Collecting Manna: Kaj Munk

Kaj Munk was a Danish Lutheran pastor and playwright who was assassinated by the Gestapo for preaching against his country's occupation - the result of her complicit neutrality - by Germany during World War II (a nice bio can be found here). One of the bullets was surely aimed at silencing such incendiary homiletics as the following passage. The Lutheran church commemorates his martyrdom on January 5.

"What is, therefore, our task today? Shall I answer: "Faith, hope, and love"?

That sounds beautiful. But I would say--courage.

No, even that is not challenging enough to be the whole truth. Our task today is recklessness.

For what we Christians lack is not psychology or literature....
we lack a holy rage--
the recklessness which comes form the knowledge of God and humanity.

The ability to rage when justice lies prostrate on the streets, and when the lie rages across the face of the earth...a holy anger about the things that are wrong in the world.

To rage against the ravaging of God's earth , and the destruction of God's world.

To rage when little children must die of hunger, when the tables of the rich are sagging with food. To rage at the senseless killing of so many, and against the madness of militaries.

To rage at the lie that calls the threat of death and the strategy of destruction peace.

To rage against complacency.

To restlessly seek that recklessness that will challenge and seek to change human history until it conforms to the norms of the Kingdom of God.

And remember the signs of the Christian Church have been the Lion, the Lamb, the Dove, and the Fish...
but never the chameleon."