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This is a biblical reflection on the understanding of poverty and Christian response to it from the perspective of the Mar Thoma Church. The attempt here is not to present statistics on poverty and/or the poor people but to reflect upon the nature and characteristics of the church as a community of believers who have been called and commissioned by God through Jesus Christ to create a true neighborhood in the midst of pluralities and diversities and thereby to become a true neighbor for those who are poor and marginalized. Since the headquarters of the Mar Thoma Church and most of its members are set in the context of Indian society, where still poverty and exploitation in multiple levels are painful realities experienced by the vast majority, the church has always looked and continues to look into this issue with much consideration and seriousness. The Mar Thoma Church - Indian in origin; global and diasporic in current existence; social, ecumenical and evangelistic in faith and expression - falls under the Lesser Eastern Churches, and was believed to be founded by the Apostle Thomas in A.D. 52. The church always emphasized and tried to blend both its Eastern (Syrian) traits as well as the Reformation principles. Some of the major focuses that have always been upheld since the Reformation movement in the church in the 19th century were (1) its high emphasis on lay participation in the worship and mission of the church, (2) the hermeneutics of the Bible pointing to the holistic mission of the church taking the wholeness of the human and (3) its inclusiveness in a context of high exclusivism perpetuated by the caste distinctions in the Indian society. Moreover, the church is democratic in its structure and administration. The Mar Thoma Church understands itself as a community of believers called to be the agents of the Kingdom of God in the world by calling forth the societies and peoples to evolve a neighborhood where there is neither poor nor oppressed. The mission of the Mar Thoma Church particularly in the socio-economic realm has been set within the socio-economic context of the Indian society. The total salvation of the human person including the development of his/her personality and the environment is the significant agenda of the mission of the Mar Thoma Church. It is a self-supporting church, and the church has grown in its mission absolutely by the support and participation of its members. The following biblical reflection is based upon the understanding of the church as a community that is to mark well the aspect of "other" in its life and mission in the modern context, where "the other" is very often being neglected in the pursuit of individuals' self-gratification through the modern consumer culture. It is based on the Deuteronomic understanding of Israel as a community who has been called to express preferential option for their less privileged neighbors, such as widows, orphans, aliens and the poor (Deut.15). Israel has been called as an alternative covenantal community, which must radically be alternative to the great empires of the day, which are highly exploitative and oppressive. Yahweh has entered into a covenant with the people of Israel by which Yahweh made ultimate claim to their loyalty and commitment. Covenant with Yahweh emphasizes the relational character of the Israelite community. The community is set in the midst of pluralities whose actions and attitudes must be shaped by means of reciprocal and meaningful dialogue. The covenantal vision embraces the whole sphere of human society including the theological and the socio-political. It not only signifies the vertical and transcendental realm of relationship with God but also emphasizes the proper and appropriate caring relationship with one's neighbor. In other words, the relational character of the covenantal community must take "the other" genuinely and seriously. Speaking on the theme of "neighbor," Walter Brueggemann in his book, The Covenanted Self: Explorations in Law and Covenant talks about the "other" in human life. He explains that God, neighbor and the self are the "other" in human life. He indicates that God as the "other" is not simply a counter-object, but it is the risky, demanding, dynamic process of relating to one who is not us, one to whom we are accountable, who commands, and from whom we receive our very life." (Brueggemann, Covenanted Self, p.1). He further explains that the "neighbor as the other is more problematic than God as the other, because the neighbor is so near, so visible, and so daily." The book of Deuteronomy is Israel's "neighbor-book," (Brueggemann, Covenanted Self) which invites us to embrace this covenantal vision of an alternative community that takes seriously the concept of neighborhood by exhorting each and every member of this covenant community to be a good neighbor and also to become a neighbor. Poverty and oppression are the challenge to this neighborliness. The Deuteronomic law codes, particularly texts such as Deut.10:17b-18,19; Deut.15 etc., reflect the understanding of neighborhood in the Israelite community. The laws emphasize that the people are to become a neighbor more to the people who are marginalized and poor than the people who have everything. Therefore, laws of the Israelite community grant a preferential option and priority to those underprivileged groups of the society, who have been characterized and categorized in the Hebrew Bible as slaves, Levites, strangers, widows, and orphans. Much provision was provided in the laws for their economic sustenance and their participation in the life of the Israelite community. In the regulations concerned with sacrifices and tithes, the Levites are taken care of. In the rules related to the crops and harvest, strangers, widows, and orphans are in the center. The Deuteronomic law code implies that the existence of strangers, orphans, and widows will always be a reality in human community; it will be impossible to look for a world where there are no such groups. But Deuteronomy envisions that it must be possible to create a world in which one can be a stranger, an orphan, or a widow without being poor, without being marginalized, and without being dehumanized. All these laws provide a radical and alternative vision of human community, which is to be shaped by the radical vision and alternative life style of the Israelites through the covenantal relationship, which must continue to challenge not only the neighboring nations but also the future communities of the world. The monarchy in Israel has brought major social and economic inequalities in the society, which made a radical shift from the vision of an alternative neighborhood, by not only neglecting the poor and the marginalized but also keeping them outside the circle of neighborhood. The law in Deut. 15 reflects a context when and where Israel has attained a state of affluence by acquiring more capital and land in which wealth and poverty became two contrasting realities. This law puts larger pressure and social restraint on the dominant and affluent groups, whose commercial and economic activities shouldn't allow them to achieve a state of uncontrollability and to make them hegemonic over the underprivileged and the poor of the community. It defines neighbor as a "member of the community" (v.2). The land, for Israel, was understood as the gift of God. Yahweh is its real owner and Israel has only responsible stewardship over the land. They need to protect the right of both the land and the peasants of the land. Due to the increase of taxation and other reasons, when the peasants were obliged repay debts and loans and had to borrow money from the rich, the laws insist that their debts must be cancelled. At the end of six years, the land must lie fallow in order that the poor may eat from the land. The widow, orphan, sojourner and the poor are the "other" in the community and each and every Israelite must relate to them with love, care and generosity. This law was promulgated anticipating that Israel would have always poor people (v.11) in their midst due to natural calamities as well as the diverse socio-economic policies of the kings. Deut. 15:12-18 concerns the persons who had become slaves. At the end of six years the slaves must be released from their service with generous gifts, which was intended to remind the people of their experience of slavery in Egypt. It constantly reminds them to remember that once they were in Egypt and experienced what is bitter and hard through slavery and oppression. Since Yahweh has liberated them from oppression, they are obliged to grant freedom to all people in their midst by taking them as the neighbor with an attitude of love and care. Jesus has widened the horizon of neighborliness to include stranger, alien, foreigner, and even enemy. Paul's understanding of ecclesia as a community of believers also points to this understanding of neighborhood. He compares the church with the organism of the body where Christ is the head and the members are its organs. If one member suffers, all suffer together with it (1 Cor. 12:26), and God has so arranged the body, giving the greater honor to the inferior member. The inferior member is more honored than the more honored (1 Cor. 12: 26) [Brueggemann, Covenanted Self]. The modern consumer society often challenges and threatens this covenantal bonding and affirmation of the "other" but putting "ego/self" and "the commodity" as the new idols. For instance, even in a developing country like India, fast foods and other luxurious commodities have become the ultimate icon of our culture. George Ritzer has characterized them as the modern "cathedrals of consumption" to which people go to practice their "consumer religion." The chairman of McDonald's company said, "Our goal: to totally dominate the quick service restaurant industry worldwide… I want McDonald's to be more than a leader. I want McDonald's to dominate." (cf. George Ritzer, The McDonaldization of Society: An Investigation into the Changing Character of Contemporary Social Life). Celia Lury, in her book, Consumer Culture explains that this culture decisively influences the construction of identities, the formation of relationships and the framing of events. The modern consumer culture propagates the message that to have is to be. More possessions means more privilege. The tendency is to define persons on the basis of things one possesses. Celia Lury quotes Helga Dittmar: "in Western materialistic societies…an individual's identity is influenced by the symbolic meanings of his or her own material possessions, and the way in which s/he relates to those possessions. Material possessions also serve as expressions of group membership and as means of locating others in the social-material environment. Moreover, material possessions provide people with information about other people's identities." (Celia Lury, Consumer Culture, p.8). Today our culture with its desire for deep consumerism and accumulation creates boundaries by keeping out certain others who are not equal to our socio-economic status. This boundary made on the basis of material resources shatters the understanding of community and neighborhood. Jesus Christ was trying through his ministry to create a wider neighborhood embracing all people irrespective of caste-class-socio-economic status by being and becoming a true neighbor for the less privileged "other." The church by involving in the mission of Jesus is called to the formation of an all-inclusive neighborhood where all will live in loving and caring dialogical relationship by being and becoming a true neighbor to "the other." |
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Euyakim Mar Coorilos