The Super Bowl, Politics, and Jesus

I was at a Super Bowl party with a bunch of friends, most of whom do not have a church home or a connection to Jesus. There was a huge projection screen for all to see and a state of the art sound system filling the room. As is normal for the big game, the commercials were getting almost as much attention as the game itself. 

A commercial came on and the first image was gripping. A home with dated decor. An older woman clearing the dining room table. A younger woman (her daughter?) sitting at the table. And right in the entryway, a young man (the daughter’s husband?) on his knees washing the feet of an older gentleman. He’s looking up at the man, who is looking at him with a hard to read look on his face. Maybe a son-in-law washing his father-in-law’s feet? Hmmm…

The image shifts to a cop and a black man in an urban alley. Then a cowboy and a Native American. A suburban woman and an immigrant fresh off the bus. You get the idea. In each case these are people we might expect to be in conflict. And in each case one is washing the other’s feet. All to a cover of the song “Never Tear Us Apart (Two Worlds Collide)” by INXS. 

At the party, the room quieted a bit as everyone focused in on the commercial. Someone said, “This is one of those ‘He Gets Us’ ads, isn’t it?” Someone else said, “Yeah, that Jesus stuff.” And they were right. It was. They all know I am a pastor, so it led to some interesting conversations. Really great conversations. It was all very cool… until I saw the backlash on Monday morning.

Some of the images apparently crossed the line for some conservative Christians.  One was of a woman who had clearly been protesting outside an abortion clinic but was now washing the feet of a young woman who presumably was a client of that clinic.  Another was of a man wearing a clerical collar washing the feet of someone who clearly was a part of the LGBTQ community. Despite the message of “Jesus didn’t teach hate, He washed feet,” the He Gets Us folks had touched off a firestorm. 

I am ashamed at the reaction from some Christians. One website that I normally respect said this: “Jesus didn’t teach hate. But he didn’t teach indulgent tolerance either.” Another simply stated that they were pulling their funding for the He Gets Us campaign because obviously the people behind it were no longer pro life and had endorsed the “gay agenda” in our country. They jumped to the conclusion that the message of love for all people somehow translated into agreement with every life choice they made and affirmation of their political and social positions. 

Candidly, I believe some Christians are letting their politics affect their theology and their understanding of the Gospel.

The Pharisees accused Jesus of the sin of “receiving sinners and eating with them.” (Luke 15:2) Interestingly, one translation of the word “receiving” could also be “accepting.” Or “extending hospitality to.” Let’s be clear – Jesus was not agreeing with every life decision people were making or affirming every belief about what was right and what was wrong. But he accepted them. He made them feel welcome. And he sat down for meals with them (and this “table fellowship” was a BIG deal in the culture of their day). Jesus showed love and acceptance to the people the religious leaders of the day wanted him to avoid. That they avoided at all costs.

Jesus did not teach us to tolerate our enemies, even indulgently. He taught us to love them. 

Back at my party, someone asked me, “Do you really think Jesus would want Christians to wash a gay man’s feet?” I responded, “Of course I do.” Their response still rings in my ears. “Then why don’t they?”

(Note: I’m normally careful to only use images that I have purchased in my blog posts, but this time I used the He Gets Us images right from their site. Others posting on the subject have done the same. If you want to see the whole ad and the ideas behind it check out https://hegetsus.com/en/articles/what-is-foot-washing-and-what-does-it-symbolize)