Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord! Mark 11:9b

Public figures become popular, and some become famous. People flock to see them, to be in the presence of someone who seems to have the power to make everything better in some way. Such charisma can be used to change the world in amazing ways, correcting injustices (Gandhi) or showing a way to greater holiness (Mother Teresa).

But what happens when a leader doesn’t fulfill all the projected hopes and dreams of the people who follow them? Or worse, if the hopes and dreams of discounted and disparaged others are fulfilled? Parade goers can turn into an angry mob in a heartbeat.

When a leader pushes us to dream bigger, holier dreams at the expense of our smaller ones, we have a choice to make: do we expand our horizons and our aspirations or do we attack the one who pointed out their limitations?

We know what happened to Jesus. We know prophets are often killed for their efforts. In light of that, it’s not such a bad idea to ask ourselves this question:

What would we do to the ones who come to us in the name of the Lord?