Sometime when I was in about 6th grade I started hearing about groups from our church that went to Honduras. Some when to build stuff, some when to do education stuff, some went for medical stuff. I wanted to go. In 8th grade my dad got a really odd bonus. I don't remember the details, but it was something like a third of half of his projected year-end bonus. It was just enough for he and I to go to Honduras. We went back the next year. I've been messed up ever since.
That was the first time I encountered and starting thinking about poverty. It started out simple. There are poor people; there are rich people; if the rich helped the poor, they wouldn't be poor. Then I read Compassion by Henri Nouwen and two other guys. It messed me up more. I now started thinking a bit more complex. There are poor and suffering people; Jesus was compassionate and suffered with; I want to go where there are suffering people and be with them.
I went to Belize for two summers in high school, went back to Honduras once in college, spent 3 weeks in Kenya and then lived in Inida 'studying' the poor and health care for 6 months. During this whole time I've always been SUPER frustrated that there are rich people, especially rich Christians in America, that really don't do much to help poor people (homeless dudes in Chicago or single HIV+ mothers in Tanzania). Sure, some give. Fewer give more. Even fewer give a lot. That's great, but it isn't much, for the big picture.
Synagogues during the time of Jesus told people they needed to follow the law. God gave it, you should follow it. Yet, in doing this they condemned women to death by stoning for adultery (men, let's be honest, it was probably the guy that got her to sleep with him and she was probably reluctant at first), walked on the other side of the street from the injured and repeatedly killed people that God sent to teach others that we should love one another. Jesus came along and basically told all the synagogue rulers, priests, teachers of the law and anyone high up in the Jewish religion that they were wrong. Give the poor some food, the thirsty some drink. No seriously, that's what I want to you do. Yes, Jesus message was more than this, but this was definitely a CENTRAL theme.
Fast forward a couple thousand years. The Church yells at people outside abortion clinics, forces men and women who want a meal to sit through a sermon before eating, neglect those without access to clean water, health care and a whole other list of things. My guess is that Jesus is pretty pissed. For real.
I'm not saying that we (Christians) should be 'for' the health care reform (although I am). I just think that Jesus is pretty disappointed at what his hands and feet are up to. I was reminded while hanging out with Father River in SF that God calls us to some pretty basic stuff. Matthew 25 makes it clear, we should be about acts of mercy. When someone is in need, MEET IT. The fact that we (the Church in America) have great Sunday school programs, great sermon series, and everything a good institution like a corporation has and don't take care of the hungry, naked, mentally unstable, etc. around us is pathetic.
We have forsaken the call of Jesus for the more comfortable institution of our churches.
Peace,
Check this out, it makes Jesus smile: Birthday Wish
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4 comments:
Great post Devin. As always, your call for the Church to act in accordance with what Jesus says is undeniable. And you live an authentic life that grants you the permission to make these statements.
My problem is that you confuse the role of the Church with the role of government. When government fills a need the implications are substantively different than when local communities meet a need. The effects of these alternative choices are really important to consider for anyone who cares about holistic development. Health care problems don't exist in a vacuum - and health care reform won't either.
Eric, I'm not sure that the purpose of this post was to advocate for the Church to support health care...but then, you do know Devin better than I do. So Devin, assuming you're not just talking about the Church's need to support the health care reform:
I know that your church has ministries for the poor. I know from you're recent post that you just went to San Francisco to see how others are ministering to the poor and needy. Do you think this is the right action? Is your church doing enough? In an ideal world what would you add, or change, or get rid of, or call your congregation/youth to do?
I ask because it's easy for me (and many of our generation) to say how the church has got it wrong and where the church is falling short. But I feel that if we want to criticize it (and I do) then we also have a responsibility to work to change it. I think you feel the same.
You're right Joel, that wasn't Devin's main point. I was just commenting on the few words in brackets. That's what you get for putting words in brackets.
That being said, the latest post about Liberation Theology tells me that I was correct in reading between the lines about Devin's perspective on the role of government in all of this, since you know, LibThe tends towards the violent overthrow of democracy in favor of authoritarianism.
great post again.
And quite the random link at the end there. thanks
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