As many of you know, Drew and I live here in Bolivia, and deal with issues of poverty, injustice, and violence on a daily basis. I have always patted myself on the back for the work we do, rationalizing in my mind that because I live in a "third world country" and work from 9-5 each weekday with these issues that it might be enough. Really, it has only allowed me to point the finger at others who I deem do less than I do about these critical issues. But when I take a walk with my dog in the evenings and see the drunks out in the park in front of my house, the house next to mine that consists of pieces of cardboard and tin nailed together, or hear the kids talk about the abuse and violence they experience in their houses these things don't seem to go away. The line "love your neighbor as yourself" seems to take on a new meaning. Taking a walk at home in Chattanooga, TN didn't seem to challenge me as much as it does here, yet I am also aware that the same issues I see here are very relevant on the "other side/the black side" of Brainerd Road.
Yesterday, I sat in on a meeting at work for a few minutes. It was a meeting of indigenous leaders who were talking about helping their communities who find themselves suffering violence, injustice, and poverty. One leader expressed an idea he had. Marcial is a man who has fought hard during his life. He has fought for the life of his people, the Mojeños, their cultural identity, their land that is being unjustly taken from them by the government, and his faith. If you were to read a biography of Marcial´s life, you wouldn´t find much hope. He has been physically beaten, persecuted because of his ideas, and falsely accussed of trying to overthrow the governments plans. But he continues to fight hard for his people, and more importantly his faith which he finds integral to everything he does. Marcial dreams that his people will one day be able to live full lives where they can be 100% Mojeño and 100% Christian. He dreams that the hope of the Gospel will not only be a percentage of Mojeño evangelicals souls saved, but also an example of communities striving everyday to live out the Kingdom of God here on earth demonstrating peace, love, and justice.
What struck me about Marcial´s idea was not so much the idea itself, but his reasoning for it. As a man who has struggled and fought his whole life, he is sickened by the simple fact that there are people in this world who have more than enough to eat, who have all the luxuries of life, and who act like everyone else in the world lives as they do. Marcial wanted to write a letter to a certain group of celebrities asking them if they even realized that there were people who lived without food to eat, without any luxuries, and who have no one who is willing to stand beside them and treat them as a fellow human being. As he began explaining he details of his idea, I began making a list in my mind of "those people" who I would like to write to myself. Then, I began to think about it, and I remembered what I had been told in college, how I am considered in the top 1% of the world's wealth.
As white, middle class America, we are really good putting ourselves in a bubble with people who look, think, and act like us. We are good at always pointing out the people who have more than us, and patting ourselves on the back for the bag of clothes we don't use anymore that we give away each year. But what we forget is that we also have. Marcial isn't asking for the rich to overwhelm his people with material wealth. Marical's plea is that his fellow brothers and sisters who come from more affluent situations can live out Micah 6:8, "He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and walk humbly with your God."
In order to do this, maybe we, as white middle class America need to take the first step in realizing that we are rich. Let us stop pointing the finger at others who have more than us. Why don't we wake up and realize that WE are rich! I am not just talking about the numbers my bank account shows, but I also have good education, I have connections to a whole network of other white, middle class Americans who have different giftings/abilities, I have the ability to get involved in almost any issue that I want to, I can go and talk with people in my government about things I think could be better, I have a family support system, and so many other things.
I am thankful for this time in Bolivia, it has made me uncomfortable, uneasy, and feel completely out of place. It has gotten me outside of my white, middle class American bubble. I still don't have all the answers, I still have a long ways to go. But being here has helped me through the first step of beginning relationships with people who are different from me, so that I can understand the majority of people don't live, look, or act like me. Now I see that there is much work to be done.
What does it mean to act justly? There are many ways, but one area I have recently been convicted in is when I go clothes shopping, in 99% (my estimate) of stores in the States, our clothes are the product of unfair wages, poor working conditions, and are many times made by taking advantage of people in poorer countries. Is it a just thing for me to buy those clothes?
What does it mean to love mercy? Are my actions towards my neighbor demonstrating mercy, or simply pity? This one is hard for me, really hard.
What does it mean to walk humbly with my God? I am thankful that the rest of the world doesn't look, think, or act like me. I am thankful that I have much to learn, and that I can walk alongside my Bolivian brothers and sisters to learn more about God together.
We have a lot to give up as white, middle class Americans, and the first is our pride and fear. Next is beginning those relationships with people who are different than us. Then we can begin to see a bigger picture of what it means to live out Micah 6:8.
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