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Encouraging Civic Engagement

EasterElections, Civic Participation and Democratic Responsibility Week 25 · Day 6

Scripture References

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Old Testament

Deuteronomy 1:13-17

¹³ Take wise men of understanding who are respected amongst your tribes, and I will make them heads over you.”
¹⁴ You answered me, and said, “The thing which you have spoken is good to do.”
¹⁵ So I took the heads of your tribes, wise and respected men, and made them heads over you, captains of thousands, captains of hundreds, captains of fifties, captains of tens, and officers, according to your tribes.

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¹⁶ I commanded your judges at that time, saying, “Hear cases between your brothers and judge righteously between a man and his brother, and the foreigner who is living with him.
¹⁷ You shall not show partiality in judgement; you shall hear the small and the great alike. You shall not be afraid of the face of man, for the judgement is God’s. The case that is too hard for you, you shall bring to me, and I will hear it.”

New Testament

Titus 3:1-2

¹ Remind them to be in subjection to rulers and to authorities, to be obedient, to be ready for every good work,
² to speak evil of no one, not to be contentious, to be gentle, showing all humility towards all men.

Thought for the Day

In Deuteronomy, Moses remembers how the people were asked to share responsibility: choose wise and understanding people, known among your tribes, and set them as heads. Justice was not to be personal preference dressed up as principle. The same standard was to be heard for small and great alike, and the powerful were not to be flattered.

Lord, make us citizens who can disagree without cruelty, and who can participate without losing our souls.

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Then comes a line that steadies both the judge and the citizen: do not be afraid of anyone, for the judgement is God’s. That does not mean every decision is automatically holy. It means the work is weighty, and must not be bent by pressure, panic, or popularity. When cases are hard, they are not buried; they are brought into the light.

Titus is just as practical about our posture in public life. Be subject to rulers and authorities, be ready for every good work, speak evil of no one, and show gentleness to all. To encourage civic engagement, then, is not merely to stir people to action. It is to encourage a certain kind of action: responsible, peaceable, and marked by πραΰτης (prautes, G4236), a gentleness that refuses both swagger and spite.

Prayer Points

Respond

Raise up wise and impartial leaders, and give them strength to resist partiality and fear.
Teach us to participate responsibly: to show up, to serve, and to bear our share of the common life.
Set a guard over our mouths, that we would not denigrate or slander our neighbours.

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Give our public speech gentleness and courage together, for the sake of Christ.
Bless those who feel alienated from public life, and draw them into dignity and belonging.

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