Sometimes what looks like giving really is getting, but it's hard
to convince other people of that. It's equally hard to
convince YOURSELF.
I've had several instances of this in my life. One was our
adoption
of our goddaughter.
One of these was the homeless lady I started calling the
Lucky
Lady. When I see her walking around the Farmer's Market
these days, she is buying vegetables instead of panhandling,
and the last time we saw her she was doing something very
ordinary to anyone who is not homeless: drinking a cup of
take out coffee and chatting with a friend. I like to think that
I had a very small part in her rehabilitation.
More obvious ones were
helping to
feed 800 homeless people Thanksgiving dinner at our
church. In my dairy about feeding the homeless, I
wrote: "While drifting off to sleep that night, I reflected that
religions have so many 'rules' about what you should and
shouldn't do to make yourself what might be called 'holy,' but
the reality is that feeding the homeless is probably about the
closest that any of us come to that. Thus it was a real
privilege to be allowed to do it. If anyone praises me for what
I did, I'm going to remember that."
Signing books for disabled Vets in Texas was another rare chance to
do something good. I wrote that this opportunity, too, was a
privilege and I mentioned that "the radio personality Don
Imus singlehandedly brought in $400,000. Since Imus has
gotten in hot water for some of his remarks recently, it was
yet another reminder to me that deeds count so much more
than words."
Some recent news has kept us away from church for awhile:
the idea that Pope Benedict (who is an educated man and
knows better) stated in Africa that condoms "cause AIDS."
His reinstatement of a holocaust-denying bishop (although he
later said that HE did not personally deny that 6 million Jews
were assassinated by the Nazis). The more recent news that
schools in Ireland for orphaned children, which were run by
the Catholic Church, systematically abused children in horrific
ways, some of which were sexual and others which were just
plain sadistic.
I mentioned this during one of our weekly subscriber chats,
and someone said to me: "Anne, don't let anyone keep you
from the Light."
I thought, "That's a very wise statement." I often think that
during these Wednesday computer chats, Whitley and I are
giving people information, but I GOT something very important
from that person.
So we did go to church this morning, and the sermon was
given by the pastors of our "sister church" in Kenya, who
were pleading for funds to repair their school so it wouldn't
have to close. The priest who spoke described how he had
grown up in Rwanda during the time when the Hutus were
killing the Tutsis. He mentioned that every single member of
his family had been killed, some of them by other family
members.
He's the only one in his family left alive, yet he's not bitter.
He obviously decided that hate would destroy him, so he
decided to become a priest, so he could talk about
forgiveness and reconciliation. I admire some, but not all,
other religions, and a few versions of Christianity seem to
filled with too much hate to be genuine, but despite all that,
it seems to me that Christianity is the one religion in the
world that stresses forgiveness, which, despite all the dogma
that is often misused, is why it is valuable and has lasted.
God Himself (or Herself) even changes as we move from the
Old Testament to the new. The God of the Old Testament is
punishing and imperious, demanding to be worshipped. The
New Testament god, as interpreted by Jesus, loves us and
will give us what we need.
We wrote out a check for the Kenya school, but while we
were giving, I reflected on how much I had GOTTEN from his
talk. It made me realize how easily I can easily be filled with
anger and bitterness over so much less.
I wasn't ashamed of myself (I'm not that bad), but it did
make me realize that I have an opportunity to deal with some
of the people who are hassling me right now in a different
way. My actions may not change them (in fact, they
probably won't), but they'll make ME a better person, and
that's the only thing I can control.
Related Entries:
10-Nov-2009: On NOT Going to a Movie about UFOs
20-Oct-2009: The Laughing Buddha
11-Oct-2009: The Red Coat
22-Sep-2009: Four Days
07-Sep-2009: Portents, Synchronicities (and Coincidences?)
27-Aug-2009: Two Birthdays
12-Aug-2009: Held Hostage by Hummingbirds
05-Aug-2009: The Irish Milkmen of the Dog World
27-Jul-2009: Two Surprising Events
29-Jun-2009: Trickster Coyote
