… Do not turn your face away from the poor. From the needy do not turn your eyes. Sirach 4:4-5
In charity and justice, do we at times turn our gaze away?
Open our eyes:
I was talking with my wife Ann a few weeks ago. She can’t get the homeless off her mind and heart. She had heard about the Safe Harbor Church of the Nazarene in Vancouver and their attempt at providing tiny homes for the homeless. Those homes were to be on the church property. The following quotes from the 12/16/2015 the Vancouver Columbian article – http://www.columbian.com/news/2015/dec/16/vancouver-church-backs-out-of-homeless-village/
The federal Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act says local governments are limited in their ability to regulate religious land, said Jonathan Young, assistant city attorney for Vancouver. Because the city’s regulation of church property stops at serious health and safety issues, religious institutions are the only establishments that legally could provide a place for the homeless to camp without first amending city zoning codes, he said.
The plan was delayed by the threat of a lawsuit. Resident Mandy Eguma wrote, “This type of temporary housing project MUST be located outside the city limits, improving the temporary housing options for homelessness is a message to Clark County residence (sic) that we support homelessness and will build more housing options. … Other counties may see this as an invitation to bus their homeless population here.”
Open our hearts:
Pope Francis in his World Day of Peace 2016 message Overcome Indifference and Win Peace notes two ways in which indifference to our neighbor is manifested.
- Some people are well-informed; they listen to the radio, read the newspapers or watch television, but they do so mechanically and without engagement. They are vaguely aware of the tragedies afflicting humanity, but they have no sense of involvement or compassion. Theirs is the attitude of those who know, but keep their gaze, their thoughts and their actions focused on themselves.
- In other cases, indifference shows itself in lack of concern for what is happening around us, especially if it does not touch us directly. Some people prefer not to ask questions or seek answers; they lead lives of comfort, deaf to the cry of those who suffer.
The Lord, Pope Francis and my wife are helping me to open the eyes of my heart.
Open the eyes of my heart mediation. Words used from song written by Michael W. Smith.
Peace – John