Not surprisingly, I’ve observed a disproportionate number of women (leaders & otherwise) speaking publicly in solidarity with the victims of Ravi’s abuses. Some men too, but there remains a lot of silence from men who defended Ravi’s character & “integrity” throughout. (thread) +

I think about the ways that loyalty, admiration, & bias steer our consciences. In the case of Ravi et al, it’s important to notice when a prominent supporter’s conscience compels them reflexively to doubt a victim’s story & “erase” their testimony from their own moral purview. +

This is not a seared conscience, but a conscience invested in loyalty to false convictions that will not allow another reality to be considered. +

Once the evidence becomes irrefutable, a dogged loyalist is propelled into a startling dance between the ego doubling down (on lies) or shutting down in silence (because of truth). +

Noble sounding stances like “still waiting for the facts”, “there’s grace for all of us” or “why harass a family in mourning” reveal the ego’s disturbing & deceitful commitments. Militant loyalty will always betray a man or woman’s integrity & lead them to a ‘far country’. +

Imagine, on the other hand, hearing the accounts of Ravi’s victims for the first time as an impartial shepherd, as one whose conscience has been formed in tenderness and fortified with discernment. Imagine, instead of reflexive defense or the smearing impulse of the ego.. +

..allowing your heart to consider the years of devastating silence and traumatization faced by these women. Let your conscience absorb the horror of having to hold secrets and suppress nightmares for years so that the façade of a beloved faith hero’s legacy could live on. +

Whose life matters? If we lack the strength of character or the instinct of a shepherd to listen for the cries of the battered in the shadows of another man’s glory, our loyalty & bias will always answer the question for us. +

The fate and salvation of men like RZ is between them and God, who judges justly. To fix our thoughts there is to miss the point. +

What is not lost on me: while duplicitous men accrue fame, fortune, and loyal followers, Jesus is missing from the pageantry because he runs to the shadows to triage the precious ones who’ve been violated, silenced and betrayed. +

He nurses their wounds with urgency and abiding presence. He’s in no hurry. He’s not leaving their side for a second, and he needs no recognition for gently tending to their atrocities, holding their grief, and in daily measure restoring their hope. (end)