When Praise is Political

In the Bible? Praise is nearly always political. Certainly in the book of Revelation where crying out “Salvation belongs to our God” is a direct affront to the Emporer of Rome who claims salvation comes soley through him and his “Pax Romana”. And a post script to our series on Revelation and Resistance: Thanks be to God for artists like John of Patmos (and countless others across time and space!) who buoy communities seeking to be faithful to the Way of Jesus in the midst of and in direct resistance to the empire.

Sermon begins at minute marker 3:37

Resources

• BibleWorm podcast: Episode 650 - Revelation and Resistance - Praising God, Amy Robertson and Robert Williamson, Jr
• Chutzpadik definition, OED: “colloquial. Esp. in Jewish usage: showing chutzpah; impudent, impertinent; audacious, very self-confident.”
• “ICE detains mother after legal entry,” by Tim Huber, Anabaptist World, July 2025.
• Donate to Iglesia Cristiana Roca de Refugio, the Mennonite congregation in San Antonio where Pastor Dianne Garcia serves.
• Read more about Pax Romana on wikipedia
• “Salvation Belongs to our God,” Petra Praise: The Rock Cries Out, 1989. 
• William Stringfellow, An Ethic for Christians and Other Aliens in a Strange Land, Waco, TX: Word, 1973.
• “You, Lord, are both Lamb and Shepherd,” text by Sylvia G. Dunstan, found in hymnal Voices Together, 432.
• Image: photo by Alex Radelich on Unsplash (detail)