Ravi Zacharias In The Clutches Of Ungracious Christians?

            I am not going to claim that Ravi Zacharias was sinless; that he was not sexually immoral.

I am also not here to dispute the actions of various Christian leaders who responded to Ravi’s sins by either erasing his work or having disassociated with his ministry in some form or the other. That’s their call. Punitive actions may be necessary, as I said before; I am not here to dispute that.

            But I wonder and hence I request you to think if the Christian community were gracious in their action against Ravi.

At this point in time, Ravi (the sinner) has been punished posthumously. Ravi’s victims are passionately supported [maybe compensated] and being prayed for.

However, there is another entity that’s involved in this situation – Ravi’s family. How have they been treated by the Christian community?

Was the Christian community gracious in their actions against Ravi?

In other words, did Ravi’s family, in some way or the other, appreciate the graciousness of the Christian community?

To begin with, let us consider a few punitive actions taken against Ravi Zacharias:

1.      The Christian and Missionary Alliance (C&MA) which had ordained Ravi Zacharias revoked his ordination and expelled him posthumously.¹

2.      Ravi Zacharias’s books will no longer be offered by HarperCollins Christian Publishing, ““In September, when the most-recent sexual misconduct allegations against the late Ravi Zacharias surfaced, HarperCollins Christian Publishing immediately suspended all projects and shipments of his work,” said Casey Francis Harrell, vice president of corporate communications. “Following the findings in the independent report, the company will immediately take all his publications out of print...””²

3.      Christian author, Lee Strobel, announced that he would halt the printing of his book that featured Ravi. Similarly, Ravi’s forthcoming book Jesus for You will not be released.³

4.      Prominent Christian apologists who served with Ravi Zacharias at RZIM are actively erasing their association with RZIM. They want nothing to do with RZIM.

Essentially, there is a mass movement to erase Ravi and his works from the annals of Christendom.

In this very context, Philip Yancey’s quote becomes very meaningful, “Christians get very angry toward other Christians who sin differently than they do.”

The punitive actions against Ravi Zacharias seem to be a classic case in point.

Grace is nowhere to be found in and through these punitive actions. Why do I say this?

Sadly, Ravi’s son Nathan Zacharias describes the ungraciousness and the hypocrisy exhibited by the Christian community: (Emphasis Mine)⁴

Many of those remaining at RZIM, along with some former global leadership, have worked very hard to distance themselves from my dad. They’ve busted out their thesauruses and called him every name they think is appropriate. They’ve damned him, erased him, and expressed regret that they were ever involved with him in what was a very successful ministry. If they feel he should be erased and reduced to only the sum of his sins, then they have some hard questions to answer about their theology given the way God allowed his success while these things were allegedly happening. God sure is lucky to have them here to save Him from allowing Dad’s material to ever positively impact another person.

They can’t even acknowledge the reality that God blessed them (wrongly, it would seem, according to their logic) in their own ministries alongside Dad either. Of course they still benefit from the status that came as a result. 10 years ago, no one would have paid any attention to the statements of many of them. Their audience now is a result of the platform they got from their days at RZIM with Dad.

They want no piece of, him, association with him, or remnant of him. Nothing at all.

            Do Nathan’s words sound like the Christian community were gracious? Sadly, no!

            Nathan’s words reveal the hypocrisy of the Christian community.

Those who are actively erasing Ravi or disassociating with his legacy in some form or the other enjoyed [substantial] financial benefits and fame through their association with Ravi and RZIM. While they do not want to do anything with Ravi, would they, with the same intensity, return all the financial benefits they accrued over the years of their association with RZIM?

In his passionate blog to defend his father, Nathan Zacharias presents this scenario, “They want nothing to do with his ministry legacy. But they’re glad to hold on to his financial legacy.” (Emphasis Mine)⁵

Hypocrisy at its finest!

By being gracious, the Christian community could have ensured that the Zacharias family is comforted and encouraged through this gruelling period. Isn’t that the least one could expect?

Nathan’s words, showcasing the pain in his heart, reveal the ungraciousness and the hypocrisy of the Christian community.

The big question is this, how would Jesus have responded to Ravi Zacharias?

Knowing Jesus, HIS response would have been filled with grace and mercy. Knowing Jesus, HE would not have ignored Ravi’s family, who are in pain, enduring this tribulation.

That’s the Jesus the Bible reveals. That’s the Jesus we love, believe, and worship.

Have we been Christlike through our actions against Ravi?

You decide.

But when we think of the late Ravi Zacharias, let us be gracious. May his family be blessed with comfort, encouragement, strength, and peace from our Triune God.

Endnotes:

¹https://www.cmalliance.org/news/2021/02/12/statement-on-the-findings-of-ravi-zacharias-independent-investigation/

²https://www.christianitytoday.com/news/2021/february/ravi-zacharias-books-harper-collins-lee-strobel-rzim-report.html

³Ibid.

⁴https://defendingravi.wordpress.com/

⁵Ibid.

Websites last accessed on 31^st March, 2021.