Epiphany 4A
February 1, 2026
St Dunstan’s
The Rev. Patricia Templeton
“God had told you, O mortal what is good; and what does the Lord require of you, but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God.”
It is the 8th century BCE and God is not happy with Israel. They have acted unjustly through economic oppression of the poor, oppressing the very people they are called to govern and serve.
Merchants are using dishonest scales to cheat their customers. The rich are getting richer and the poor are getting poorer.
Worship services have become meaningless rituals, with empty talk of serving God when it is really money and power that are worshipped.
God reminds them that it is God who brought them out of slavery in Egypt, who brought them into the Promised Land, and who has come to their aid numerous other times.
“O my people, what have I done to you?” God asks. “In what have I wearied you? Answer me!”
What do you want from us? the people respond sarcastically. Should we give you thousands of rams or rivers of oil? Do you want us to sacrifice our children? Would that make you happy?
Of course, God wants nothing of the kind. No more empty rituals. No more meaningless sacrifices. What God wants may sound easier, but is much more difficult.
What God wants is for the people to do justice, to love kindness, and to walk humbly with their creator. Israel has failed miserably at all three of those things.
It is impossible to read Micah’s words and not think about what is going on in our country today.
To our leader, justice means revenge and retribution to any who have slighted him in the past.
Mercy, compassion, and kindness are seen as weaknesses, while those in power delight in cruelty for cruelty’s sake.
Humbleness and humility are also signs of weakness. Humiliating others is what brings rewards in this administration.
Our leaders, like those in ancient Israel, are motivated by money and power, which blinds them to the disaster that awaits them.
It is not possible to list all the ways in which we are failing to do as God requires. The ongoing events in Minnesota have brought injustice and cruelty to the forefront, but those sins were there from the beginning – the dismantling of government agencies; the cuts in financial aid to those in need around the world; the dehumanization of immigrants, people of color, and women – we could go on and on.
But the horrific events in Minnesota – the slayings of protesters, the kidnapping of children, the forced separation of families, the atmosphere of fear these kinds of deeds create – have brought us to what may be a turning point.
Yesterday, a group of 154 Episcopal bishops released a statement urging us to remember what God requires. Later today I’ll send you a link to the video. It is a powerful statement that I share with you now.
The bishops say they are writing out of “grief, righteous anger, and steadfast hope.”
“What happened a week ago in Minnesota, and is happening in communities across the country, runs counter to God’s vision of justice and peace,” they write. “This crisis is about more than one city or state – it’s about who we are as a nation. The question before us is simple and urgent: Whose dignity matters?
“In the wake of the tragic deaths of two U.S. citizens, Alex Pretti and Renee Good, we join Minnesotans and people across the nation in mourning two precious lives lost to state-sanctioned violence. We grieve with their families, their friends, and everyone harmed by the government’s policies. When fear becomes policy, everyone suffers.
“We call on Americans to trust their moral compass – and to question rhetoric that trades in fear rather than truth. As Episcopalians, our moral compass is rooted firmly in the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
“This is what we know: Women were shoved to the ground, children torn from their families, and citizens silenced and demeaned for exercising their constitutional rights. These actions sow fear, cast doubt, and wear communities down with endless noise.
“We cannot presume to speak for everyone or prescribe only one way to respond. For our part, we can only do as Jesus’ teaching shows us.
“This is a moment for action,” they stress. “We call on people of faith to stand by your values and act as your conscience demands.
“We urge the immediate suspension of ICE and Border Patrol operations in Minnesota and in any community where militarized enforcement has endangered residents or destroyed public trust.
“We also call for transparent, independent investigations of the people killed – investigations centered on truth, not politics. Justice cannot wait, and accountability is essential to healing.
“We call on the elected officials of our nation to remember the values we share, including the rule of law. Rooted in our Constitution, it ensures that law – not the arbitrary will of individuals – governs us all, protecting individual rights, ensuring fairness, and maintaining stability.
“Every act of courage matters. We must keep showing up for one another. We are bound together because we are all made in the image of God. This work begins with small, faithful steps.
“As bishops in The Episcopal Church, we promise to keep showing up – to pray, to speak, and to stand with every person working to make our communities just, safe, and whole. We are committed to making our communities safer and more compassionate:
“So children can walk to school without fear.
“So families can shop, work, and worship freely.
“So we recognize the dignity of every neighbor – immigrant communities, military families, law enforcement officers, nurses, teachers, and essential workers alike.
“You may feel powerless, angry, or heartbroken right now. Know that you are not alone. But each of us has real power: community power, financial power, political power, and knowledge power.
“We can show up for our neighbors, support small businesses and food banks, contact our elected officials, vote, and learn our rights so we can speak up peacefully without fear.
“The question before us is simple and urgent: Whose dignity matters?
“Our faith gives a clear answer: Everyone’s.
“Safety built on fear is an illusion. True safety comes when we replace fear with compassion, violence with justice, and unchecked power with accountability. That is the vision our faith calls us to live out – and the promise our country is meant to uphold.
“In the face of fear, we choose hope.
“By the grace of God, may this season of grief become a season of renewal. May courage rise from lament, and love take root in every heart.”
Do justice.
Love kindness.
Walk humbly with our God.
It is what God requires of all of us.
Amen