Prophets and Whistleblowers

The prophets of old have been both revered and murdered.  They were listened to and heeded and they were run out of town or martyred.  Prophets in the Jewish tradition would sound the alarm on the moral failings of their rulers and kingdom.  They offered a moral vision for a better and more just society.

King Saul had the prophet Samuel.  When the King listened to Samuel, things went well.  When the King ignored and stopped listening to Samuel, things went from bad to worse.  David had the prophet Nathan who told him the truth concerning his adultery as King with Bathsheba and the murder of her husband Uriah.  David failed miserably but he listened to his prophet.

Elijah was a prophet to King Ahab and Jezebel.  These were not willing listeners but adversaries who took the people into idolatry and paganism.  Elijah fled twice trying to avoid being killed himself.  Sometimes the establishment listened and sometimes they do not.  Often eh establishment tries to silence opposing voices through intimidation, persecution and even murder.

In today's democratic society of America, powerful elites keep the powers that be in place and to go against these empire building powers can spell political suicide or worse where reputations are destroyed, the legal system suddenly turns on the whistleblower, and like Elijah, one is running for one's life.  Many people are becoming more aware of the government spying on them or selling weapons to their enemies, or under-mining some other less powerful country.  But government has become so powerful, it is hard to go against the tide when the very people in charge make all the waves.

A whistleblower is not the same thing as a prophet.  But they do perform a similar role in calling its leaders to a more just and accountable society.  The whistleblower may also be motivated by other things than just moral or just causes.  Things get messy and complicated today but do whistleblowers have to be labeled traitors?  If we jail every person who blows the whistle on our government, who will speak up or out against corporate evils and corruption within our society?  Without truth-tellers, won't we just end up being a society as Jesus suggested of the "blind leading the blind?"