Outcast

Hebrews 10:32-39

           There was a man named Carl that lived next door to me when I was growing up. He was an inspiration. He had cerebral palsy and as an adult, despite his stuttering, unsteady gate and his tortured speech, rode a three wheeled bicycle with a basket full of Avon products which he sold in our, and adjoining neighborhoods. He was a good man with a great sense of humor. In our town there was also a Cerebral Palsy Center. As far as I knew it was used for classes, therapy and day care. One day when I was riding bikes in that area with my friends, one of them made a really rude remark about the people at the center. I don't know what came over me but little wimpy me almost pummeled the kid, verbally and physically. I'm not sure who was more surprised, him or me.

               When you are gay or simply perceived to be gay, you get a lot of flack. You are berated and bullied, teased and hazed mercilessly. It is so wrong and countless kids succumb to this pressure and give up their lives in desperation. At one time, Christians knew what it was like to be harassed and were even thrown in with the lions. There are many martyrs for Christ. African Americans have seen more than their fare share of  bigotry, hazing, teasing and even lynching.  I am not sure if this is part of a human condition. It seems many, many people have suffered through the ignorance and bigotry of others. This is why we have laws in this country to protect certain classes of peoples because of the historical evidence that this has gone on and sadly, continues to go on.

          Once you accept who you are, the task may not get all that much easier. There will still be ignorance and hate just as there will always be poor people. Two things come immediately to mind though. Once you do accept yourself as a person and into 'that' marginalized group you belong to, you feel pride and power. Power in saying "yes, I am gay", "yes I'm italian, what about it?", "I am a Jew" or any similar statement. You now belong to a group bigger than one. It's a kinship, an acknowledgement that you are part of a group, however small, that God wants you to take pride in. After all He created you did he not? The second thing that is ever so important is empathy.

            I now believe that I was so empathetic to all minorities throughout my life because I had an inkling deep down inside that I too was oppressed. Hopefully we all have a sense of what it's like to be bullied, marginalized and brushed aside. It isn't a good thing to experience but sadly we all know. For this reason alone we should have an understanding and appreciation for the oppressed. Jesus certainly called us to reach out to the poor, the sick, the outcasts of society. This is all the more reason to appreciate the plight of others.

           Jesus always reched out to the outcasts and risked ridicule and public opinion. As Christians, and anyone that has experienced being an outcast, we should embrace, love and support the oppressed.

           

But recall those earlier days when, after you had been enlightened, you endured a hard struggle with sufferings, sometimes being publicly exposed to abuse and persecution, and sometimes being partners with those so treated. For you had compassion for those who were in prison, and you cheerfully accepted the plundering of your possessions, knowing that you yourselves possessed something better and more lasting. Do not, therefore, abandon that confidence of yours; it brings a great reward. For you need endurance, so that when you have done the will of God, you may receive what was promised. For yet
‘in a very little while,
the one who is coming will come and will not delay;
but my righteous one will live by faith.
My soul takes no pleasure in anyone who shrinks back.’
But we are not among those who shrink back and so are lost, but among those who have faith and so are saved.