“Your God is one with whom I’m not familiar, and I prefer to keep it that way”

37″Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? 38When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? 39When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’

40″The King will reply, ‘I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.’

Matthew 25:37-40

Listening to an NPR podcast today, Tim Wise offered some commentary on religious prejudice, the poor, and Katrina. It seems that Wise overheard a conversation damning the poor of the South, specifically of New Orleans, for not evacuating when it was apparent that Katrina would hit the Gulf. This conversation took place after the participants said grace, blessing their chimichangas. It made Wise sick. It made him say that he was thankful not to know _their_ god. I’m grateful I don’t know their god either, but I know a lot of people who seem to be on a first name basis with him.

Let’s tackle their arguments, talking point by talking point. The first point, that people were irresponsible, selfish, reckless and stupid for not evacuating. I’ve heard many say this, following it up with a statement that they are responsible for their situation. Usually followed by “Did you _see_ how many cars were left in New Orleans? They could have _driven_ out!”

How many middle class families have two cars? How many working class families have two cars? How many of those families would, in the event of a mandatory evacuation, drive both cars out of the city? While my family only has one car, I doubt that we’d drive two cars out of the city if we had more than one car. So all of those cars, crushed together in the flood water, may not have represented one more family that could have evacuated. Many of the survivors didn’t own those cars and therefore didn’t have legal access to them as an escape plan. Unless it’s suggested that someone should have, _god forbid,_ hotwired someone else’s car and hightailed it out of town. Because that would have been theft, and theft is _wrong._ Even when it’s to save your life and the lives of those you love, or just those who need saving.

Second point: people couldn’t be saved because of all of the violence and lawlessness. You’ve. Got. To. Be. Kidding. Me. If these people had been evacuated, or even helped immediately after the storm, do you think the situation would have gotten so bad? People were firing guns _into the air_ to alert helicopters because they were being left to die. Not because they wanted to shoot potential rescuers, but because they didn’t think the rescuers could see them. They were desperate. Yes, there was looting and violence. There was lawlessness. That’s what happens when you treat people like animals and leave them to die. Take a good look–this is what happens in the absence of compassion.

Third point: “These people (meaning the poor) just don’t have the same respect for law and human life that the rest of us do.” Yeah. If you believe that, I’ve got some news for you: your soul? It’s missing. You must have been born without one. I’m sorry, but your condition is inoperable. In all seriousness, why is this argument in _anyone’s_ arsenal? It’s insensitive, stupid and anyone calling themselves a Christian, or even claiming to be “spiritual” should have to drink the stagnant flood water for even allowing it to dwell in their vacuous little heads. If you think this, you are ignorant. The best I can give you is pity, the worst is something you don’t want to imagine in your darkest nightmare.

Fourth point: “God’s will is to punish the wicked.” Excuse me, did you just say that God _wanted_ babies to die? That God wants golden retrievers, kittens and puppies to swim through cholera and sewage infested water, following rescue boats for blocks hoping for food, water, affection and respite? Have you _read_ the New Testament? Or did you just read Revelation after you finished the _Left Behind_ series? Please remember the previous diagnosis regarding your soul. For God’s sake, when the great flood of the Old Testament occurred, God made sure that Noah gathered animals and in the New Testament Jesus said “Suffer the little children unto me”–they’re important and they’re innocent. I don’t care if you like them or not, no creature deserves this hell.

In short, no one _wants_ to stay in this hell. Sure, there are people that rode out the storm because they didn’t want to leave their properties, businesses and homes. Why? Because they’re stubborn, because they love their homes, because they just didn’t think it would get as bad as it did. You know, the same reason many Ohioans go outside and stare at the sky during tornado warnings. _They don’t believe the worst is going to happen._ Nature is capricious and it is humbling. I will not say that this disaster was God’s will, but it was Nature at its worst.

There are some that say that God wanted this to happen. Want to know what I think? God is like me when I’m watching my daughter wander around the yard. I know she’s going to fall down, she may even scrape her leg. It’s painful to watch, heartbreaking when I hear her cry of pain. I can’t stop every accident that happens and every bruise she gets, but I can provide comfort after the fact and I can wipe away her tears. Christian evangelical Dr. Tony Campolo wrote in his article [_Katrina: Not God’s Wrath–or His Will_](http://www.beliefnet.com/story/174/story_17423.html),

“Perhaps we would do well to listen to the likes of Rabbi Harold Kushner, who contends that God is not really as powerful as we have claimed. Nowhere in the Hebrew Scriptures does it say that God is omnipotent. Kushner points out that omnipotence is a Greek philosophical concept, but it is not in his Bible. Instead, the Hebrew Bible contends that God is mighty. That means that God is a greater force in the universe than all the other forces combined.

In scripture we get the picture of a cosmic struggle going on between the forces of darkness and the forces of light. The good news is that, in the end, God will be victorious. That is why we can sing in the Hallelujah Chorus, “the kingdoms of this world [will] become the Kingdom of our Lord.”

So to all the people out there saying that the responsibility rests on the victims, that God _wanted_ this to happen, and that being poor is a moral flaw worthy of this squalid and inhumane punishment, I want to let you in on a little secret. You will hear your own words used against you someday. They will echo in your ears, and maybe you’ll feel that little _deja vu_ tingle that lets you know that you are, in fact, in the Twilight Zone. Your own words will be fed right back to you and I hope they taste as good as those flood waters. There’s a reason why Christ called the Pharisees “White-washed Tombs.” They were empty inside. Take a good look at yourselves, think before you speak, and go fill up.