of all it requires a speaker who is beyond reproach themselves. They must also be prepared to take the consequences of their action. And, most importantly, they must have a firm grasp on what the truth in the situation concerned really is.

The only human beings who have come close to such dizzy heights of moral authority are those who have earned the name of prophet. That is not to say that such are restricted to occupants of the that office in the Old Testament of the Bible, or those who have demonstrated a prophetic gift in the New Testament. Prophets and speaking prophetically can occur at any time in history. Yet the prophetic witness of the Bible offers a benchmark and a reference point, which can help us to discern and understand what prophecy actually is.

With a new season comes a fresh opportunity to embark on an adventure. Why not leum a-steach (leap into) prophecy? In particular the so-called 12 Minor Prophets of the Old Testament (Hosea, Joel, Amos, Obadiah, Jonah, Micah, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah, Haggai, Zechariah, Malachi). Their name may suggest that they are of lesser importance than the Major Prophets (Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel). Not so! It is simply that the books associated with them are shorter. In ancient manuscripts they appear together on one scroll, complementing the scrolls attributed to their major colleagues.

Rachamaid (Let's go)...