| There is something about religious imagery
that touches our hearts. Regardless of what some of the more extreme devotees
of church and state separation would tell you, religion is not only a part
of who we are as individuals, but it is one of the underpinnings for so
much of our national history, whether it is the Puritans coming on the
Mayflower to seek religious freedom or the abolitionist movement which
was so profoundly strengthend by the evangelical revivial known as the
"Second Great Awakening".
Consequently, it is no great shock to know
that the politicians and pundits who strive to win our hearts and minds
to their respective causes will sieze upon that imagery to try to sway
us to their positions, and although I have not yet heard it this year,
it seems like every Christmas, there are those who point to Joseph, Mary,
and Jesus in the stable as a forerunner of today's homeless. Although this
seems to come primarily from the homeless advocates who are much more secularly
oriented the rest of the year, there are instances where Christians get
caught up in this seeming connection as well.
Unfortunately, upon closer scrutiny, the parallel
just doesn't exist.
Joseph and Mary were not in the stable on the
first Christmas because they were homeless. They had a home in Nazareth,
where Joseph earned his living as a carpenter.
No, they were in the stable because there was
no room for them in the inn. If there is a parallel to be drawn, it is
to the passengers on airlines who, when stranded, are forced to sleep in
the airport because the motels are all filled up. Not a comfortable or
enviable situation, but hardly the cause celebre of homelessness.
Now I don't pretend to know whether it is ignorance,
intellectual laziness, opportunistic misrepresentation, or some other reason
altogether that causes people to portray Joseph, Mary, and Jesus as homeless.
I'm sure that, for each of these possibilities, there are some for whom
it is true. However, the "why" is less important, I think, than the "what",
and the "what" is that this parallel is wrong.
This is not to say that there is no Biblical
basis for responding to the needs of the homeless. On the contrary, the
Bible says much about charity and kindness, meeting the very real needs
of those less fortunate. Consequently, for those who advocate on behalf
of the homeless, there is not need to misconstrue the message of Christmas
in order to provide a faith-centered motivation to come to their aid.
Instead, let's focus on the true heart of Christmas,
which has very real applications to the issue of homelessness: a celebration
of the One who, motivated by love, gave of Himself at great cost to meet
the needs of we desperate ones who were unable to meet those needs on our
own.
Others Worth Watching
Once upon a time,
so many
years ago,
And Angel came to a girl,
the reason,
she'd soon know
"You will be with child"
the angel,
Gabriel said.
Then he bowed down,
and blessed
her head.
She went to her cousin
(Elizabeth
was her name)
Elizabeth's son, still in
her womb,
leapt at
Mary's name.
Nine months later,
in Bethlehem,
so fair,
In a stable, behind an Inn,
Mary, on
the ground, laid there.
And Jesus Christ,
in her arms,
Lay asleep,
safe from
harm,
Shepherds and Angels,
and Kings came
to see.
The little Babe,
the savior-to-be.
He came to die for all,
and then came
back to life.
And he was even stabbed,
with a
spear--sharp as a knife.
But for now,
he was a child.
He couldn't talk,
he just
smiled!
- Jessica Daake |
