Blog 298 – 05.19.2016

There is a line in a small book in the New Testament, The Letter of James, that says, “God is not a respecter of persons.” Which means that God has no picks, no favorites, does not offer preferential treatment. Prior to the above quote James had pointed that the church folks he was writing to were guilty of treated the rich and powerful better than the poor and weak. “You say to the poor here sit at my feet but to the rich here we have a fine place for you up front.”

Rich and privileged folks in our day like to complain about what they call “reverse discrimination.” The poor babies they have had it nice at the expense of minorities and poor people for so long that any “leg up” program than benefits the less fortunate seems to be a threat to them and their exclusive way of life. But others are blowing this trumpet loudly so I would like to talk about another discrimination story. Our love affair with children. Think of the kids.

Don’t get me wrong. I love children. But a child’s life is not more precious than an adult’s any more that a rich and powerful person’s life is more valuable than a down and out drunk laying in the gutter. All lives are equally precious. You say, “David you’re crazy. I’d do anything for my kids. I’d die for them.” I do not believe you can love children too much but if you by your words and actions teach children to believe that they are better than others you set them on a path to make everyone around them miserable including themselves.

I believe we are all magnificent beings with a divine nature. We are all as Jesus was half human and half divine. Every child is too but we have placed children on a pedestal, giving the status of even an unborn child’s life a greater importance than an adult’s. There are many who even teach it is morally wrong to do anything to prevent conception of a child apart from abstaining from sex. Some even think it horrifying that some people prefer to live a life without having children. They have forgotten what it is like to have a two year old or a twenty year old child for that matter.  Makes me think of a favorite W. C. Fields comic line, “Kids are nice if they’re cooked right.” Lighten up, it’s a joke. Like a lot of parents out there who are worshipping their kids and creating monsters that will not only break their hearts but be a lot of trouble for the rest of us too.

Try to watch a movie in a theatre or have a nice meal in a restaurant with a child who believes that he or she is better than everybody else. You can see that spoiled and selfish child in many adults. They never seem to grow up, obsessed with always getting their own way. Who taught them to think like that? Not I said the little red hen.

Your friend and fellow traveler,
David White