Tuesday, March 10, 2015

Those feet are made for walking

These are the feet of Jesus, tired, dirty and aching.
They just completed a three-hour walk to get water for the family,
a trying journey for the most basic of necessities.

I look at my feet, and I think about the paths that I have walked
in comfortable, well-fitting shoes that keep out the dust and dirt.
Shoes that walk well-paved roads leading to life's abundance.

Nonetheless, while the paths we walk may look differently, our journey is the same ... to walk humbly with our God.
-- "One on the Journey," Catholic Relief Services

A few years ago, I read a book called "Sitting at the Feet of Rabbi Jesus" and then another by the same authors, "Walking in the Dust of Rabbie Jesus." Both books that talk about feet, and the journey we are all making to find our way with God. Feet were more important in the world Jesus inhabited as a man. Without feet, men were reduced to beggars who could only sit and ask passers-by for pennies.

In 1st century Jewish culture, sitting at the feet of a rabbi meant being a student, a devoted disciple. And walking in the dust of a rabbi meant being immersed totally as a companion on the journey. When Jesus told his apostles to shake off the dust of a town whose inhabitants rejected the message they had come to share about Jesus and God's love and mercy, he didn't mean they should just take a shower and head out. He meant they should not immerse themselves in that rejection, but instead continue on their journey, carrying out the mission he had tasked them with -- spreading the good news of his teachings to all who would be open to hearing it.

Today, we have modern medical science and engineering that has produced prosthetics and mobility devices, and laws that require employers to make accommodations for the handicapped. Instead of sitting on a street corner with a jar for coins, we try to give people whose feet or legs or hands may not function as intended an opportunity to earn a living, contribute to society and live with dignity. We try to show them respect just as we would anyone else. Not everyone embraces the opportunity, and some have more trouble than others stepping up to the challenge, but at least we don't reduce them to pitiful beggars asking for handouts in public -- although some still choose that lifestyle.

That's the good news. But it's not all good. Increasingly we see disparity in wealth, with immense concentration of wealth in the hands of relatively few people. Middle class families struggle to make ends meet, and hardworking people are just one accident or illness away from becoming those beggars who have nothing.

How are my feet the feet of Jesus that walk the paths of justice, mercy and humility?

I pay attention to the news. I think we live in a world -- an age -- when information is overwhelming and it can be difficult to sort through to glean truth and discard the rest. I live in a privileged society compared to the one lived in by the feet in the picture, no qsuestion about that. But like the middle class families I just described, we, too, are living on the edge. Balanced for now, but teetering on the brink of losing it all.

I still do what I can. Is there more I could do? No doubt. I intend to continue purging my house and trying to make sure my excess finds it way to someone who needs it. Someday perhaps I will have an opportunity to do something more hands-on, whether it be as a volunteer here at home or through an opportunity to travel and provide even more basic necessities to people who need it.

I haven't walked the walk of the man who walked three hours to get water for his family, but I have walked as a younger person in the path of need. I don't have a lot of material wealth to share, but I can do better at sharing what I do have -- compassion, companionship, and someday, more time.

How am I called to walk alongside my brothers and sisters who struggle for the basic necessities of life?

All I can do is try to be open, to recognize opportunities and when they appear, to seize them and listen, share, and embrace those brothers and sisters. The hardest part is to do so without being cynical, wondering if they are scamming me, to be thinking with part of my mind that they did something to bring on their problems. Perhaps they did. So what? We all make mistakes. Some of us are able to rise above them but not all of us manage to do so. To offer food, drink, clothing, those are things I can help with from time to time.

How do I live simply so others may simply live?

Now there is a challenge. I can live simply, and I am trying to simplify my life right now. It's a struggle unto itself. I could live a much simpler life, but how does that translate to enabling others to simply live? That's a mystery to me. We all think about what we'd do if we won the lottery, right? I've always thought I'd establish a scholarship fund to help young single mothers get an education, to help them lift themselves out of poverty and give their children a better life as a result. It's a nice dream, but let's face it, I'm not going to win a lottery.

So how does my living simply help others to simply live? It's hard to make anything happen if I'm the only one. It's only if overall demand for limited resources can be decreased in our country, and only if we then would somehow make sure that those resources were more equitably spread among the people who need it the most. It's not something I can answer right now, but only to continue praying about and hoping for clarity from God --  in time to take action and make a difference. It has to start somewhere, but it will take many voices, many sacrifices, done in a purposeful and meaningful way, for real change to take root.

Who's with me?

"... only to do right and love goodness ... to walk humbly with your God." Micah 6:8

No comments: