love. peace. soulminister.

(Would Jesus) Do The Right Thing (?)

by Minister Brent M. Barnett

Learn to do good; seek justice, correct oppression; bring justice to the fatherless…..

Isaiah 1:17

“It’s the hottest day of the summer. You can do nothing, you can do something or you can do the right thing.” - Tag Line for “Do The Right Thing” promo poster

I used to believe that God did not have an opinion when it came to matters of social justice. I thought this primarily because I had the wrong view of who God is and what He desires for man-kind. After further study and spiritual growth, I came to this conclusion: If love is God’s calling card, justice is God’s extension. Justice is how we show love to the world. Taking care of those who cannot take care of themselves and speaking for the voiceless should be a main concern of the body of Christ. When Jesus tells us that He comes that we might have life and life more abundantly in John 10:10, He is talking about a life where God completely reigns. And if God is a loving and just God, love and justice ought to be a priority for the Christian. I cannot say that I want God to reign in the earth if I do not want to see love and justice manifested in all corners of the globe. Furthermore, I cannot say I want to see love and justice manifested if I am not actively seeking it for myself and others. 

While watching Spike Lee’s 1989 masterwork, “Do The Right Thing” the other night, these questions dawned on me: where would Jesus fit in the span of the characters in this movie? Which character would Jesus side with? Who would Christ point to as the person who did the “right” thing in His eyes? If you look at the characters closely, Spike wrote them in such a way that all of them are right AND wrong. The duality of the characters mirrors the duality of real people, but it also raises the point that none of us can totally claim innocence when injustice occurs. We also realize by watching the movie that your social status, economic standing and ethnic background will help you to determine what injustice actually is and if you should even do something about it when you do see it. Let’s take a brief look at the main characters in the movie and prayerfully we’ll see who did the right thing in the eyes of God’s word.

Spike Lee wonderfully underplays the greedy, lazy and woefully absentee father Mookie, who works at Sal’s Famous Pizzeria, on the corner of his block in the Bedford Stuyvesant section of Brooklyn, New York. Mookie is not concerned with much outside of getting paid and getting some from his son’s mother, Tina. Mookie is aloof and apathetic about all the issues going on in his community. He constantly ignores the mentally ill Smiley, neglects his son and Tina, financially takes advantage of his sister Jade, only pays half attention to the elders of the community (Mother Sister and Da Mayor), and is only impressed by money and status. Even when he stops to talk to Buggin’ Out, his main concern to getting back to Sal’s and making more money. He only gives Radio Raheem his time when he is taken by Raheem’s “Love/Hate” gold four finger rings.

Mookie represents a section of our community who is completely consumed by materialism and consumerism. Everything he does, even his interactions with his family and son’s mother, revolve around his ability to make money. The Bible is clear that while money itself is not evil and hard work is honorable, moneyitself will NEVER satisfy one’s soul. Wise Solomon writes this in Ecclesiastes 5:10-12: “Whoever loves money never has enough; whoever loves wealth is never satisfied with their income. This too is meaningless. As goods increase, so do those who consume them. And what benefit are they to the owners except to feast their eyes on them? The sleep of a laborer is sweet, whether they eat little or much, but as for the rich, their abundance permits them no sleep.” As we see in the final scene, even after the riot that kills Radio Raheem and destroys Sal’s Famous Pizzeria, Mookie wakes up out of his sleep only so he can run down to what’s left of Sal’s and collect his paycheck for the week. Materialism only leads to more material; an unending cycle of want. Consumerism only leads to more consumption; a life of needing more and more and more. God’s will is that we NOT be in a constant state of want. And as justice is concerned, He wants for us to make sure that others needs are met as well.

Sal represents another kind of apathy; complacency. Sal is happy with his position in the community, happy with the money he makes and perceives that the community is happy with him. It’s not until Buggin’ Out makes a comment about the lack of black faces on the Wall of Fame that Sal realizes the community has an opinion about how he run his business. Many of us are so much like Sal. Because we are seemingly “alright” in our own lives, we ignore the plight of others. All around Sal is poverty, injustice, substance abuse, mental illness and neglected children (both Mookie’s son Hector and young Eddie Lovell who is almost killed by a passing car in one scene). But what does Sal do? He just continues to do his business and make his pizza, completely unaffected by what’s going on in his own community. Jeremiah 22:3 says it this way: Thus says the Lord: Do justice and righteousness, and deliver from the hand of the oppressor him who has been robbed. And do no wrong or violence to the resident alien, the fatherless, and the widow, nor shed innocent blood in this place. 

Being a business owner is NOT a sin, nor is being wealthy. But God is clear about the fact that having an abundance of money will make it more difficult to care about the plight of others and the above scripture shows us that we are to look after those who have been robbed, the “resident alien” (Hey there, Arizona ;-)), and and the fatherless. All these kinds of people live on the block that Sal does business on and he does nothing. He is not moved into action until the fight comes to his own business at the end of the film. Sal also represents the church in a small way. He requires Buggin’ Out to stop asking questions. He requires Radio Raheem to turn off his radio before he can be served. Ask yourself this: Does my church require people to change before they can be accepted into the fellowship or do we accept people with their boomboxes and questions and Jordans and love them to a change? Just a thought there.

Finally, there are the two representations of violent and non-violent change, Buggin’ Out and Radio Raheem, respectively. Buggin’ Out is a clear picture of the more violent and aggressive revolutionaries of the later 1960’s and early 1970’s, like the Black Panthers and other black liberation movements. However, Buggin’ Out also carries a piece of the kind of entitlement that many young black people feel even to this day. He expects Sal to respect and cater to the community by putting up pictures of black people on the wall, like the ones who eat at the Pizzeria. But Sal counters with the point that if Buggin’ Out owned his own business, he could put up pictures of whoever he wanted. Instead, Buggin’ Out put his energy into a boycott, which he finds hard to even get off the ground. Proverbs 18:2 states very clearly that, “A fool takes no pleasure in understanding, but only in expressing his opinion.” Buggin’ Out forgot one thing: we can only do so much if we refuse to listen. Sal spoke wisdom in encouraging him to start his own business and didn’t kick him out of the Pizzeria until Buggin’ Out refused to listen and wouldn’t stop yelling. So now what? Buggin’ Out can only seek to change Sal’s from the  outside because he lost his place of influence for lack of wisdom.

Radio Raheem represents the non-violent arm of the Civil Rights Movement. Radio Raheem is more concerned with expressing his creativity and being an active part of his community. You only see him inside of buildings twice in the movie; once to buy batteries for his stereo and once to buy pizza. Raheem seeks to be on the street at all times and he seeks to be a true asset to his community. He does not want confrontation, not even with the Latino brothers who he runs across. Raheem’s desire to be in the community, which is where God seeks for us to be. Matthew 5:14-16 says it this way: “You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.” 

Ask yourself this: Are you a Radio Raheem Christian? Do you carry Christ on your sleeve and under your arm, just like Raheem carried his boombox? Would people be able to identify you just by the fact that you carry the Gospel EVERYWHERE? Or do people have to come to the church to find you? Radio Raheem only joins Buggin’ Out’s cause when he feels like Sal needs to hear from the whole community and not just someone who he thinks is a “trouble maker”. Radio Raheem adds his voice to strengthen the plea of Buggin’ Out, a choice which leads to his own death. Sometimes we have to stand on our own and speak for what we believe in, even if it means less people will listen.

So, after all of that analysis, the question still stands: who would Jesus say did the right thing? Well, in my humble opinion, I think Jesus wouldn’t side with any of these people. Christ’s desire in all communities is unity, love and justice. While all these people had their valid points, at the end of the day we’re left with a burnt-out Sal’s Famous Pizzeria, an even more fractured relationship between the community and the police, and a dead Radio Raheem. No children were fed or cared for. No mothers were comforted. No hurting were healed. The desire of Jesus is that needs be met, love be shared and God be glorified.

I leave you with these words:

“He has shown you, o Man, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly before your God.”

Micah 6:8