Immediate Word

When Paul characterizes the nature of his ministry in this week's lectionary epistle passage, he notes that "our appeal does not spring from deceit or impure motives or trickery" and that "we never came with words of flattery or with a pretext for greed" (1 Thessalonians 2:3, 5). Given those observations, it makes one wonder whether Paul might have found common cause with the "Occupy Wall Street" protests, which have now been taking place for a month and have spread virally to many other cities throughout the country and even the world.