Quiet Prophecy

Ronald Rolheiser OMI

QUIET PROPHECY

 Ronald Rolheiser omi

Thank you to Mary Moritz, Northeast, FL Chapter for sharing this abridged article. To see the full text, go to: https://ronrolheiser.com/quiet-prophecy/#.ZGZmXCUpAWM

There is a powerful way of being prophetic that, while seemingly quiet and personal, is never private. And its rules are the same as the rules for those who, in the name of Jesus, are wielding placards and risking civil disobedience. What are those rules, rules for a Christian prophecy?

First, a prophet makes a vow of love, not of alienation. 

Second, a prophet draws his or her cause from Jesus and not from an ideology. 

Third, a prophet is committed to non-violence. 

Fourth, a prophet articulates God’s voice for the poor and for the earth. 

Fifth, a prophet doesn’t foretell the future but properly names the present in terms of God’s vision of things.  

Sixth, a prophet speaks out of a horizon of hope.  

Seventh, a prophet’s heart and cause are never a ghetto. 

Finally, a prophet doesn’t just speak or write about injustice, a prophet also acts and acts with courage, even at the cost of death.  A prophet has enough altruistic love, hope, and courage to act, no matter the cost. A prophet never seeks martyrdom but accepts it if it finds him or her.

This last counsel is, I believe, the one most challenging for “quiet” prophets. Wisdom figures are not renowned for being on the picket lines, but in that lies the challenge. A prophet can discern at what time to park the placard and bring out the basin and towel – and at what time to lay aside the basin and towel and pick up the placard.