Advent and Suburban life - For Eikon
This is for my friends within eikon and who I hope we will be and remember. The rest of you all are welcome to comment and provide your thoughts as well.
The suburban life I live is not normal. Most people don't live like this. But as a suburban person I see myself needing to resist the constant gravitational pull of believing that the way i live everyday is the only and best way to live.
It is not, on both counts.
I must also fight against the constant pull to look down on others in some capacity because they are unlike me. They don't live in a house, in the burbs. They don't dress like me, or share my preferences about grooming, how to spend their money, or their time.
I assume this kind of thinking happens in other neighborhoods as well. they talk about me, or my neighborhood.
This is flawed thinking from us all. The self-proclaimed redneck, the suburban soccer mom, and the hip urban dweller have more in common than we;d like to think.
Arrogance is at the core and an inability to be compassionate toward others is the issue. If we are unable to see the world through the eyes of another, we are doomed to isolation in our little ackwardly and perhaps sinfully separated neighborhood.
Until myself, and my friends in the suburbs are able to understand the details of the pain and humiliation of others, we will fail to live out the kingdom of God in the world in the ways we are called to.
Surely the homeless man feels differently than I do. He somehow deserves it, the thinking goes. He or she suffering on the street from mental illness, or a bad break, or bad choices is somehow acceptable to us.
Did I just write that? Tell me it's not true. That it's acceptable that people suffer. that we simply write off people as being different than we are.
My friends we will understand the heart of God when we engage the pain and suffering of others. Until then, we are holding tightly to something else. Something other than the gospel. Until then we will always be able to write them off as homeless, prostitutes, exotic dancers, trailer trash, alcoholics, druggies, unbelievers, homos, cut-throat corporate executives, or senior pastors.
Advent is about Jesus coming and engaging in our pain, humiliation and suffering. It is the way of Jesus to live this way.
May we be a people who become sensitive to the reality of others.
Update: Just for clarification. I believe that Eikon does this better than any other community than I've ever been a part of, but it's something I need to remind myself of and hope we can keep before us.
The suburban life I live is not normal. Most people don't live like this. But as a suburban person I see myself needing to resist the constant gravitational pull of believing that the way i live everyday is the only and best way to live.
It is not, on both counts.
I must also fight against the constant pull to look down on others in some capacity because they are unlike me. They don't live in a house, in the burbs. They don't dress like me, or share my preferences about grooming, how to spend their money, or their time.
I assume this kind of thinking happens in other neighborhoods as well. they talk about me, or my neighborhood.
This is flawed thinking from us all. The self-proclaimed redneck, the suburban soccer mom, and the hip urban dweller have more in common than we;d like to think.
Arrogance is at the core and an inability to be compassionate toward others is the issue. If we are unable to see the world through the eyes of another, we are doomed to isolation in our little ackwardly and perhaps sinfully separated neighborhood.
Until myself, and my friends in the suburbs are able to understand the details of the pain and humiliation of others, we will fail to live out the kingdom of God in the world in the ways we are called to.
Surely the homeless man feels differently than I do. He somehow deserves it, the thinking goes. He or she suffering on the street from mental illness, or a bad break, or bad choices is somehow acceptable to us.
Did I just write that? Tell me it's not true. That it's acceptable that people suffer. that we simply write off people as being different than we are.
My friends we will understand the heart of God when we engage the pain and suffering of others. Until then, we are holding tightly to something else. Something other than the gospel. Until then we will always be able to write them off as homeless, prostitutes, exotic dancers, trailer trash, alcoholics, druggies, unbelievers, homos, cut-throat corporate executives, or senior pastors.
Advent is about Jesus coming and engaging in our pain, humiliation and suffering. It is the way of Jesus to live this way.
May we be a people who become sensitive to the reality of others.
Update: Just for clarification. I believe that Eikon does this better than any other community than I've ever been a part of, but it's something I need to remind myself of and hope we can keep before us.
posted by mark at
9:56 AM
2 Comments:
Hmmmm.
Until then we will always be able to write them off as homeless, prostitutes, exotic dancers, trailer trash, alcoholics, druggies, unbelievers, homos, cut-throat corporate executives, or senior pastors.
Using those terms is not always writing someone off. Certainly it can be, and often is. No argument there. But it's also important to recognize that those are perfectly legitimate, useful, descriptive terms for people, based on behaviors with which they've heavily identified. Sometimes, in order to do serious business, you've got to, as they say, call a spade a spade.
For instance, how would Paul have been able to write this warning,
The sexually immoral, idolaters, adulterers, passive homosexual partners, practicing homosexuals, thieves, the greedy, drunkards, the verbally abusive, and swindlers will not inherit the kingdom of God.
if using those terms were necessarily to "write someone off?" If he didn't have a problem using such terms, in context, descriptively, as appropriate, why should anyone else? It seems to me, rather, that he was doing his best to issue a very serious warning. So are some of the people who use such terms today; it can be a mistake to think that those terms are automatically dismissive.
Mark, This is a fantastically helpful reflection as we head into advent for those of us who are suburbanites. thank you.
Post a Comment
Subscribe to Post Comments [Atom]
<< Home