HOW DO YOU RESPOND TO THE POOR?

(Preached on Sunday, October 29, 2006)

Then Jesus said to him, AWhat do you want me to do for you?@  The blind man said to him, AMy teacher, let me see again.@                            -Mark 10:51

 

C. S. Lewis, well-known author of The Chronicles of Narnia, said that there are two ways to be impartial in our relationships with others.  The first was by reducing each one we meet to the lowest common denominator and disdaining them all equally.   In prison, for example, each inmate is the same and thus each is treated Aimpartially;@ names are replaced with numbers; clothing for all is identical; living quarters are reduced to exactly the same size for each person; no one is given special privileges over another.  Impartiality rules.

 

The second way of impartiality, said Lewis, was that of individualized esteem.  Here the goal is not to treat each person equally but to treat each person uniquely with a focus on caring.  In illustrating this point, Lewis said that he was upset with the way that some of his friends invited their children to call them, as parents, by their first names.  While he understood their motives, he feared the outcome. The beauty of family life is found precisely in the inequalities present.  In a family, we learn that people are not to be loved Aequally,@ but Auniquely.@  True love discriminates.  Any parent who tries to love all the children in exactly the same way becomes frustrated to the point of incompetence.  It is in the family that we learn to esteem each person greatly not because each is another cloned pea in a pod, but because each is unique and different.

 

Such is the secret of Jesus= love for human beings, especially  as illustrated in his relationship with Bartimaeus.  In Jesus= impartial love he does not look at all people the same.  Rather, he begins with the assumption that each person is different, and because of that very uniqueness, each person is worthy of individual love.

 

That is not the way the crowd saw Bartimaeus.  To them, he was just like all the other blind beggars and thus someone who could be ignored and shunted to the sidelines of life.  In fact, when he starts to make a ruckus, they become upset with him and shush him.  They don=t want him to ruin the parade and bring their village a bad reputation.  They already have him pegged and know just what he needs C a few alms to keep him quiet so he can buy his daily ration of food.

 

But Jesus does not treat him that way.  Jesus asks him, AWhat do you want me to do for you?@  He does not ignore him as the crowd was doing.  He does not assume he knows what the man wants, even though Jesus can see he is blind.  He does not presume anything with him, but he respects him as a unique individual and he asks him what he most needs and wants.  And then, when he hears his request he announces to him, AGo, your faith has made you well.@  And Bartimaeus receives his sight while his dignity remains intact.  For those of us who would follow Jesus and work with the poor this is a powerful lesson. This is a lesson the poor desperately needs us to learn.

 

For example: In South Africa sits a subdivision called Ndancama: AI gave up.@  The place is the very picture of poverty.  Many of the houses are constructed of mud and branches with roofs of corrugated tin.  There is no electricity, and the only running water is seen when it rains.  In the middle of this sad place sits a gleaming community hall.  The building is constructed of expensive yellow brick with a sturdy tile roof.  Inside, oceans of linoleum and beautiful curlicues of wrought iron protect the doors and windows from thieves.  A wonderful party celebrated the opening of this facility.  Local and provincial dignitaries came and made speeches; singers and dancers lent excitement to the day.  It was a day to remember.  It was a day to remember not only because of the party but also because it was the last day that the facility was used. 

Ndancama was the creation of the apartheid government: people who lived there had been pushed to the furthest reaches of possibility and left there to eke out any existence they could manage.  The community hall was the creation of the new government: ANow you need not >give up= for your call has been heard.@  But the people responded, AYou may have heard our call, but you gave us what we did not ask for and you remained deaf to our need.  We are not stupid, only poor.@  The community building in Ndancama is an edifice that attests to the arrogance of the rich and the powerful.

 

Tragically, the same story is repeated daily in so many places in the world in ways large and small.  Without consulting the recipients about their need, donor nations draw up plans for how recipients are to use the gifts and grants they receive.  Volunteers travel to sites of devastation, disaster, or poverty to provide services that they determine should be rendered without ever asking the people they plan to serve how they may best be of service. 

 

Another pastor knew a masseur at a health club who was blind.  They often talked and became good friends.   They talked about their respective faiths, he was Muslim, the pastor a Baptist.  They also talked about his blindness.  His attitude was positive: Adon=t feel sorry for me; blindness is not a handicap; it is a life situation which must be overcome, something to be worked through.@  This same pastor had a seminary colleague who was blind.  His comment was that blind people are, first of all, people.

 

That is the approach to people which Jesus used.  That people are, first of all, people.  Each person is unique and worthy of his love.

He knew that what people needed most from him was his companionship, his acceptance, and his friendship. 

 

On Friday I engaged in the experience of approaching some people in poverty in their uniqueness.  As part of a community Task Group concerned for the plight of day laborers who gather in Cutler Ridge near Home Depot I spent the morning on the side of the road with them, greeting them, talking with them, observing the harassment to which they are subjected, and the difficulty they have in finding work.  I have seen these men for years as I drove by them on the way to Home Depot.  I must admit they always seemed somewhat frightening, because they were strangers to me.  But now I have met them.  I have learned that they are mostly shy, all friendly, and wanting to work so they can support families.  While I don=t remember names, I have personalities and personal stories to go with faces and my prayers for them are enriched.  We did this and hope to find others to do this on a regular basis, because we have heard from the workers that when people like us, who are not marginalized as they are, stand with them, they feel safer and are not harassed and intimidated as much.  Until we can find a place to open a Day Labor Center, which the County has funded, we want to stand with them to help improve their safety.

 

The poor are not just those with little money.  They are also those with little power, little access to the political process, those who have been pushed to the sidelines and marginalized in life.  In many ways they are weak, but they are not incompetent, they are not stupid, they are not incapable.  They just have life situations which must be overcome.  And yes, they need our support.  They need our prayers, they need our extra resources, but mostly they need our companionship.  They need people who have power, access to the political process, who have not been marginalized, to come alongside them and walk with them, helping them to find their answers and solutions to overcome their difficult situations.