Clamor

You still the roaring of the seas, the roaring of their waves, and the clamor of the peoples. 

 - From Psalm 65

Something has happened. Did you notice?

In the wake of the election, weeks ago, the clamor seems to have ceased, at least for now. 

 . . . the clamor  that has been present for four years, rising to a peak over the summer. 

What are some definitions of "clamor"?

• noisy shouting
• a loud continuous noise
• a vehement, insistent public expression

When we pray, we should expect the prayers to be answered. We also should expect them to be answered in ways we did not expect. I prayed for two things, ardently, beginning last summer:

1. That covid would go away
2. That the riots would end

And the riots have ended . . . for now. Everything is relatively at peace, as we move towards Thanksgiving and Advent. This is good. 

Yes, it may have taken a cultural notion, that Donald Trump did not win re-election, to calm the crowds. But they are calmed, just the same. We needed a reprieve. And how it all came about, for whatever reason, gave us the reprieve we needed. 

Likewise . . . covid has been both a partial cause of, and a willing partner to, the clamor of angry crowds. Covid itself is a clamor. And deaths are way down. Treatments are being perfected, that are accompanying victims of the virus toward rapid recovery.

Positive tests are up, yes. Of course they are. It is to be expected in any epidemic. But that may be the price we pay, to see fatalities begin to come down, and recoveries to ramp up. 

In the Scripture reference, the Psalmist put "the clamor of the peoples" in the same category as a natural disaster. It's almost like it's a phenomenal event, and there is little that humanity can do, to control it. Clamoring crowds are like a hurricane, or a pandemic! They are apparent random events that run through society, wreaking havoc, destruction, violence, and injustice. 

Riots are like "acts of God." Maybe that's exactly what they are!

We pray to God, to keep the forces of nature at bay - - - to protect us! To calm the winds!

Christ could just as easily wander into a crowd of protestors, say, in Minneapolis, in the summer of 2020, and cry out PEACE! BE STILL!

And every single person would stop, turn around, and begin their walk home. 

My prayers for the summer are answered, for now. Both covid and the clamoring crowd are at bay. 

This is one thing for me to be thankful for, two days from now.