This post is more of a look inside my inner thoughts lately, so it could be pretty scattered. My mind is a very tangled place. I have split it into two posts and the second will be coming soon. So, this is what I am currently wrestling with as I try to relate to culture and Christianity.
For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me.’ Then the righteous will answer him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink? And when did we see you a stranger and welcome you, or naked and clothe you? And when did we see you sick or in prison and visit you?’ And the King will answer them, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.’
(Matthew 25:35-40)
Recently I heard someone talk about “being Christ to people” and how that is not the way Christ calls us to necessarily live. Rather, we are supposed to treat others as if they are Christ by modeling His values and actions. This makes sense to me. How would I treat those around me if they were Christ? How would my attitude change? How would my stances on helping people change? How would my values inform my political ideals or everyday life?
I see this, especially in the South, the way we treat people that do not fit into the box of the Bible Belt. As people anywhere, we tend to migrate to those with similar looks, beliefs, and interests as our own. However, we are not called to only spend our time with these people. We are called to “get out of our comfort zone,” which is my least favorite phrase and one of the most overstated remarks of all time, in my opinion. However, it applies to the way we are supposed to live our lives.
Thomas Merton wrote, “a faith that is afraid of other people is not faith at all.” I think this is the truth of our culture. Our culture is fear based. We are so insecure about ourselves that we coat ourselves with hate. The hate does not always present itself. It is hidden deep within the prejudices of our humanistic behaviors and this is why the Gospel of Christ is such a paradox. People are what make Christianity beautiful. Christ crosses over lines and fills moments that have the potential to cause hate or disgust with love that transcends any human action.
This love causes our actions to treat people as Christ. If we see people through the eyes of Christ, then love compels us to see one another as equal. It is not as if the problems that are happening today are ones that are new. The same problems were present in their own context when Jesus was alive. Racial tensions were high (Galatians 3:28). Certain sins were seen as larger than others, as the Pharisees were oblivious to their own sin and critically analyzed every step of the Jewish people. How can we begin to let the love of Christ rise in our own lives to take us higher than the cultural hate that we see running rampant?
When we sin, we pick at it at first. We make our opinions known about the sins of others in order to hide our own sinful, insecure selves. It is a bully concept in a way. We make others feel badly to make ourselves feel better. This is contrary to the walk of Christ. Christ spoke in love. He spoke in a paradoxical manner, that apart from Him we have no way of truly understanding or putting into action. Take the Samaritan woman as an example. First, Jews (Jesus) and Samaritans (Woman) hated one another, and I mean hated each other. Jesus met this woman, who was living in sin (sleeping around). There was no condemnation in that moment. There was only life.There was life in the water described. There was life in Him. There is life in Him now.
As I look at Christianity today, it seems that we cannot get along with anyone. I want to make a distinction between getting along and agreeing. It seems in today’s time that if someone does not agree with someone else, then they cannot get along. However, I do not believe that this should be the case. I believe that disagreement does not lead to a world without continuity and harmony, but rather breeds a place of higher understanding and empathy for one’s neighbor. I see hate and I wonder about a lot of things.
These are questions that I have about the world that I see:
- Why are political agendas focused of the degradation of another’s plans?
- Why do so many, not all, Christians hate Muslims?
- Has our culture become more a part of religion than the other way around?
- How does love overcome cynicism?
- Why does God take certain things out of your life and leave others?
Silence in the face of evil is itself evil: God will not hold us guiltless. Not to speak is to speak. Not to act is to act.
(Dietrich Bonhoeffer)
Political Agendas
I no longer believe America is a Christian nation. I think it was founded upon certain Christian ideals, but overall desired a sense of freedom to be who you want to be due to the forceful fist of the British crown. I think this humanistic aspect of our nation has largely shaped our political environment. I find it hard to understand the political system and I highly doubt I ever will (I claim to be running for president in 2036, vote for me and follow my presidential account on Twitter @MCHammer2036). The idea that the top of our country is so cluttered that nothing can truly be accomplished to clean anything up crosses my mind every once and awhile. I tend to lean this way. However, I only believe this due to the corruption that lies at the top. If we are unwilling to be genuinely honest and to own up to the wrongs that both sides have committed then nothing will ever truly come to fruition.
I see this largely as a result of the two party system. You are either republican or democrat, it seems. When truly most of the country is split. The problem is that most people are unwilling to think for themselves or are gullible enough to join in on the mob mentality that beckons us to fall prey to the lies of a false reality of hate. The only way to a deeper and more meaningful reality is to follow a life of simplicity by way of love. In truth, the political situation baffles me. I believe we will fall as I have stated in a previous post. It is only a matter of time.
Christianity vs Islam
This is a rivalry that has burned for centuries upon centuries. I have always been fascinated with the way that these people groups have interacted in such a manner that kindles such a raging fire where extinguishing it has become a near impossible task. The crusades fostered a hatred that has been brewing for ages and continues to dwell in the hearts of both sides to this day. Could God be using Islam to teach Christians something? He does work all things for His good.
I think that Muslims look at America as a Christian nation and see the lack of backbone we have. I think they look for Christian leaders to practice the ideals of Christianity rather than the prosperity gospel. I think God could be raising them up in order to turn us back to Him. He did this throughout Scripture. What keeps Him from doing it again? The only way we can possibly get anywhere is to not fight hate with hate, but show the love of Christ, even if it costs us our life. This is the call on our lives. I always like to think that I am willing to die for Christ no matter the circumstances. We all would. However, I do not know how I would react if I was ever in that situation.
So, the next time you see someone that might look hostile to you, try to see them as Jesus would. Treat them as you would Jesus, no matter who they are. All people are going through something terrible, whether they believe the same things you do or not, whether they dress the same way you do or not. I believe that respect should be given to all people. Maybe God is calling you to reach out to that hated Samaritan woman just as Jesus did. In addition, Jesus most likely looked like one of these men, contrary to popular opinion; he was not white. He was of Jewish descent coming from the Middle East. Try to see Jesus in the eyes of these men and women. They need love as much as you do.
Love is the key. It always is.
“What is hell? I maintain that it is the suffering of being unable to love.”
(Fyodor Dostoyevsky)