This is not a post about being annoyed.
This is a post about fearing -- truly, honestly, actually fearing -- the ethics and empathy of a statistically significant percentage of the population of this nation.
A firestorm was recently ignited in the media by the owner of Chick-Fil-A coming out against gay marriage. He said he was against it because it went against the biblical definition of marriage, and within hours (if not sooner) the pro- and anti- groups were slinging verbal mud at one another. The mayors of at least two large American cities made public announcements that the chain was not welcome in their city, the Jim Henson Company severed a long-standing business partnership with them, and the call went out to boycott the company. Not long after that, a counter-call went out asking everyone who supported the company owner's stance to make a point of eating at least one meal at the chain's nearest outlet on August 1st.
Although small in comparison to the crowds of people coming out against the company and its owner, there were some significantly long lines at many of the chain's locations on the prescribed day as thousands of people sought to show their support for... and forgive me for the language... "good Christian values."
Let me back up for a moment; if you have read any of my earlier posts, you will undoubtedly remember I am Jewish. I therefore want to make it absolutely clear that I do not consider myself any kind of "expert" on what a "good Christian" is, does, or believes.
However... I have been a member of homo sapiens and citizen of the United States of America for over half a century; I have spent a statistically significant portion of my life living "on the economy" in other countries; and my family is as diverse an agglomeration of ethnicities and religions as one is likely to find anywhere. I believe that those attributes give me enough "expertise" to comment on the behavior exhibited by the thousands of fellow homo sapiens who are also citizens of the USA, a nation established and very heavily populated by immigrants of many ethnicities, nationalities and religions.
(And yes, to state what is likely obvious, while happily heterosexual I strongly believe that every citizen of this nation should have the same rights as every other citizen regardless of any measure of difference between them and me -- including sexual orientation.)[1]
I will avoid commenting on the not-so-minor problem that the "biblical definition of marriage" was a small bit of text cherry-picked from a selection that includes many instructions and guidelines concerning marriage that these same individuals are likely to find archaic, repugnant or laughable (or described by many other similar adjectives). I am commenting on the groups, crowds, hordes (if some supporters are to be believed) who wanted to show their support for good Christian values by buying some variation of a chicken breast sandwich, wrap, or salad.
I may not believe Jesus was any more or less a child of God than any other human being, but I do believe the guy had some good ideas.[2] Ideas like taking care of the aged and infirm... helping lift our fellow humans out of poverty... taking care of orphans... treating our fellow humans with love and respect... placing equal, if not superior emphasis on the good of others as we do on our own good...
I think (I hope!) you see what kind of Jesus' ideas I agree with. I also happen to know that the vast majority of people I know who follow any of the variants of Christianity/Catholicism agree with those same ideas and ideals -- and brother, believe me when I tell you I know a lot of folks for whom the cross is the symbol of their religion.
So, all you folks out there who stood in line to give your money to a fast-food chain owned by an already-wealthy family to show your support for "good Christian values..."
How long did you stand in line, and have you dedicated the same amount of time to volunteering in a soup kitchen, a hospital or nursing home, a library, a school?
How much did your meal cost, and have you donated the same amount of cash to a charity helping the aged, the infirm, the poor, the orphaned?
How much food did you buy, and have you given the same amount of food to a local soup kitchen or food bank?
How fired-up did you get over the chance to show how closely you hew to the values of your religion, and do you feel the same way about ridding the world of poverty, hunger, disease, human trafficking?
How angry did you get over the perceived slight to your beliefs and do you feel the same anger at unfair business practices, oppressive governments, drug cartels, systemic bigotry?
Okay... Maybe I am beating a dead horse by now, but I hope you get the point. (And while there is certainly room for improvement, I actually do engage in some of the above behaviors as often as time and finances allow -- my house may not be solid brick, but it's not made of glass, either.)
Howzabout we all put aside trying to show our support for "good [group] values" and take some time to engage instead in actively supporting good human values? Maybe set aside all those "us versus them" differences just long enough to solve some of the problems that are actively destroying the lives of millions of our fellow humans in this country, in this hemisphere, on this planet every day?
Is it really so &@%#! important to give your time and money to buying a stinkin' sandwich to show how much you support a specific viewpoint when so many people -- possibly on the same block on the same street in the same town -- can't even afford one for themselves? (If you bought food at a Chick-Fil-A franchise on the 1st and then gave it to someone who could not afford it themselves, then I have a sincere "thank you" for you -- but sadly I have not yet seen any such stories in any media outlets.)
C'mon, people -- if you want to put your money where your mouth is, if you want to show your support for the Good Things in your belief system... well, take another look at my "How..." questions above and follow through.
[1] I was brought up believing the definition of different is "not the same" -- not "better" or "worse," just "not the same."
[2] I am fairly sure I just created enemies in both the Christian and Jewish religions with that one sentence... efficient, n'est-ce pas?
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