The H Word

 

“How can I clearly see what’s wrong with someone else, and then look at myself as though I’m standing in front of a fogged mirror?” ~Jerod Kintz, American author and blogger.

A child-sized riot had broken out on the kindergarten playground. Everyone had been playing together happily when Amanda looked away.  Now, a moment later, when she looked back, chaos had descended on the group. There was crying, yelling, stamping of feet and pointing. Quickly identifying the source of the conflict, she waded into the epicenter.

Alejandro was in the midst of a full blown melt-down – wailing, wiping away tears and pointing at Beatrice. Beatrice had squared up to Alejandro. Her hands were fisted on her hips. She punched the air with her right index finger repeatedly. Beatrice’s posture reminded Amanda of her German grandmother when she was angry with Amanda’s brother.
Amanda expertly segregated the non-combatants and focused her attention on Alejandro and Beatrice. “So what’s this all about?” she asked calmly. “She called me a name,” Alejandro replied, choking out the words through heaves and sobs.

Amanda turned to Beatrice. “Did you call Alejandro a name?” she asked. “Yes, I did,” Beatrice replied, crossing her arms defiantly. “Why did you call Alejandro a name?” she asked patiently. “Because it’s the TOOTH!”

Amanda brought her hand to her mouth in an attempt to smother a chuckle at Beatrice’s pronunciation of the word “TRUTH”. Alejandro couldn’t restrain himself any longer. “She called me a ‘Hairy Tick;’ I’m not a Hairy Tick!” “Yes, you are!” Beatrice yelled back.

“Settle down!” “Why did you call Alejandro a Hairy Tick?” Amanda asked calmly, though slightly amused. “I ask Allie if he liked my new ‘Pretty Princess’ backpack. He said he didn’t think it was pretty. That makes him a Hairy Tick.”

“That’s not an appropriate thing to say,” Amanda responded firmly. “Our neighbor Mr. Galvin says it. He told my Mommy she was a ‘Hairy Tick’.” Now Amanda was curious: “Why would Mr. Galvin say that Beatrice?”

“Mommy said Mr. Galvin is a Christian, and because we don’t believe what he believes he calls us ‘Hairy Ticks,’” Alejandro doesn’t believe my backpack is pretty so he’s a Hairy Tick, too.”

Amanda stared at Beatrice in disbelief. “Beatrice, the word is heretic. You and your Mom are not heretics and neither is Alejandro.”

Amanda negotiated a truce between the two youngsters through a pair of reciprocal apologies. The children resumed their play and Amanda returned to her playground observation point, pondering the damage a word can do.

“I have a couple of words for Mr. Galvin,” she thought to herself. 

In a recent survey, 72% of non-believers surveyed said that the church is full of hypocrites. Just as Christians find the word “hypocrite” offensive, the word “heretic” is equally offensive. In a society with ever increasing complexity, it is ironic that there are those who find it expedient to dismiss the entire belief systems of others with a single word.

One of the three pillars of stewardship is “Evangelization” (Stewardship: A Disciples Response 1992). To some, evangelization has come to mean correcting the beliefs of others by replacing their defective beliefs with the “correct” beliefs; in other words, by “fixing them.”

Evangelization is however, more about similarities than it is differences. If we are going to be successful, it will require that we first find common ground with non-believers. If evangelism is going to become a normal part of our lives, it will have to be something we enjoy doing. And there are few things more enjoyable than making new friends.

The two greatest commandments can be distilled into four words: “Love God, Love others.” Evangelization means “loving” people into the Church, not beating them into theological submission.

Dear God: Help me to love others into faith.

“One century's saint is the next century's heretic ... and one century's heretic is the next century's saint. It is as well to think long and calmly before affixing either name to any man.” ~Ellis Peters, non de plume for British author Edith Pargeter (1913-1995)

©2013 James E. Carper. All rights reserved.