This is the theme for our Vacation Bible School program at my church. I spent my day making costumes, banners for the tribes of Israel and 60 bows and arrows. Tomorrow will be tie-dye t-shirts, making jewerly and sandal kits. These kids have cool stuff...how can these kids have it harder than us? They have the internet, hybrid cars, cell phones...I can remember when my Mom made my clothes. Now it is cheaper to buy your clothes than make them.
What will it be like we have kids? How do kids today not become materialistic?
Galilee was a simpler time...people made things, got to know the people who sold them their food and walked to church. Of course that is not the whole story, people had huge families with multiple parents and people fought over land (but was it just land?). People talk about how we should live like Jesus did. Our VBS is supposed to be like Jesus' would have experienced it long ago as a kid. And maybe we are moving in that direction oddly...multiple parents from divorce in families, fighting over land, people buying local at farmer's markets and living in condos so they can walk to their favorite hangouts.
Have things changed that much from long ago?
If not, it makes it just as hard to live as Jesus did.
Speaking of Jesus and how he lived. I wonder what Jesus would have done in my recent insurance dilemma?
I got insurance with my new job and I picked a company that does offer domestic partner benefits, however my employer did not add those two words to our policy. This is frustrating because there is another plan where they did add the words "domestic partner". Why do they offer insurance to all people, but limit the policies that certain people can be insured under?
I am torn in these situations because when I found out that my spouse couldn't be covered under my insurance because of these two words being left out I almost cried. Does the person making the policy realize what it means to leave just two words out? I want to say "why did you do this?" Yet she probably didn't even think about it. I will call her and ask her to change it for the future, but when will language stop being a barrier? When will people in relationships be considered equal? Why does one person's commitment to another person provide access to benefits, while another's does not? The church could be a powerful agent for change in this arena as they ask people to look at how are Christians called to live in the world.
This, of course, brings us back to the difficulty of living as a Christian in Galilee long ago or Atlanta, GA today. How do we work for change in the world and take care of ourselves? I don't believe that Jesus would have yelled at the insurance lady, but I also don't believe Jesus would have given up on finding insurance for the ones he loved. I believe Jesus would have taken this opportunity to bring change. I think that is where grace is in these situations. People realizing their interconnectedness and working for justice. We are all part of one body, all of creation.
Hopefully my kids will learn about this interconnectedness as they make sandals, hear the bible stories and eat hummus and pita bread together. This is my hope.
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2 comments:
I can't imagine your VBS kids won't learn something my bear.
Health insurance companies, a giant black hole of people who hate us.
Sometimes it is a tough ballencing act between taking care of yourself and working for justice. Maybe talking to the insurance lady will help her realize the huge importance of those two words. Insurance is a bitch. I am still waiting to get it at this silly job.
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