Tuesday, 10 December, 2002

This is a part of a series of devotions based on: God Was In This Place & I , i Did Not Know - by Lawrence Kushner.



The prohibition against idolatry, in effect, also prohibits egotism, self-centeredness at the expense of someone else. Self-centeredness at the expense of someone else is the root of being a mean person. Therefore the prohibition against worshiping idols is just a fancy theological way of saying, don't be self-centered. And the first two utterances at Sinai now mean: "If you let Me be God, then you won't be a louse," or conversely, "When you are a louse, there is no God!" The barrier between us and God is our ego, and the focus of the tension is the personal pronoun, I.



Often I see a bumper sticker that reads "Mean People Suck." From what Kushner writes, it may be more fitting to have a bumper sticker that says "Mean People are Idolaters." Do we become mean when we are so consumed by ourselves that we cannot stand others? For at that point, the only perspective of life is the one I hold and any other suggestion for how life is to be lived is simply out of the question. Such idolatry will always put us at odds with others. It is how we fashion wars. Self-centeredness seeks the destruction of others...or at least their humiliation so that I may make more of myself at their expense. To counter act the temptation to be swept up into idolatrous lives we must be willing to keep listening to others and begin to see and hear things other than the way we want life to be. It is not always easy to do that. Once we are centered on our selves, it is not a simple task to turn around and be open to the wonderful fullness of God's gracious and loving reign. The bible is filled with such stories of stubborn people who resist every call to repentance.



Connection: What's going on when we are down right "mean?" Or...how do we live alongside "mean" people? How can this day be shaken from self-centeredness and become centered around God's invitation to be God's beloved...all of us?



Lord lift up our eyes from our own little worlds so that we may see the richness of your reign in which all your people come together as one. Encourage us to let go of our need to control this day and then enter into conversation with others so that we may see the world with new eyes every day. Amen