Lord Prepare Me to be a Sanctuary
The sermon in church today was mostly about whales and God's relation to Job (creator, full stop), but the children's sermon today was about this hymn, and indirectly about the slaughter of innocents in a synogogue in Pittsburgh yesterday. The minister started out talking about how they were killed in a sanctuary, but said that it isn't realy the building that's the sanctuary. She said the sanctuary can be in relationships. She said that we were supposed to be a safe place for people who were in need of solace, a place where people could be in touch with God (by being with us.)
I liked that idea. It's nice to tell people who are marginalized that you're a safe person to be around, it makes the world a bit easier for them. But what about the ones who are NOT marginalized, but think they are? It got me thinking about all these angry white men lashing out with bitter words, and when that doesn't change things, bombs and guns. The ones that think "Black Lives Matter" is opposed to Blue Lives Matter. The ones that think migrants are invading to take their jobs. (Dude, they're emigrating to clean the leaves out of your gutters. You don't want to be climbing ladders at your age, do you?) The ones that think transsexuals are coming for their women while they pee. (As a woman, I assure you that I'm totally fine letting people near me pee standing up.) The ones that insist there are XX and YY people and THAT'S IT, despite not having taken a genetics course in their lifetimes. The ones that think climate change is a hoax designed to grab their 2 ton pickup trucks. The ones that think healthcare for all is an affront to the nation's initiative.
They are so pissed, so afraid, so beset upon on all sides. People calling them racists (and it HURTS!) and impugning their right to own guns (it's INSULTING, they've NEVER hurt anyone), and they worry because they don't get a pension anymore (what are they actually SUPPOSED to do with a 401(k)?) and it's all just SO MUCH.
How to reach out to these men? I know them. I love a few of them. They need solace, comfort, a safe place where they won't be attacked for being as they are, homophobic, brought up illiterate with regards to race relations, illiterate with regards to other religions (although they suffer from Dunning Kruger and don't know that they don't know about other religions) and they have a whole hell of a lot of irritating habits like mansplaining and manspreading and basically assuming great big gobs of privilege in every situation. I understand why they are being attacked, I truly do. I see how awful they are. But I also see how wounded and confused and beset upon they are and I wish I had a way to tell them, "Oh, crap, you have a lot of learning to do. But that's okay, you can start today, and come join the diverse multi-lingual vibrant growing economy that we are now. You won't be special, but you will be one of us. It's okay. Step into the future. You can do it."
What's the next step? How do we save these men, pull back from this violent brink they've got us on?
I liked that idea. It's nice to tell people who are marginalized that you're a safe person to be around, it makes the world a bit easier for them. But what about the ones who are NOT marginalized, but think they are? It got me thinking about all these angry white men lashing out with bitter words, and when that doesn't change things, bombs and guns. The ones that think "Black Lives Matter" is opposed to Blue Lives Matter. The ones that think migrants are invading to take their jobs. (Dude, they're emigrating to clean the leaves out of your gutters. You don't want to be climbing ladders at your age, do you?) The ones that think transsexuals are coming for their women while they pee. (As a woman, I assure you that I'm totally fine letting people near me pee standing up.) The ones that insist there are XX and YY people and THAT'S IT, despite not having taken a genetics course in their lifetimes. The ones that think climate change is a hoax designed to grab their 2 ton pickup trucks. The ones that think healthcare for all is an affront to the nation's initiative.
They are so pissed, so afraid, so beset upon on all sides. People calling them racists (and it HURTS!) and impugning their right to own guns (it's INSULTING, they've NEVER hurt anyone), and they worry because they don't get a pension anymore (what are they actually SUPPOSED to do with a 401(k)?) and it's all just SO MUCH.
How to reach out to these men? I know them. I love a few of them. They need solace, comfort, a safe place where they won't be attacked for being as they are, homophobic, brought up illiterate with regards to race relations, illiterate with regards to other religions (although they suffer from Dunning Kruger and don't know that they don't know about other religions) and they have a whole hell of a lot of irritating habits like mansplaining and manspreading and basically assuming great big gobs of privilege in every situation. I understand why they are being attacked, I truly do. I see how awful they are. But I also see how wounded and confused and beset upon they are and I wish I had a way to tell them, "Oh, crap, you have a lot of learning to do. But that's okay, you can start today, and come join the diverse multi-lingual vibrant growing economy that we are now. You won't be special, but you will be one of us. It's okay. Step into the future. You can do it."
What's the next step? How do we save these men, pull back from this violent brink they've got us on?
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