There's a scene in the movie called The Order, staring Heath Ledger and a few of the people from A Knight's Tale (don't recall their names, and too lazy to look them up), that I really like. It's about outcast priests who are seeking out the Death-eater, to kill him, and a great adventure ensues. Sounds cheesy as I describe it, but nonetheless, good movie! The reason I bring it up now, is because there is a scene in the movie, towards the beginning where the character Thomas is chasing down a demon through the city of Paris I believe. Nonetheless, the demon gets hit by a truck and flops out the side door, and exclaims: Fuck your god! To which Thomas replies, as the demon dies, "All mouth and no trousers...!" [End Scene]
The reason I lead with this is because it sets the scene for what's been going on in my head--yes this will be a bit of a rant--as it pertains to faith and life as I have been living it in recent months/years!
Over the course of yesterday, I was a part of several conversations about faith, it was actually really relaxing and inspirational, however, when I started to really look at my life, I realized that there was something off. My actions and faith statements don't match; there is a very blatant disconnect between the words that come out of my mouth/fingers and the actions that my feet lead me into, and it bothers me.
It also bothers me when other people do the same thing, especially outside of their personal lives. What I mean by this is organizations, corporations, and other places of business claiming one thing and allowing their actions to speak louder than their words. I feel as if I currently with for/with an administrative team, which essentially means an organization, that does that.
I don't want to quit my job, but I would much rather work for an organization where everything adds up; top to bottom! From the board of directors to the part-time staff that are on the front lines should all be held accountable to the words that come out of their mouth, especially when those words directly impact the lives of children and families. Now, this is not about bashing organizations, or venting my displeasure with the way things go at my work, but rather a call to action--especially for those of you who claim to be Christians, who fly the flag of Jesus above your homes and persons.
There are a few specific areas of concern that have hit me pretty hard: 1) accountability and 2) action. Both of these issues go hand-in-hand, but have also been removed from the cooking surface for whatever reason in the large scale operation.
Accountability
I heard a singer of a band comment on how Christians across the United States are stand alone types. That one sect of Christian is only accountable to their own kind, that the Westboro Baptist Church are those people over there. That the crazy conservative, right-winged Christians over there don't speak for all Christians--that's just their opinion! It's all bullshit, in my current thought process. Subscribing to the title of Christian means something to the greater population, whether its the crazy southern Pentecostals or the mega-church celebrity preachers, they all fly the same flag. If there is only ONE god and ONE way to Heaven and ONE Jesus and ONE church and ONE body and ONE everything, then we are all connected: protestant, catholic, Presbyterian, baptist, Calvinist, etc. All flying the Christian Flag, which would indicate that we are all in this fight together. Yes, there are differences, yes there are arguments, yes there are wars, but where is the accountability? Are we not responsible for what happens under the flag that we fly ourselves?
I don't know... just thoughts. I don't want to point fingers anywhere. I would rather take down the flag then have to fight with people over beliefs. That's why I don't talk about it. When asked if I'm a Christian, I kind of skate around it because I don't want to be held accountable for the things that other people do; nor the disconnect between the faith and my actions, which is a battle that I think more of us can relate to!
Action
Under the flag of Christianity, should be an active people. There are claims about doing good for the world, making disciples, helping people out, and all of that, which is great--keep up the good work! However, how much of that work is actually done in a real way? This is not to accuse anybody of doing a bad job of doing good things. It's an inquiry as to how the work is being done. Are we sending a check in the mail to an organization that says they're helping Children in Africa. Are we volunteering once a year at a homeless shelter because our place of employment sets it up? Are we sitting on the board of directors, fundraising a lot of money for the organization, but not really paying attention to the work that's being done? I feel that this is a great schism that has formed over time between people with assets and the front lines of work. Once you get to a position of power, with money, you no longer have to do the hard work. You can pay others to do it, right?
I was actually told on Thursday by a member of the administrative staff, "I'm at admin now, I don't do this stuff anymore." This was said in reference to bagging and hauling bags of groceries that we have to hand out to families every week. It hit me to smart off, "That's precisely what the problem is," however I knew she was at least half kidding. The person who said this has been with the organization for 10 years now, and has risen through the ranks to their new position. However, that's precisely the problem. People are willing to put in the hard work until they hit easy street, and then production stops. They get the funds in to operate, and do work on the easy edge of the gorge--the one on the beach!
The Bible
Now, this is all well and good in terms of the American Dream. Hard work deserves reward, even if it means earning the luxury of no longer doing hard work, however being a Christian would allude to something far greater than living in the lap of luxury. All throughout the "Holy Bible," there are stories of great action, triumph, defeat, but a spirit of constantly moving forward--taking action steps. Moses and his group wandered for 40 years through the desert, for instance. Jesus rode a donkey even though he was the "king of the jews," and even Paul, later on, was constantly traveling, writing, and being thrown in jail. What do we do? What do I do? I don't feel as if I am living up the lineage of what it means to be a Christian. Granted, a lot of bad things have been done under the guise of the faith, but that goes back to the part(s) above as well. If we are to truly live up to the commands and directions of the faith, then I feel it is time to take a stand. To return to the trenches and get our hands dirty for the world that we're supposedly trying to save. Do good work, in a good way... Do real work, in a real way... Do work, period!
Conclusion
I don't know, y'all. I just feel like I am falling into the corporate trap of power=hands free. I don't ever want to be like that. I want to strive to stay in the trenches for as long as the good lord gives me breath. I know it isn't for everybody, I know there are roles to be played at all levels, but to me that's over used as an excuse to not do the dirty work anyway. No need to pull in the mob scenes, but that's what it's become. We have lackeys and hired guns to do the work for us, but we're all fully capable of opening the door ourselves.
Like I said, I don't want to point fingers, call people out, or even ruffle feathers in the wrong direction. I just want this to be a better world, and in order for us to make it a better world we need to step down off of our thrones and do some real work--like our ancestors did. They got muddy, bloody, sweaty, and really tired--just to wake up and do it again the next day. We've become complacent in our modern era, and I feel that it's created in us a fear of work. We get into the corporate sector because it's easy, and it really ends up less meaningful. So, let's pick up a little both/and thinking and find a way to reconcile our corporate talents with real work that still needs to be done in this world. It's possible, we just have to make it happen.
May god illuminate in you a clear path that leads to meaningful work that takes you back to the trenches!
-Andy J. Graves
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