Don't Forget the Tiny People

Religion that is pure and undefiled before God the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world. –James 1:27

The Levite, because he has no portion or inheritance among you, and the alien, the orphan and the widow who are in your town, shall come and eat and be satisfied, in order that the LORD your God may bless you in all the work of your hand which you do. –Deuteronomy 14:29

Your rulers are rebels and companions of thieves; everyone loves a bribe and chases after rewards. They do not defend the orphan, nor does the widow's plea come before them. –Isaiah 1:23

He has told you, O man, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God? –Micah 6:8

The Bible is filled with God’s concern for the widow and orphan.  We have to be very careful building on what Scripture says; but allow me to speculate that as the widow and orphan were the most vulnerable class in these writer’s societies, we can extend the principle while being faithful to scripture to include the handicapped, the working poor, the elderly, the refugee, the slave (illegal slavery, particularly for illicit purposes, is alive and well today in our country), and those society marginalizes, be it for racial, gender, religious, or other reason.

A local high school put on Seussical recently, a musical based on some of Dr. Seuss’s work.  Ever since, I’ve joked about naming any future son we may have Horton after the elephant who fights to protect the tiny people of Whoville, always remembering that “a person’s a person no matter how small.”  (Alex is not a fan of this name, in case you were worried).  It might not be the best name, but what a role model.  Judging from my childhood trajectory, a young Horton would likely be much bigger than his peers.  Depending on how God gifted him and our family, he very well might be a giant in other ways as well.  What better way to remind a child to protect the tiny people?

The church is meant to be like Horton, and it is my sad observation that it is failing in this regard miserably.  The prominent Christian voices I most frequently hear are all concerned with protecting our self interests.  More ink will be spilled on a supposed “War on Christmas” this time of year than on the problem of housing the homeless from the cold this season brings.  Forwarded e-mail chains promoting the notion that liberals want to make us all dependent on the government will fill inboxes   Fears about our loss of religious freedom will be stoked as millions are displaced by war and famine, some of whom will starve and die because they have no place to turn. 

We have been convinced that we should be afraid of the world; us, a people who believe God Almighty fights for us.  Are you kidding me?  I am not afraid for what my future holds in terms of personal liberty and economic well-being, but I am nauseated at what I see from the church around me.  We have become so fearful, so protective of our rights, that we have become bullies ourselves.  We even elected a bully to be our President in hopes that he would better be able to protect our rights.

I am no prophet; God doesn’t speak directly to me to reveal his divine will.  I do think He made me a Horton, however, with a compassionate heart and a good mind for seeing the needs and realities that others apparently miss.  As if to complete the analogy, He gave me a tall, broad frame, and even ears that are disproportionately large.  May he forgive me for the times I, either passively or actively, forget about the tiny people.  I had a hard time sleeping last night thinking about this reality and how paltry my response has been.

Reality is something of a paradox.  We are all helpless in ourselves, just like the citizens of Whoville.  However, because of Christ’s sacrifice, we have fellowship with God who enables us to spread His kingdom; that makes all of us who are called by His name Hortons.  While writing this, I had been musing about how tiny I was compared to some of the bullies in the world today, Horton though I may be.  Reality is stranger than fiction; the biggest bully has nothing on me or you.  We should not cower in the corner in front of self absorbed posers when the God of the universe fights for us. May Christ enable us to live like it.