Marvin Olasky was at one time a card carrying communist. Today he is a committed Christian and Editor in Chief of the politically and religiously conservative news magazine WORLD. Known for his discerning analyses of present day concerns, Olasky, when deeming it useful, is not adverse to illustrating his theses by means of objective humor. For example:
Sherlock Holmes, the celebrated detective of fictional fame and his assistant, Dr. Watson (frequent recipient of Holmes' slightly acerbic, "Elementary, my dear Watson!") decided to camp out. Upon pitching their tent, they then retired for the night.
Early the next morning, Holmes shook Watson awake and demanded, "Tell me, Watson, what do you see?" To which Watson intoned: "I see a beautiful sunrise, forested hills on the horizon, and white clouds floating in an azure sky."
"Idiot," fumed Holmes; "while we were sleeping, someone stole our tent!"
One need not be of profound intellect to grasp the sense - politically and religiously - of Olasky's "parable." Nor, given our present state of affairs, should it prove difficult to grasp the inter-relational aspects of both realms. We would nonetheless suggest a frequent shortfall at this point.
To illustrate: Biblically defined, a positive dynamic attends the presence of the godly - hence the two-fold thrust of Solomon's observation that "by the blessing of the upright, the city is exalted" (Prov. 11:11).
In one form or another, the preceding principle finds demonstration in various accounts of Scripture. Should ten righteous be found in Sodom the city will be spared (Gen. 18:32); the nation of Israel remains free from Philistine incursion so long as Samuel is alive and present (I Sam. 7:13); two hundred and seventy-six lives are spared at sea by virtue of Paul's being there (Acts 27:24), etc.
On another occasion, however, the prophet Ezekiel was commissioned to warn Israel as to the danger of drifting beyond a point of no return. In the event of such, the Lord continued, the presence of such worthies as Noah, Daniel and Job would have no effect beyond that of their own standing in divine favor (Ezek. 14:14,20). Might it be that as a nation we are nearing such point?
To summarize: Until the time wherein a line has been crossed (again Ezek. 14; cf. also John 9:4: "the night comes"), the Church has a role to fill in terms of not only spiritual and socially charitable witness - vital though that is - but also by the dynamic of its presence.
For, "by the blessing of the upright the city is exalted."
Burl Ratzsch
