We are in the midst of a historic multi-faceted cultural revolution. Some of us need to clarify where we stand and why. If Christ is the centre of our faith, I propose that we go back to his example. Jesus entered the scene as a Jewish Rabbi whose ethnic group was severely dominated and oppressed by the Romans, the ruling military industrial complex of the day. At the same time, his religious leaders were allied to the state and used their positions to hoard wealth and power. They misused scripture to justify their behaviour, to control their population, and to keep their community focused on avoiding the “unclean”. When Jesus began to gain influence, many Jews recognized him as the prophesied “Messiah” who was to free them from enslavement. Understandably, their expectation was that the “Messiah” would be a strongman who would use force to dismantle and overthrow the oppressive political and military structures of the day. Jesus did not do that. He recognized that the cycle of violenc...