Growing up in the church, I heard over and over again, "Jesus says to love your neighbor as yourself" (Galatians 5:14). We would talk about the Golden Rule. We would talk about the Beatitudes (Matthew 5:3-12), and the story of the Good Samaritan (Luke 10:25-37), and to "Do justice, love kindness, and walk humbly with God" (Micah 6:8).
Maybe that is why I am so confused by the way Christians are acting in today's political climate.
What does it mean to "love your neighbor as yourself"?
Does it mean telling people that they are sinners and evil because they love someone of the same gender?
Does it mean blocking women from accessing birth control, sex education, and yes, even abortions?
Does it mean abandoning the refugees and people who fleeing from their countries simply because they have a different religion than us and are from "terrorist" countries, so obviously that equates them with being a terrorist?
I hope that this is not what loving your neighbor looks like.
When I think about people who are "different" from me, and I think about what it is like to be a Christian in this scenario, the story of the Good Samaritan is the first thing that pops into my mind.
A man is walking along a road and was attacked by robbers. Two men- a priest and a Levite- passed him lying on the ground, injured and robbed of everything he had. These men did nothing. But a Samaritan, someone who was looked down on in society because of their ethnicity, stopped to help him. He took care of the man despite their differences, he was a neighbor to the man who was attacked, and Jesus commanded his followers to "go and do likewise" (Luke 10:29-37).
If we are abandoning rather than helping those who are hurting or struggling or who just really need a helping hand, are we really following Jesus' example?
I think people tend to forget that 1. Jesus was from the Middle East (Wait, he wasn't some brown-haired, blue-eyed white guy?!) and 2. Jesus was a foreigner in many of the places that he visited.
During my month in Tobago, I was having a casual conversation with one of our taxi drivers, and the conversation took a cliche turn to be about the weather. My taxi driver said that Tobago has been blessed with no horrific storms the past few years- unlike Haiti. I mentioned that it seems like Haiti has really bad luck with being in the way of storms, and he flat out said, "it is because they are cursed." Curious, I inquired further. According to his beliefs, Haiti has been cursed because they turned away Jewish refugees during World War 2. The Jewish people are "God's chosen people," so when Haiti turned them away, they were then cursed by God.
Now, I do not know if this is something that I believe, but what I can believe is that Jesus would be confused if he saw what people are doing in his name today.
We say we are followers of Christ, so let us strive to imitate the way he lived. By showing compassion and love to everyone. By inviting in the foreigner and lending a helping hand.
1 John 3:17 says, "But if anyone has the world's goods and sees his brother in need, yet closes his heart against him, how does God's love abide in him?"
We are challenged to love those who it might seem REALLY difficult to love, to listen to all people, even those who are "different" from us.
So, if you are Christian and you are rejoicing in this new travel ban, or if you are celebrating the de-funding of Planned Parenthood and other organizations, or if you shame and hate those who love someone else in a "non-traditional way," please reconsider what you are doing and saying in God's name.
I would like to leave you with this: Proverbs 31:8-9 says:
"Speak up for the people who have no voice, for the rights of all the down-and-outers. Speak out for Justice! Stand up for the poor and destitute!"
And most importantly, LOVE, LOVE, LOVE.
Sheetal Tadiparty
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