I second that motion!

“So the Pharisees said to him, “You testify on your own behalf, so your testimony cannot be verified.” Jesus answered and said to them, “Even if I do testify on my own behalf, my testimony can be verified, because I know where I came from and where I am going.”  – John 8:14

In parliamentary procedure, a “second” of a motion serves as an indication that another person agrees a topic is worthy of discussion. If more than one person thinks something is true, then it must be so? There are many places we engage in informal parliamentary procedure: in a reddit thread, on TikTok, in the lunchroom, on the family group text. “What do you think?” “Am I right?” “What else could I do?” Sometimes we are only seeking affirmation of our own opinions or permission to make an uncomfortable choice.

In the first reading today, Susanna is condemned to death because not one but TWO elders conspire to ruin her reputation. The elders and authorities trust that if there is a second confirmation of the erroneous story of the first accuser, then the lie must be true. Susanna, knowing she is trapped in their lie, sees that while there is no way to save her reputation, she can save her soul before God. She has identified the one thing her attackers cannot take from her by force. 

 “Yet it is better for me to fall into your power without guilt than to sin before the Lord.” – Daniel 13:23

The Lord heard her prayers, and inspired Daniel to speak up and question the decision of the elders. In the end, “innocent blood was spared that day” by God’s grace and Daniel’s willingness to stand alone in defiance of the prevailing public narrative.  In a contemporary telling of this story, the false lies would have spread on social media and in the tabloids (if the fallen woman was famous). Today’s Gospel takes this logical fallacy one step further. The Pharisees accuse Jesus of speaking without someone to back up his claims. If he is the only one to say something, then the truth of these words cannot be verified. His response is that he doesn’t need anyone other than God the Father to “second” the words he preaches.

It is far easier to listen to the opinions and voices of the people around us: the loud voices, the persistent voices, the demanding voices.  “Am I right?” We usually seek out people who will give us the answer we want to hear in response to this question. How often do I have the courage to ask, “am I right?” in honest, vulnerable spaces?  The Lenten readings keep drawing us closer to inevitable reality. The people around Jesus will decide which motions to second. They will reject  the “unsubstantiated” claims of God’s loving goodness and the challenges to the status quo and their own power. Even Peter and the rest of the Apostles will falter. Whose voice do I believe? Where do I lend my own support?

There is only one truth that I need to “second” today. That is the truth that Jesus speaks.

“I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.” -John 8:12