Living Lamentations: A Courageous Act

by

February 7, 2025

Lamentation is a courageous act (2:6). It exposes imperialism–the unholy collusion of monarchs and priests. Lamentation calls out sin in high places, and it takes courage to do that.

Walter Brueggemann calls this interrupting the silence. [1] When we become complacent toward evil, we no longer speak out against it. A “that’s just the way it is” passivity overtakes us. Lamentation breaks the spell and exposes the darkness that has overtaken the sanctuary and palace walls (2:7).

When Joshua was called to succeed Moses, God told him multiple times, “Be strong and courageous.” [2] This was more than an exhortation; it was an endowment. God was gifting Joshua with these qualities. God does not issue empty commands. With them comes the empowerment to carry them out, and we see Joshua doing this in his tenure of leadership.

In our day, Parker Palmer has kept strength and courage combined in his writing and in his establishment of the Center for Courage and Renewal. He calls this kind of courage "standing in the gap between right and wrong." In his book, "A Hidden Wholeness" he rightly notes that “such courage is not universally admired” and there is a price to be paid for the exercise of it. [3]

With respect to the Book of Lamentations, there is an important thing to note – something that has to do directly with courage: calling out evil is best done in community. The fact that there are multiple writers of the book is an indication that such a community existed. Parker Palmer calls community a resource “vital to agents of nonviolent change.” [4]

We are living in a time when courage is especially called for, when speaking truth to power is necessary. Lamentation is one way we do this.

[1] Walter Brueggemann, ‘Interrupting the Silence’ (WJK, 2018).

[2] God repeated the twofold requirement: Deuteronomy 31:23, and then four more times in Joshua 1:6, 1:7, 1:9, and 1:18.

[3] Parker Palmer, ‘A Hidden Wholeness’ (Josey Bass, 2004), 9-10.

[4] Ibid., 173.