What Would Jesus Say About Discrimination?
“What is discrimination?” asked nine-year old Tabitha. To make it easy to understand, Sr. Rita replied, “Discrimination is treating people badly because they don’t look like you.” Tabitha remarked, “But Jesus loves me, and he doesn’t look like me? “Yes,” answered Sr. Rita. “Jesus loves everybody even those who don’t look like him.” ThenSr. Rita said clearly, “Tabitha, you have the perfect answer, because if Jesus loves everybody so can we.”
Tabitha and Sr. Rita’s exchange may sound simplistic, but the basic meaning is there. Diminishing people’s standing merely because they don’t look like you, sound like you, or pray like you are not God’s plan. Doesn’t Jesus ask us to love God and our neighbors without exception?
Some of Jesus’ neighbors didn’t like him: tax collectors, Samaritans, Pharisees, sinners, and Sadducees, to name a few. Yet, Jesus found time to eat with them, heal them, or cure their family members. Jesus made tax collectors his followers. Yes, Jesus found time to love neighbors that did not really love him.
Jesus never made distinctions based on color, race, faith, or ethnic background. He saw these distinctions as forbidden and cruel. Every discriminatory judgment is contrary to Jesus’ good news which he teaches and gave his life to remove. Jesus says, “I didn’t come to condemn the world, but to save it.”
When followers, then or now, raise these intolerant barriers or walls they are not hearing or listening to the words Jesus Christ received from his father to preach. Rather, these followers are deaf Christians, who neither hear Jesus’ message,nor speak it.
This is my commandment that you love one another as I have loved you.
When God’s word is preached, they may hear the words, but they are not actually listening to the meaning. However, this deafness is still able to be healed and washed away. As Pope Francis said, “We cannot tolerate or turn a blind eye to racism and exclusion in any form and yet claim to defend the sacredness of every human life.”
On the other end of the spectrum, Jesus urges his followers to avoid cultivating persons of rank with special treatment, while excluding others because their status doesn’t equal “our” standards. This behavior is incorrect, and it must be changed!
I leave you with this wise Italian proverb:
After a game of Chess, the King and Pawn are returned to the same box!
What can I do to stamp out discrimination?
1. Remember the only others in your world are other people.
2. Preserve and celebrate your own background and identity.
3. Think and talk positively about other cultures.
4. Make a deliberate choice to celebrate with other ethnic groups.
5. Find beauty in everyone.
6. Pray for Awareness.
God has the whole world in his hands.
Chess Match: Honoré Daumier, artist
