Loss Prevention
I was driven to tears this weekend when I saw a very courteous, well mannered man resort to stealing for survival. He didn't steal booze or electronics like most people would assume. This desperate man stole a sandwich. We're not talking a hot oven toasted meat lovers meal. He took, seemingly shamed, a crappy ham sandwich on soggy bread. It was 30 degrees outside and he was dressed barely sufficiently. I could tell he was so hungry. He had a look on his face that I cannot even describe. He looked like he had been holding out for a few days hoping that meal money would appear by the grace of God somehow but when it didnt he could bear the hunger no longer. He had a sad gleam conveying that he had been down on luck and was now down on himself, like this single act of desperation made him lose spirit. I witnessed this as I was throwing away food, not of my own will. You cannot even imagine the tremendous amount of guilt that overwhelmed me.
I'm sure that at some point in our lives we all have or sadly, will, be unsure where the money will come from (for bills not an iced mocha). Instead of focusing on stopping this problem of poverty we are using our energy and resources to disprove whether or not politicians tattled. Americans are more concerned about us two girls kissing and making sure that they convince us that conformity is righteous, unjudging compassion is weak and true unconditional love is evil and sinful. I admit I'm not a genius but I'm clever enough to recognize priorities.
I'm sure that at some point in our lives we all have or sadly, will, be unsure where the money will come from (for bills not an iced mocha). Instead of focusing on stopping this problem of poverty we are using our energy and resources to disprove whether or not politicians tattled. Americans are more concerned about us two girls kissing and making sure that they convince us that conformity is righteous, unjudging compassion is weak and true unconditional love is evil and sinful. I admit I'm not a genius but I'm clever enough to recognize priorities.

2 Comments:
I am a Christian. Quite often that makes people who are similar to my "circumstance" back away with a growl, but my heart breaks when I think about all of the homeless and starving people who just didn't get that single little break that I got. It is only that little blessing that keeps us from utter poverty. We can help, though. Volunteer work and spreading Love.
By
saramari, at Thursday, March 6, 2008 5:18:00 PM EST
Shannon writes:
"Americans are more concerned about us two girls kissing and making sure that they convince us that conformity is righteous, unjudging compassion is weak and true unconditional love is evil and sinful."
I'm somewhat agnostic on this issue since I'm not aware of any statistical data that would confirm or deny these kinds of statements.
While all of us have personal experiences that might lead us to believe Americans are more likely to condemn someone for perceived behavior than lend a helping hand to the poor, I don't think we can generalize from our particular perspectives. For example, my experience with one religious group --Christians--while living in NYC is that most do not bother to significantly address something like homosexuality, and spend much more time, energy and money on social justice issues.
(In fact, the only statistical data I'm aware of suggests [but does not confirm] that those who generally disapprove of "two girls kissing" are more apt to help the poor than those who do not--Republicans give more money to charities than Democrats do, and the Democratic party now represents the rich of the US.)
But as for Christians (they being the vast majority of the country), they should remember not to judge non-Christian behavior (1 Corinthians 5:12). They should be more, if not only, concerned with helping the poor, (and the Christian poor first and foremost).
By
Matthew, at Wednesday, March 26, 2008 1:38:00 PM EDT
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