“A scribe then approached and said, ‘Teacher, I will follow you wherever you go.’ And Jesus said to him, ‘Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests; but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head.’” (Matthew 8:19-20 NRSV)
This week two different things brought this scripture verse to mind. The first was a story that came across my news feed about a bronze sculpture of Jesus shrouded in a blanket and lying on a park bench.
The sculpture of “Homeless Jesus,” created by Canadian sculptor Timothy Schmalz, depicts a man wrapped in a blanket with only his bare feet exposed. There is a hole in each foot, leaving the viewer with the impression that it is Jesus under the blanket.
When the traveling sculpture was placed outside St. Barnabas Episcopal Church in Bay Village, Ohio recently, it only took 20 minutes for someone to call the police department’s non-emergency line to report the homeless person. The police arrived to discover the “Homeless Jesus” sculpture on display. The parish priest said the point of the statue is to get people’s attention and show that when someone in need is being served, so is Christ.
We don’t know if the person who made the call, called out of concern for the homeless person or for another reason, however, we do know that the traveling sculpture of “Homeless Jesus” has evoked strong emotional responses from many people. According to National Public Radio, when the sculpture was on display in Davidson, North Carolina, some residents felt the statue demeaned the neighborhood or was insulting.
Schmalz, the sculpture’s creator, said the statue is meant to reflect the values of Christ and show that Jesus is aligned with “the least in our society…If Jesus came down today, he would be hanging out with the homeless people, with the marginalized.” Schmalz said, “It’s a benefit to homeless people and the marginalized themselves to understand that they have self-worth and that they are very close to God.”
The second event that brought the verse from Matthew’s Gospel to mind, was a call I received from Bill Devine of Habitat for Humanity of the Fox Cities. Bill said he was calling St. Mark’s Church to thank us for our financial support this past year. Bill said that their goal for 2020 was to build 17 homes. Due to the coronavirus out-break they didn’t quite make their goal this year, but still, they will finish 15 homes this year. Thanks be to God!
Habitat for Humanity, and their mission to provide sustainable housing, is just one of the many ways that your generous gifts continue to make a difference in our community and around the world.
2020 has been a difficult year, not only for each of us, but around the world. And as much as all of us have been inconvenienced, and perhaps, both emotionally and financially burdened by the virus and world events, 2020 has been understandably worse for the homeless and impoverished individuals in our society.
This year, our Thanksgiving celebrations will likely be curtailed from years past, and still, we know that God is faithful, and we have so much to be thankful for.
This year, at the top of my list of thanksgivings, I am thankful for all of you, for your kindnesses and your generous spirit, that continues to uplift this community of faith and keeps us on the right pathway as we look forward to a new year and the promise that it holds.
Have a blessed Thanksgiving everyone, and remember the poor.
Pastor Bob
