Mark 1-6; Proverbs 15:1-11

Saturday's Bible Reading: Mark 1-6; Proverbs 15:1-11

John came, baptizing in the desert region and preaching a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. The whole Judean countryside and all the people of Jerusalem went out to him. Confessing their sins, they were baptized by him in the Jordan River. —Mark 1:4-5

Repentance, confession, and baptism are no longer the method of choice for sinners who want a new start. These days high-profile people who make high-visibility screw-ups go to rehab, not to confession. Formerly a term used for physical therapy designed to "facilitate the process of recovery from injury, illness, or disease to as normal a condition as possible," rehabilitation is now the "cure" for every form of social and political bad judgment that causes a person who lives in the spotlight to get themselves out of bad light and back into more flattering light.

A friend recently told me about Chicago Tribune columnist Eric Zorn who credits one of his readers with coming up with the term rehabracadabra "to describe the way famous people attempt to make their public-relations problem magically disappear by announcing they are seeking clinical help."

Perhaps the reason celebrities choose rehab over repentance is because their driving concern is to look good in artificial light and to avoid being seen in true light. This, of course, is yet another indication of bad judgment, for Jesus said, "I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life" (John 8:12 emphasis added).

• More on "rehabracadabra."
• More on "walking in light."

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