When he opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of those who had been slain for the word of God and for the witness they had borne. They cried out with a loud voice, “O Sovereign Lord, holy and true, how long before you will judge and avenge our blood on those who dwell on the earth?” Then they were each given a white robe and told to rest a little longer, until the number of their fellow servants and their brothers should be complete, who were to be killed as they themselves had been.
Revelation 6:9-11
STORY
John Wycliffe is best known to us as a Bible translator. He is remembered for translating the Vulgate, which is the Bible that was written in the late fourth century translating the Greek New Testament into Latin, a language that for centuries only priests could read, now in the fourteenth century, because of the efforts on the part of Wycliffe’s profession as a linguistic, the scriptures were translated by the Master of Balliol College, a school associated with Oxford University, into English, a Bible which the common man could read for himself. We also recognize him from the organization that was established in his name, the Wycliffe Bible Translators. It is the mission of this organization to translate the Bible into the common vernacular of every country that presently does not have a Bible, allowing people to read the Bible in their native tongue.
Wycliffe, as the forerunner to the sixteenth century Protestant Reformation, rejected many of the theological positions and practices of the Roman Catholic Church. This led to his dismissal as a professor at Oxford University in 1831. In 1834 he died of a stroke and was buried in Lutterworth.
After his death, the Catholic church continued to view Wycliffe as a heretic because of his challenges to the doctrines of Roman Catholicism persisted among his followers. Condemned as a heretic, at the Council of Constance in 1415, Pope Martin V ordered that Wycliffe’s body be exhumed and burned, the same punishment for all heretics.
But this was not the end of Wycliffe’s story. The townspeople went to Lutterworth and took his ashes and deposited them into the river Swift. The ashes then floated from Swift to the Avon, and from the Avon into the Severn, and from the Severn into the Atlantic Ocean. The ashes of Wycliffe, his followers considered, became an emblem of his doctrine which has now been dispersed the world over.
DEVOTION
When I was in college, I first became aware of the passage from our reading this morning, the words “white robes” has stayed with me. I have then, and still do, envision the sacrifice these Christians must have made. I contemplate their uncompromising witness. I admire their dedication. I wonder about what they must have endured. I then think about the honor of wearing a white robe before the throne of Christ. Then naturally, of course, I wonder if I would be eligible to wear a whiter robe.
I am free of the persecution that followers of The Way suffered until Emperor Constantine was converted in 312, allowing Christianity to become an accepted religion of the state. Living in the United States today, I am free of the persecution that Christians experience in Muslim and Communist countries. Which causes me to question, why am I so hesitant to thunder forth the gospel message when I have relatively nothing to lose?
I don’t know if I could be a martyr. I would probably justify my sheepish behavior saying to myself I could better serve my Lord another day. Perhaps I would engage in excuse making, that this theological issue really isn’t that significant. Or, perhaps, I would squirm out of it deciding that the issue confronting me really isn’t that important. I also know, that I will never really know, if I could be a martyr until I was placed in that situation. If I should ever find myself standing there, I hope that I would have faith enough to be conscious of God’s prevailing providence.
Billy Graham, in his book Angels: God’s Secret Agents, affirms the existence of angels as God’s ambassadors. The evangelist confesses “that God has countless angels at His command. Furthermore, God has commissioned these angels to aid His children in their struggles against Satan. I am convinced that these heavenly beings exist and that they provide aid on our behalf.”
As we confront the evils of society, when we are overcome by the trails and tribulations of life, unnerved by despair, weakened by a sense of hopelessness, confronted to defend our religious orientation, it is comforting to know that God’s angels will empower us and sustain us.
If I do muster the courage to witness, I know this, I am not alone: the spirit of our Creator dwells within me; angels surround me; Christian brothers and sisters embrace me. Neither are you alone.
Where then, in Florence, should I take my stand as a martyr who is not threatened with bodily harm? And this is the crux of the matter – liberated from physical crucifixion do I have the ability to endure emotional crucifixion?
My biggest challenge is verbally articulating what I believe. I fail to witness where I should by not sharing the message with someone I know and who I encounter regularly and who I know is uncommitted, as I realize that it will disrupt our relationship, prevents me from sallying forth. On a smaller scale, I am not on the prowl to pounce upon opportunities to verbally witness when I am out and about. Remaining silent, I deplorably justify the way I live as a compensation for what I don’t say.
In the shadow of this, in the presence of another believer or Chrisitan group, whose theologically outlook I adamantly disagree with, for the sake of tranquility I allow them to pontificate. As I allow them to be opinionated, I am too timid to be forthright and cause an uncomfortable confrontation. Though, am I doing a disservice by not providing an alternate perspective?
Then, there are small vindicating actions that place a curtain over bold actions. I can hold a door, but do I attend a school board meeting? I can anonymously post on social media, but do I attend a rally? Over coffee I can grouse, but do I place my name on a letter to the editor? Spineless neutrality is not an alternate to courageous involvement.
Would I have place in Christendom before 312? Would I have a place in Iraq? Do I have a place in Florence?
Persevered in the emperor’s palace in Rome, from the second century, are 350 graffiti etchings. One etching is of particular interest for our discussion this morning. In the room where slaves were trained to be household servants, on the wall, in the plaster, is an etching of a cross, there is a man on the cross, the man is shown as having a donkey head, and there is another man at the foot of the cross praying. Below the cross there is a citation in Greek that translates, “Alexamenos, worship your god.” It is intended as a derogatory joke. It is well known that non-Christians in the empire called Jesus “donkey-headed.” Please note: to date this is the earliest representation we have, from anywhere in the world, of the crucifixion of Jesus.
Am I, are you, qualified to wear the white robe of martyrdom before the throne of Jesus the Christ?