The View from the Bottom

This morning I took my grand son to school. He has to be there for 6:20. That’s ridiculous, but another story. We stopped for breakfast at Waffle House. The cook was busy cleaning the grill. He had worked all night and was about to get off before he went to his second job that began at 8 a.m. Lord, I repent of every consideration of my life as hard or any trial as significant. I had no trouble believing that Jesus really loves that guy.

Richard Rohr is a controversial catholic priest. I agree with him about 80% of the time. About 10 percent of what he says is great. About 20 percent, he’s just “out there.” I guess he would have to be labelled “left-wing.” Here’s one of his “great” quotes:

Only converted people, who are in union both with the pain of the world and the love of God, are prepared to read the Bible with the right pair of eyes and the appropriate bias, which is from the side of powerlessness and suffering instead of the side of power and control.

Jesus clearly identified with the poor and the outcast. He seemed most concerned about widows and orphans. He made it clear that the road to the kingdom of heaven was toughest for the rich and powerful. Life seems to push us down when we begin to feel too superior or self-reliant. The steering wheel is ripped from our hands when we begin to think we’re driving. We usually fail to see this as a gift. It’s essential that we see life from the bottom. We must understand poverty, helplessness, dependence and absence of control. We must see ourselves as apparently valueless in order to fully understand the love of God which embraced Calvary.

How can we trust in government to deal with unemployment or poverty or fear of terrorists which is run by persons who have never been poor or powerless or had a real job? How can we believe that church is a fancy building or that spirituality can be measured by bank accounts? How can we not see that the church is most alive when the believers have nothing and live in constant threat of death for their faith?

We might understand life so much better if we could see things from the very top or the very bottom.

 

2 thoughts on “The View from the Bottom

  1. I will be keeping this post and try to re-read it often! Thank you for reminding me of this it is so very true and more,so many more people would be blessed to have your view and frame of mind about true humbleness and the Need for it!

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