WIDOWS AND ORPHANS
Widows and Orphans
From the Apocryphal book of 2 Esdras. God is speaking to the church He calls “mother.”
“Guard the rights of the widow, secure justice for the ward, give to the needy, defend the orphan, clothe the naked, care for the injured and the weak, do not ridicule the lame, protect the maimed, and let the blind have a vision of My splendor. Protect the old and the young within your walls. When you find any who are dead, commit them to the grave and mark it, and I will give you the first place in My resurrection. Pause and be quiet, My people, because your rest will come.”
Does this passage not sound suspiciously like Psalm 146:9? (Look it up!)
I do love the Apocrypha. The Protestant politics that pulled these books out of the Bible made the Word of God so much less. This passage is tucked within other exhortations about doing good works and how the church is to treat its people. God calls the church “Mother” and “Father,” as an example of how we are to act towards each other. But I believe He is also calling upon physical mothers and fathers to treat their children with respect, and to love and nurture them.
As I read this, I am again reminded that Jesus Himself was very familiar with the books that we call the Apocrypha. He studied them, knew them, and often drew his own teachings from them.
Throughout the Bible are numerous references to widows and orphans as being especially in need of protection and care. In Biblical days, both were completely without power and at the mercy of the communities in which they lived. While widows have a slightly better time in this modern day, children are still and always will be in need of protection and care from those around them.
In today’s world, with Covid-19 running roughshod over the entire world, we are drowning in widows and orphans. Sad, lonely, terrified of the future. Many have lost their jobs and are afraid of being evicted from their homes. They have difficulty putting food on the table. The future looks bleak indeed.
How we treat these widows and orphans says a lot about who we are as a country, and as a society. I am dismayed when I see reports of the anger, fear, and irrational behavior of people towards their fellow man. But I am hopeful when I see the volunteers who deliver food to the needy, and those who care for the sick, often putting their own lives in danger.
It is up to us to decide what sort of a nation we will be. Will we manage to pull ourselves out of our “it’s all about ME” frame of mind? Will we put others before ourselves? What can we do, when our own resources are limited? Most of us aren’t made of money, and are often on the receiving end of such selfless giving.
Well, we can pray. Maybe we can volunteer at a food bank, or feed people at a soup kitchen. Maybe we can drive people to doctor’s appointments, or drive them to the voting precincts. Maybe our task is simply to encourage others as they fight their own battles. Maybe it’s simply to lend a helping hand at the supermarket, or share a smile with a stranger. There is always something we can do.
I like the final passage here, because once again God reminds us to “Be still and know that I am God.” He’s saying, “Don’t sweat the small stuff. I got it covered. Don’t get your knickers in a twist or your panties in a bunch. I’m God, not you…remember?”
St. Teresa of Avila said,
“Christ has no body now but yours. No hands, no feet on earth but yours. Yours are the eyes through which he looks compassion on this world. Yours are the feet with which he walks to do good. Yours are the hands through which he blesses all the world. Yours are the hands, yours are the feet, yours are the eyes, you are his body. Christ has no body now on earth but yours.”
Are you doing your part? Am I doing mine?
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