Splagchnizomai! The real meaning of Christmas

Dec 24, 2022

This has been a dramatic year for the nation. We have much to be thankful for, especially after the uncertainty surrounding the recent general election was miraculously transformed into hope for the future.

The new cabinet, however, is a mixed bag. We have a few promising faces and some other faces that carry a lot of baggage from the ‘old order’.

After all, not all the parties in the multi-coalition government subscribe to the reform agenda, nor are all its members on the same page.

This could be seen in the Home Minister’s rejection of calls for a review of the draconian Security Offences (Special Measures) Act 2012 (Sosma), which allows for long periods of detention without bail.

The minister’s dismissive reaction to complaints of poor conditions at an immigration detention centre in Sabah was also disappointing.

On the other hand, there is some good news. We welcome the new government’s decision to stop political appointees in federal government-linked companies and other bodies.

That said, change does not come overnight. Reforms were always going to take time. I always felt that even if a new ‘reformist’ government came into power here, it would have many old familiar faces from the previous order. True enough, that is the case now.

Perhaps this is to be expected. A new government can only take shape from the MPs elected by the people plus a few senators through the back door.

The people’s values have to change first, if we want a government dominated by people with integrity, who are committed to reform and progressive change.

Ordinary people must first value honesty, accountability, selflessness and service to the community and vote for elected representatives who are committed to those values. This also presupposes vote education about democracy, inclusiveness and the realities of living in a multi-racial society.

But obviously, not all voters were thinking of inclusive change when they voted for their MPs.
Several upright people were not even selected as candidates or they were side-lined by their own parties. Or they may have been in smaller parties that were not even on the radar of most voters.

Even if several honest candidates become MPs, they might find themselves side-lined by their parties. Or they might find themselves seduced by the intoxicating trappings of power and wealth. After all, Jesus himself was not spared the temptations of political power and great wealth.

As Johor MP Hassan Karim noted in a poem Kuasa Mengubah Segala-galanya (Power Changes Everything), power can ultimately corrupt political leaders and prompt them to betray their own party’s struggle. In his poem, Hassan reminded party leaders of their old reformist struggles and warned them against succumbing to the lure of power. “Power is as sweet as honey, but power is also a poison that darkens the heart. Power can change everything.”

Politics itself is a noble vocation – provided one is able to rise above the temptations of power to truly serve the people. It is also a long-term struggle to create a more just, progressive and egalitarian society. How many politicians can last that long without compromising themselves? It is the rare politician who can stand the test of time to truly serve the people.

For now, the primary focus of the new government seems to be aligned with the first item of civil society’s People’s Agenda: keeping in check the rising cost of living and improving the people’s quality of life.

The other four pillars of civil society’s People’s Agenda, however, are no less important: promoting equitable and sustainable development and addressing the climate crisis; celebrating diversity and inclusivity; saving democracy and upholding the rule of law; and fighting corruption and cronyism.

For His ‘kingdom of God’ project, Jesus chose to work the ground from the bottom-up, as opposed to top-down political structures. He set up base in Capernaum and spent much of His time around the Lake of Galilee.

When confronted by the Roman governor and the high priests — the powers that be of the time — Jesus had few words to say. In contrast, He spent most of His time talking to ordinary people — peasants, tax collectors, prostitutes, people with leprosy, those whom society had either forgotten or rejected.

His kingdom project had its basis in splagchnizomai (pronounced splangkh-nid’-zom-ahee). If that sounds Greek to you, it's because it is Greek (σπλαγχν?ζομαι)! It means from the splanxna, the spleen or ‘the inward parts’, especially the ‘nobler’ entrails like the heart, liver, lungs and kidneys.

It is used in Scripture to describe compassion — not ordinary compassion but gut-wrenching compassion.
So, when Jesus saw injustice and suffering, He was moved to the bowels, to the inward parts, to the deepest core of His being, with compassion.

English translations of Scripture use words like “Jesus felt sorry or pity or compassion” but somehow, that does not convey the depth of Jesus’ compassion. Splagchnizomai was the Greek word used in Matthew 9:36: “And when He saw the crowds, He felt sorry/pity/compassion for them because they were harassed and dejected, like sheep without a shepherd.”

Again in Matthew 14:14: 14 “So as He stepped ashore He saw a large crowd; and He took pity on them/felt compassion/was moved to compassion and healed their sick.”

What else did that compassion drive Jesus to do? He did not wish them to go back hungry and so He multiplied the fish and loaves and fed the multitude.

This compassion was something Jesus felt from the pit of His stomach. It moved Him and drove Him to proclaim the kingdom of God. Check out the other references in Scripture when Jesus felt similarly moved - Matthew 15:32; 20:34; Mark 1:41 and Luke 7:13.

This splagchnizomai moved Jesus to heal, to speak of God’s love and compassion for the outcasts of society and even to feed the multitude.

The politicians alone can’t change Malaysia or the world radically enough. Sometimes, they even make compromises that disappoint us.

Real change has to come from the bottom up. We, the people, can do a lot more to reform and transform our world if we are moved with compassion from the core of our beings to do so. We begin with ourselves and reach out to our neighbours in need, and extend that same love and compassion to our common home, the entire ecosystem.

If Jesus manifested His Father’s compassion, then this must have been the same splagchnizomai — deep love and profound compassion — that prompted the Father to send Jesus into the world to transform it from its broken, fallen state.

This is the great gut-wrenching love story of Christmas. May we continue the work that Jesus began.

(Anil Netto is a freelance writer and activist based in Penang. He believes we are all called to build the kingdom of God in this world.)