Whether we like it or not many of us have been guilty of an "us vs. them" attitude at one time or another. Today I had to talk with my son about calling his sister a "nerd". I asked him what is a nerd? I continued asking him to define his descriptions until we finally got to the point that we attack people who are different to us. Now his was more "sibling bickering" but many times it is not.
History is full of evil actions being carried out on people who are different or are the "other". In fact most crimes against GLBT people is born out of fear of either are different "other' status or there are also cases where the perpetrator is not so different and the GLBT victim becomes the target of the perpetrator's self-hate.
I have also experienced watching people change the way they look at GLBT people simply because they actually got to know some. When an "other" becomes a name and a face, it changes everything. That is why for a soldier to do their job the leadership has to portray the enemy as evil and a threat. In fact the present administration has used this "evil" label to justify a lot of their incompetence.
However we GLBT people can also be guilty of the "Other" mindset. Christ calls us to rise above this kind of mindset and to operate from the mindset of Christ. He sees all people as a "we", "us" and part of the family of God.
Lord,
Help me to see those who are different from me as your children and worthy of my love, prayers, and reaching out to. Deliver me from the desire to demonize that which is different.
Amen
1 comment:
Amen brother. I have a hard time w/the them vs. us thing. As a minority you kind of assume a them vs. me mentality and you lash out at people becuase sometimes it seems better to strike first.
Jer
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